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A slice of red velvet cake on a plate with a fork.
5 from 7 votes
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Best Red Velvet Cake from Scratch

Perfect red velvet cake can be hard to find and even harder to replicate at home. With a few key ingredients and careful steps, you can easily make this classic red velvet cake in your own kitchen and feel like a world class baker to boot.
Prep Time25 minutes
Bake Time35 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Recipe Author Lynn April
Servings: 12 slices

Ingredients

RED VELVET CAKE

  • 2 and ½ cups (300g) all-purpose flour be sure to measure properly
  • ½ cup (80g) cornstarch
  • 3 Tablespoons (18g) unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
  • 2 cups (400g) granulated sugar
  • ⅔ cup (160mL) vegetable oil
  • 4 large eggs room temperature and separated
  • 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar1
  • 2 teaspoons red food coloring2
  • 1 cup (240mL) milk1 room temperature; you can also use buttermilk (see notes)

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

  • 8 ounces (225g) full fat block cream cheese softened to room temperature
  • ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
  • 3 and ½ cups (420g) powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt

Instructions

RED VELVET CAKE

  • Move a rack in the oven to the middle position and preheat it to 350ºF (177ºC). Grease and flour (or use homemade cake release) two 8" round cake pans3 and set aside.
  • Sift the flour, cornstarch, cocoa powder, salt, and baking soda together into a medium size bowl. Set aside.
    2 and ½ cups (300g) all-purpose flour, ½ cup (80g) cornstarch, 3 Tablespoons (18g) unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • If you are using regular milk: add 1 Tablespoon of the distilled white vinegar to the milk and stir it around. Reserve the remaining 2 teaspoons of vinegar for the next step. If you are using buttermilk: skip this step and add the additional 2 teaspoons of vinegar in the next step.
  • In a large bowl with a handheld mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy (approximately 2-3 minutes). Add the vegetable oil and beat again until completely incorporated. Add the egg yolks, vanilla extract, remaining vinegar, and food coloring and beat again on medium speed until everything is combined.
    ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, 2 cups (400g) granulated sugar, ⅔ cup (160mL) vegetable oil, 4 large eggs, 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract, 1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar1, 2 teaspoons red food coloring2
  • Turn the mixer down to low speed and add the dry ingredients in three additions, alternating with half of the milk/buttermilk. Do not overmix batter, and stop after the last bit of dry ingredients is mostly incorporated. There may be some dry pockets remaining. This is ok.
    1 cup (240mL) milk1
  • Whip the egg whites in a medium size bowl, either using a handheld mixer or a whisk, whisking vigorously by hand. Whip the egg whites until soft peaks form (see the photo in the post above if you're unsure what this looks like). This will take about 2-3 minutes.
  • Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the batter with a spatula by cutting your spatula down the middle of the batter, then gently scooping half of the batter over and on top of the other half of the batter. Turn the bowl ¼ of a turn and repeat until batter is silky and smooth. It will be slightly thick.
  • Divide batter evenly between the two (or three) prepared cake pans. Bake cakes for 32-38 minutes or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. If the cakes need a little longer, indicated by wet batter on the toothpick, bake for a minute longer and retesting, taking care not to overbake the cakes as they will dry out. You may need to bake an additional minute, test, and rebake and retest until it is properly finished. Remove cakes from oven and allow to cool in the pans completely on a wire rack before removing and assembling.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

  • In a large bowl with a handheld mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter on medium-high speed until smooth.  
    8 ounces (225g) full fat block cream cheese, ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter
  • Turn the mixer speed down to low and slowly add the powdered sugar. Add the vanilla extract and salt and continue mixing until smooth. 
    3 and ½ cups (420g) powdered sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, ⅛ teaspoon salt

DECORATE THE CAKE

  • For a 2 layer cake: place one layer, bottom side up, on a plate or cake stand. Using a spatula or knife, spread an even layer of colored frosting over the entire surface. Place the second layer on top, bottom side up, and press down on the top lightly. Spread the rest of the cream cheese frosting on the cake, beginning with the top and working your way down the sides. Decorate as desired.
  • For a 4 layer cake: split each layer into two smaller layers using a cake leveler or serrated knife and repeat steps for 2 layer cake.
  • Cake stays fresh covered at room temperature for up to 4 days. Cake may be covered and refrigerated for up to 7 days.
  • Make ahead: prepare cakes and frosting up to 1 day in advance. Cover cakes tightly and keep at room temperature or in the refrigerator until ready to assemble. Refrigerate prepared frosting in an airtight container until ready to use. Unfrosted cake layers may be frozen, wrapped tightly, up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before assembling. Frosted cake can be frozen, wrapped tightly, up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.

Notes

  1. Distilled white vinegar/milk: I rarely have buttermilk on hand, so I always make my own. As written, the recipe assumes you do not have buttermilk. If you do have or prefer to use buttermilk, reduce the total amount of distilled vinegar in the recipe to 2 teaspoons, add it to the cake batter alongside the vanilla extract, and use 1 cup of room temperature buttermilk.
  2. Red food coloring: I prefer gel food coloring, as it is more concentrated than liquid food coloring. If you only have liquid food coloring, increase to 1 Tablespoon (15mL). 
  3. Cake pans: this recipe will fit also fit in two-9" round cake pans (reduce bake time to 28-34 minutes) or three-6" round cake pans (reduce bake time to 18-24 minutes).  
Did you make this recipe?Mention @freshaprilflours on Instagram or tag #freshaprilflours!

Nutrition Disclosure

All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 697kcal | Carbohydrates: 96g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 100mg | Sodium: 475mg | Potassium: 159mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 70g | Vitamin A: 595IU | Calcium: 111mg | Iron: 2mg
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