This decadent Red Velvet Cake is a signature deep red layer cake with rich buttery, vanilla, and cocoa flavors, with a hint of a buttermilk tang! Topped with old-fashioned Heritage frosting or thick cream cheese frosting, this classic family recipe makes the best Red Velvet Cake!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Classic Red Velvet Cake. This recipe makes the iconic cake everyone loves for Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and other special occasions like birthdays! (It was the delicious cake my mama always made for my birthday.)

Easy. It is an easy cake recipe that yields an impressive, gorgeous cake! You’ll love that it is made from scratch, yet easy as can be!

Flavor. Red Velvet Cake combines butter, vanilla, and cocoa with the tangy buttermilk flavor and sweetness from the creamy frosting.

How to Make Red Velvet Cake

Red Velvet Cake is certainly an impressive cake! Standing tall and topped with either Heritage Frosting (cooked frosting) or Cream Cheese Frosting, it’s a favorite for Christmas and other holidays, birthdays, and special occasions. While it’s simple to make from scratch, it’s much more than just a red-colored layer cake. The flavor of this cake is unique and scrumptious, and the texture is velvety delicious!

Ingredients for Red Velvet Cake

Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full listing of ingredients, instructions, notes, and estimated nutritional information.

To make this cake, you’ll need the following ingredients:

• shortening – Shortening yields a tender, moist cake. I use an organic shortening, but you can use your favorite brand.
• sugar – Granulated sugar is used in this cake recipe.
• eggs – Use room temperature eggs for better mixing into the cake batter
• red food coloring – Use your favorite red food coloring in this recipe. You can find natural and organic red food coloring options, but red may fade during baking.
• cocoa powder – You’ll use a little cocoa powder in this recipe. Not enough to make the cake a chocolate cake, but enough to lend a bit of flavor.
• flour – You can use all-purpose or cake flour in this recipe. [How to Make Cake Flour]
• salt – Just a little salt helps to flavor the cake and balance the sweetness.
• Vanilla Extract – I love to use my homemade vanilla extract for its incredible flavor, but use your favorite pure vanilla extract. I don’t recommend using imitation vanilla flavoring.
• baking soda – The baking soda reacts with the acid in the buttermilk and white vinegar in this cake recipe.
• buttermilk – Not only does the buttermilk work with baking soda to help the cake rise, but it also adds flavor and tenderness to this cake.
• distilled white vinegar – This vinegar works with the buttermilk and baking soda to help the cake rise. It also adds to the tenderness of the cake.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Cream together the shortening and sugar. Then, add the eggs one at a time.

Mix the cocoa powder and red food coloring in a small bowl.

Combine. Add the cocoa powder mixture to the shortening and sugar mixture and mix well. Sift together the flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Stir together the vanilla extract and buttermilk in a measuring cup.

Alternately, mix flour mixture and buttermilk mixture into shortening/sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour.

Distribute the cake batter between the three prepared cake pans. Bake the cake layers for 25-30 minutes until the cake layers are baked throughout. You can follow my tips for how to tell when your cake is done.

Remove the cake pans from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Make frosting. While cooling, prepare the frosting you’ll be using – either heritage frosting or my easy cream cheese frosting recipe. Once the cake layers have cooled, spread the frosting on top of each layer as you assemble the cake. Then, spread the outside of the cake with frosting.

How to Store Red Velvet Cake

To store. Due to the frosting used, you’ll need to keep this cake in the refrigerator. The cake will store well for up to 5 days.

To freeze. Wrap each cooled cake layer with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To serve, thaw and frost the cake and serve as normal.

Much More than a Holiday Cake

Don’t save this special cake for once a year at Christmas! It’s delicious and makes a memorable cake for someone’s special day. My Mama made this cake for the Christmas holidays, but seeing this velvety red cake piled high with fluffy white frosting for my birthday was always a special treat. When Sam was little, he loved it for his birthdays, too!

More Favorite Cake Recipes

Looking for more cake recipes?

I think you’ll love my chocolate cake recipe, white cake recipe, and Mother’s cream cheese pound cake. Southern Caramel Cake is another special one everyone enjoys! They are all delicious and easy!

If you are a Red Velvet cake fan, try my Red Velvet Cookies or Chocolate Velvet Cake.

Here’s my Mama’s Red Velvet Cake recipe. I know you’ll love it!

This cake will be a favorite on your holiday dessert buffet, next birthday celebration, or family dinner.

Enjoy!
Robyn xo

This recipe was originally published on November 7, 2010.