Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Servings: 18 to 20 cupcakes
Calories: 464kcal
Rich in color and flavor, these moist red velvet cupcakes are topped with a slightly sweet, tangy cream cheese frosting that's perfect for any occasion (not just Valentine's Day)!
Print Recipe
Equipment
- Piping bags
- Piping tips
Ingredients
Red Velvet Cupcakes
- 2 cups cake flour
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup unsalted butter melted and slightly cooled
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons red velvet bakery emulsion or red velvet food coloring, plus more if desired
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- 8 ounces unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 teaspoons clear vanilla extract can substitute pure vanilla extract
- 4 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
Red Velvet Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two muffin pans with 18-20 liners and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together cake flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt and baking powder. Set aside.2 cups cake flour, 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder
- In another large bowl, whisk to combine eggs, melted butter, buttermilk, vinegar and vanilla extract.2 large eggs, 1 cup unsalted butter, 1 cup buttermilk, 1 teaspoon white vinegar, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Add flour mixture to bowl of wet mixture and beat on medium-high speed until mostly combined.
- Add food coloring to reach your desired color of red, and beat again until well combined.2 tablespoons red velvet bakery emulsion
- In your prepared pan, fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a cupcake comes out clean.
- Place on wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a large bowl, combine cream cheese and butter and beat on medium high speed until smooth.8 ounces cream cheese, 8 ounces unsalted butter
- Add vanilla extract. Now reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually add powdered sugar. Turn up the speed to high and beat until frosting forms stiff peaks. Taste test - if you want it sweeter, add more powdered sugar. If you want less cream cheese flavor and more vanilla, add a little more vanilla extract.2 teaspoons clear vanilla extract, 4 cups powdered sugar
- If you want to color the frosting, now's the time to do it. I recommend using soft gel paste food coloring as it doesn't thin out your frosting the way normal food coloring gel does. Add a drop of color at a time and beat well until you reach the desired color. If you want to do multiple colors, just divide out your frosting into different bowls and beat the desired color into each individually.
- Frost cupcakes generously, serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Storage: Once you've frosted the cupcakes, they'll need to be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezing: You can store cooked, cooled cupcakes in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months - thaw overnight in the fridge and then bring them to room temperature before frosting. You can also store the frosting in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months - thaw overnight in the fridge and then use a hand mixer to mix it briefly before piping onto your cupcakes.
- Red Velvet Bakery Emulsion: I exclusively use LorAnn Red Velvet Bakery Emulsion, because it's more concentrated and adds flavor to the finished product. If you can't find that, you can also just use red food gel paste or red food coloring.
- Coloring the frosting: I like to add Bright White food gel paste to my cream cheese frosting to eliminate a little of the yellowish hue. But you can color your frosting in whatever color you'd like! I highly recommend using food gel paste instead of food coloring, as it's more concentrated and requires less of it to tint your baked goods.
- Vanilla extract: I use clear vanilla extract in my frosting since it doesn't add any color to it - but you could always use pure vanilla extract. Just note that it will add a bit of color and darken your frosting a tad.
- Amount of frosting: I like to add very generous amounts of frosting to the tops of my cupcakes, but if you like it a little more lowkey, you can cut the frosting recipe in half. The amount in the recipe card makes about 4 cups of frosting.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cupcake | Calories: 464kcal | Carbohydrates: 56g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 89mg | Sodium: 218mg | Potassium: 82mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 44g | Vitamin A: 852IU | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 0.5mg