Of the many delicious cake recipes made from scratch, red velvet stands out from the rest. Sure, part of it is the vibrant hue that is unmistakable once you slice into it, but it also has a depth of flavor that makes it unique. And of course, anything slathered in cream cheese frosting is worth an extra slice.
What was once only a favorite in the South is now popular across the country, found in everything from sheet cakes to cookies and more. It's the perfect color all year round, too. Fall in love with every bite by making it a Valentine's Day dessert, serve it up as part of your red, white, and blue dessert spread for the 4th of July, and then add it to your Christmas dessert table to celebrate the holidays.
But what is red velvet exactly? It's got to mean more than just the color of a cake—and indeed, it does. So let's take a sweet little trip back in time to find out the origins of this American original.
What is red velvet cake?
Red velvet cake is an American-style cake that has a little bit of cocoa powder added to a vanilla buttermilk cake base. (There's often a colorant added, too, but we'll get into that in a moment!) That small addition of cocoa isn't enough to make it a chocolate dessert, but it does make the resulting cake fluffier with a fine crumb. Back as early as the Victorian era, the term "velvet" was used to describe this type of texture.
How does red velvet get its color?
Okay, so now we know why there's "velvet" in the name. Next, let's discuss why red velvet is red. When it was first developed back in the 1800s, cocoa powder was often natural or not Dutch-processed like most are today. When natural cocoa mixed with acidic ingredients like vinegar or buttermilk, it took on a reddish hue and thus ushered in the first iteration of red velvet.
Now, of course, it wasn't as red as we know it today. During the early 20th century, the processing of cocoa changed and chefs began experimenting with beet juice to maintain the red color. Eventually red food dye was invented and became increasingly popular on the mass market. So, you will see red food coloring in most modern recipes, and lots of it. (Though the use of natural food colors like beet powder has increased in popularity in recent years, so it's worth researching!)
What flavor is red velvet?
As mentioned above, you most likely won't taste the cocoa. But because of it and the general helping of buttermilk, the end result will have a slight tang to the moist, delicate crumb. Think of it as vanilla cake's colorful sister that has a bit more attitude. While it works well with plenty of other frostings like buttercream, the rich sweetness of cream cheese balances the cake out nicely.
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