The Red Velvet Mystery

So many people ask me why I don't have red velvet cupcakes on my menu. I simply don't like them. To me, red velvet is the most overrated cupcake flavor ever. I mean, who even knows what's in it. Is it a vanilla? Is it chocolate?  It's a flavor that comes in a bottle right? Like vanilla extract or something.

I have tried it many many times...even in the South where it originated...thinking each time I do, I'll finally realize what the hype is about....never happened. I've even made them from scratch several times still not happy with the bland taste it left in my mouth and odd coloring it... uhh ...left behind.  So let me break down what makes this confused little cupcake so enticing.

It starts with your typical ingredients..flour. Sugar. Eggs. A little cocoa. Then some red food coloring. And buttermilk. And then vinegar. Yes, vinegar. This definitely throws people off when they hear there is vinegar in their favorite cupcake. This is what makes a red velvet what it is.  The reactions of the vinegar and the buttermilk make tiny little pockets of air that help create a really moist cake. I personally do not like using food coloring so I am instantly turned off by this cupcake.  Adding food coloring to anything can dramatically alter it's taste (see my philosophy on cooking in my "about me").

I have been on a quest to create a red velvet cupcake I actually enjoy the taste of AND that does not contain artificial coloring. Enter littlehouseliving.com. A lovely site that somewhat mirrors my way of thinking about life and what my mom always taught me..."make do with what you have."

Here's my recipe adapted from Little House Living:

Red Velvet Cake Recipe

Makes 24 cupcakes

• 2 ½ cups cake flour
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder (I use Hershey's)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 cup salted butter
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 ½ cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup beet puree (about 3-4 beets)
• ½ cup + 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, and vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, salt and baking powder.

In another medium bowl, whisk together the milk, beet puree, orange juice and vinegar.

Add a third of the liquid ingredients, followed by a third of the dry ingredients, alternating wet and dry and mixing well after each addition.

Use your standard scooper and fill wrappers 2/3 of they way. Bake for about 18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool then frost with Cream Cheese Frosting.

The cupcakes were a bit too moist which is why the liners begin to peel away. 

I wrapped the beets in tin foil and roasted in
the oven for about 45 minutes

 You may be thinking beets in a cupcake sounds kinda gross.  (*On a side note, beets have never entered my mouth, ever! My mom always ate them pickled and they reminded me of cranberry sauce out of the can, which I despise.) Beets were actually used traditionally by some bakers to naturally enhance the red tint created by combination of cocoa powder, vinegar and buttermilk.  The beautiful deep red of the beets made a perfect color for these cupcakes. The beets also help create a super moist cake. No one will ever suspect they're eating veggies in their cupcake!