Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Uniquely balanced with a gentle cocoa backdrop, a hint of tang from the buttermilk and vinegar, and a smooth, buttery sweetness.
Texture: Moist and melt-in-your-mouth soft, with just enough structure to withstand generous layers of frosting.
Ease: The batter comes together in no time!!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe: It’s a tried-and-true crowd-pleaser. The red color makes it a great option for holidays like Valentine’s Day, the Fourth of July, or Christmas.
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There’s something utterly irresistible about a classic Red Velvet Cake. It feels celebratory but familiar — decadent but never heavy. The combination of cocoa, vinegar, and buttermilk gives it a truly unique flavor.
This recipe in particular makes a soft, buttery, and moist cake (the trifecta 😉). If you’ve never made red velvet before, this is the perfect place to start. The batter comes together easily, bakes up beautifully, and stays incredibly soft even after frosting!
Do you want to make cupcakes instead of a cake? Check out our Red Velvet Cupcake recipe.
Great recipe, stays moist and delicious, even stood up to me messing up the way its combined. 🙂
I baked this cake for my daughter’s birthday and it was delicious!!!!
Recipe Ingredients
While the ingredient list is on the longer side, don’t let it intimidate you. It’s all easy! Each item plays an important role in creating the cake’s signature flavor and texture. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Cream cheese and unsalted butter: Used in the cake and frosting for richness and structure. Make sure both are at room temperature for smooth mixing.
- Dry ingredients: This kitchen-tested combination of flour and leavening agents gives the cake lift and balance. Measure carefully (preferably with a scale) to avoid a dense crumb.
- Sugars: Granulated sugar sweetens and moistens the cake, while powdered sugar helps make the smooth, stable frosting.
- Egg and egg yolk: Adds richness and helps create a tender crumb.
- Vegetable oil: Keeps the cake moist even after chilling (butter is not a good substitute).
- Unsweetened cocoa powder: Just enough to give classic red velvet depth without turning it into a chocolate cake.
- Hot coffee (or boiling water): Hot liquid blooms the cocoa, bringing out its full flavor. Water works as a substitute if needed, but coffee is preferred.
- My Best Chocolate Cake is another delicious coffee-infused cake!
- Buttermilk: This helps create the tenderness and flavor. I don’t recommend substituting it, but whole milk can work in a pinch with slightly different results.
- Distilled white vinegar and vanilla extract: This recipe uses small amounts to balance the sweetness and activate the leavening process.
- Red gel food coloring: I recommend using gel food coloring over natural or liquid options. I use the Americolor or Chefmaster brands!
- Ground cinnamon (optional): This adds a subtle warmth and enhances the cocoa without being overpowering.
The Perfect Frosting
Cream Cheese Frosting is the go-to for red velvet cake because its tangy flavor complements the cake’s sweetness so well. This is the same frosting I use on my Red Velvet Cookies, and it works just as beautifully on layered cakes.
For something more sturdy or to add more detailed cake decorations, try my Best Buttercream Frosting instead.
Storing & Freezing
- Storing: The cream cheese frosting for this cake will spoil if left out for extended periods. Store the cake, covered, at room temperature for up to 6 hours, then refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Freezing: For longer storage, freeze the cake for up to 2 months. Chill until the frosting is firm, then wrap tightly in plastic wrap or place in an airtight container. If freezing the cake whole, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator before serving. Thaw individual slices in the fridge or at room temperature for 1-2 hours.
- Make-ahead: To prepare in advance, wrap the uncut, cooled cake layers tightly in several layers of plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag or airtight container. Store cake layers at room temperature for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Note: A fully frozen, well-sealed cake is still safe to eat after extended freezing (like for an anniversary bite), but some quality loss is normal. Over time, moisture migrates out of the cake, resulting in a drier, slightly spongy texture. The frosting may become grainy or weepy once thawed, and freezer odors may develop.
More Cake Recipes You’ll Love
Looking for more tried-and-true cakes? Browse some of my favorite cake recipes below, perfect for birthdays, holidays, and special occasions.
FAQs
Red velvet cake is buttery, moist, and plush, with a soft, airy crumb. It has a mild chocolate flavor and subtle tang that gives it more depth than a standard vanilla cake.
Not at all — it’s got a personality all its own! Unlike chocolate cake, red velvet cake uses only a small amount of unsweetened cocoa powder. It’s just enough to add color and depth, but let the other flavors shine through. The tangy ingredients help balance the sweetness and truly set it apart.
For a red velvet recipe that’s on the more chocolatey side, try my Chocolate-Stuffed Red Velvet Cupcakes!
Vinegar enhances the subtle tangy flavor that makes red velvet cake distinct, while also playing an important role in the cake’s texture. It reacts with the baking soda, alongside the buttermilk and cocoa powder, to help create soft, tender layers.
A few key elements work together to create that perfectly moist and fluffy crumb. Oil keeps the cake moist even after chilling or refrigeration, and the tiny bit of cocoa ensures it doesn’t dry out.
Be careful not to overmix the batter, as this can prevent the crumb from turning out tender and light.
You can, but for the best results, I recommend using my Red Velvet Cupcakes recipe! It uses the same base flavors as this cake, with a few small adjustments to ensure the cupcakes bake evenly.
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Ingredients
For the cake:
- ½ cup of plain hot coffee or boiling water
- ¼ cup (21 grams) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 2 ¼ cups (279 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional
- 2 cups (400 grams) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (109 grams) fresh vegetable oil
- 1 stick (113 grams) unsalted butter, melted
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
- 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 teaspoons red gel food coloring, plus more if needed*
- 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
For the cream cheese frosting:
- 2 sticks (227 grams) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature
- 4 cups (500 grams) powdered sugar, sifted
- 16 ounces (454 grams) brick-style cream cheese, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 325°F and line three 8-inch round cake pans with parchment rounds.
- Spray parchment and sides of pans generously with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a glass measuring cup, whisk the hot coffee and cocoa powder together, then cover and let stand for 5 minutes.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, vegetable oil, and melted butter. Add in the eggs and egg yolk and whisk for around twenty seconds (or until very well combined). Add in the buttermilk, vanilla, and red food coloring and whisk to combine. Whisk in the vinegar and coffee mixture.
- Using a fine mesh sieve, sift the flour mixture into the batter in three additions, whisking until each addition is incorporated.
- Divide the batter equally between the prepared pans, then tap the bottoms of the pans against the counter several times to release any air bubbles.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Place the cake pans on cooling racks, and when they’re cool enough to touch, run a thin knife around the edges of the pans to loosen the cakes. Invert onto the wire racks and let cool completely.
For the frosting:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the softened butter and sifted powdered sugar on low. Gradually increase to medium-high to prevent a sugar cloud.
- Beat for 3 minutes until the mixture is pale, light, thick, but smooth. It may look dry or crumbly at first, but keep beating until it holds together.
- Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl and paddle, then add the cream cheese and beat on medium-high for 1 minute until fluffy.
- Add the vanilla and salt and beat for 30 seconds until fully incorporated. Scrape down the bowl again as needed.
To assemble:
- Lay one cake layer flat-side up on a cake plate or pedestal. Tuck in strips of baking paper under the cake edges to keep the plate clean.
- Use about a third of the frosting to fill the bottom cake layer, then top with the second cake layer and repeat.
- Place the final cake layer flat-side up and use the remaining frosting to ice the whole cake.
Notes
This post was originally published in 2013 and updated in 2022 with recipe improvements and new photos. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
This turned out perfect. I did cut the cinnamon in half but otherwise followed exactly as directed. It is a little bit of labor but at the end is so worth it. Thank you so much for the tips, they help tremendously for someone like me who doesn’t do much baking.
Hi! Can i use alkalized cocoa powder for this recipe? thanks!
Hi Chris! We recommend using natural cocoa powder for this recipe as Dutch-process cocoa powder doesn’t react to baking soda. Learn more about the difference between the two cocoa powders here. I hope that helps! Can’t wait for you to give this recipe a try, it’s a favorite of mine! 🙂
I rarely leave comments on recipes and when I do, they are usually the best stuff I have tried. And this… oh my lordd. The cake is so..so..SOOOO MOIST! Oh my god. I have tried many red velvet recipes and this one takes the cake (no pun intented) seriously i have given up looking for the best red velvet recipe until i found yours. Thank you so much!! Xx
I didn’t have unsalted butter on hand so i used salted butter compound and still added the salt (i used iodized salt) followed the recipe to a T and didn’t have any issues.
Thrilled to hear this, Chris!!
For the food coloring, can you use Lorann brand? Thank you.
Hi Kristina! We haven’t tried this cake using that brand of food coloring, but just check your bottles to ensure they’re gel food coloring, and not liquid. The liquid style isn’t as concentrated and you’ll need a lot more to color your cake, which will alter the consistency of the cake. Check out more info on this (as well as links to Tessa’s recommended brands) in the pink tip box, above the recipe 🙂
when making the coffee, is it just a tsp of coffee granules and hot water added or more coffee?
Hi Crystal! The answer to your question will depend on the type of instant coffee or espresso you’re using – the package should direct you on this. You can just make the coffee as you normally would to drink and just use 1/2 cup total for the recipe. The hot coffee and cocoa powder will be mixed and allowed to sit to bloom for 5 minutes, before continuing with the recipe. Be sure to read the directions for the recipe before starting, and check out the pink tip box above the recipe for more info! Happy baking 🙂
I made this cake and converted another batch into 35 cupcakes for my son’s birthday party. This recipe is perfect! The cream cheese frosting is delicious with the right sweetness, and the cake sponge is soft and light. Wonderful! This will always be my go-to recipe for red velvet cake and cream cheese frosting! Highly recommend!
Could I make this in a regular cake pan?
Hi Ann! I’m not sure what you mean exactly by ‘regular cake pan’ – do you mean a sheet pan? Other readers have successfully made this recipe in a 9×13-inch pan, but we have not tested this ourselves. Let us know how it goes if you give this a try!
I should have been more specific. Yes a 9 x 13 pan. I made this cake for our daughter-in-law’s birthday and it was spectacular. Tender and delicious. Everyone loved it. Yours is the only recipe I will use for red velvet cake from now on!
So glad to hear that, Ann! 🙂
Has anyone tried making this as a Bundt cake?
Hi Will! Perhaps one of our other readers has tried this, but we have not tested this recipe in a bundt pan, so we cannot say for sure how that would work. Let us know if you give this a try 🙂
The cake was delicious! thank you for sharing this but I have a question why my cake layers aren’t that thick like what I’ve seen in the pictures, I used the same and exact measurements and 8 inch pan but it turns out into thin layers.
Hi there! I’m glad to hear that your cake was delicious! Thin cake layers are likely either due to something being mismeasured or substituted, or inactive leavening agent. How old are your leavening agents? If your baking soda/powder are not fresh, they won’t do their jobs and your baked goods can not rise properly, fall after baking, and much more. Tessa talks about the science behind leavening agents, and how to test for leavener freshness, in this article here! I hope this helps! Happy baking!
hi, i’ve nvr asked Q’s on cooking pages like this. hopefully you can help me & others. I’m making this for a friend for his birthday with cheesecake layers. I only have 2x 9in round pans. how long do you recommend baking? I’ve had it cooking for 30mins and they’re still very very wet in middle I honestly worry about over cooking the whole thing. oof
Hi Allicia! We list instructions on how to make this cake in 9-inch pans in the pink tip box above the recipe, I hope you noticed that before your cakes were finished baking! You’ll need to increase the baking time by about 5-10 minutes, so about 40 minutes in total, or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean. How did your cake turn out?
Delicious, moist cake perfectly complimented by the cream cheese frosting. Most recently we made this as cupcakes following the guidance in the blog post, worked out beautifully. Will definitely make this recipe again (many times I suspect)!
I have someone that has requested a red velvet sheet cake, I was wondering if I can cook this in a 9×13 pan?
Thanks
Shea
Hi Shea! Other readers have successfully made this recipe in a 9×13-inch pan, but as we have not tested this ourselves, we cannot say exactly how long this will take to bake. Let us know how it goes if you give this a try 🙂
delisioso!!! 5 Star for sure. Followed to a T, and turned out perfect. Thanks for your recipe!
Hi, can the recipe be converted to cupcakes as well? If so, at waht temperature and time shod they be baked? Thanks!
Hi Lou! Yes, these can be made into cupcakes! Check out the the pink tip box, above the recipe, for all the info 🙂