Red Velvet Chocolate Cupcakes

If you want to be my friend, then give me a cupcake. If you don’t, then I will still be your friend, but I would like you more if you offered me a cupcake. I am a fool for cupcakes. I can justify eating many of these versus a slice of cake because they are much smaller (at least visually). I should be ashamed to say that I can cram one into my mouth in one quick swoop, icing and all, but I’m not. It took years for me to become that talented. This is a handy skill especially when surprised by one of my children in the morning before breakfast. Yes, I have even eaten a few for breakfast, but never serve them to my children. What kind of mommy would I be if I served cupcakes for breakfast? Hmm…I think we may have a special cupcake breakfast one morning. It can’t be too different from serving pancakes or French toast.

This recipe is a combination of two flavors of cake/cupcakes I love; red velvet and chocolate. I used to make a delicious red velvet cake, but one of the ingredients is a box cake which contains trans-fat. I steer clear of foods, as much as I can, that contain that ingredient. After finding this recipe, this is the only red velvet cake recipe I make. It is delicious and I serve it as a cake for Christmas and use it to make cupcakes throughout the year.

Whether you decide to treat your children to a “Cupcake Breakfast” or force them to wait until after dinner (“ah Mom”), then I think you will enjoy this recipe. Hey, if you make them in the morning, then maybe you can slip around a corner, unseen, and do a taste test just to be sure they taste as good as I say they do.

Red Velvet Chocolate Cake

Unsalted butter for cake pans
2 ½ cups cake flour (not self-rising)
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup cocoa powder
1 ½ cups sugar
1 ½ cups canola oil
2 large eggs
¼ cup red food coloring
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons white vinegar

Directions
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Butter two cupcake pans or two 9″ pans if you prefer to make a cake. Mix the cake flour, cocoa, and salt together and set aside to use later.

*Be sure to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl after adding each set of ingredients.*

Combine the oil and sugar until creamy.

Mix in the eggs, one at a time, and beat well.

Add the red food coloring and vanilla and mix well. Your batter should appear slightly creamy.

Add your dry ingredients mixture and alternate with the buttermilk.
Mix the baking soda and vinegar until the baking soda is well dissolved.

Add to batter baking soda and vinegar mixture to the batter and beat well combined.

Evenly divide batter between the cupcake or cake pans.

I usually bake cupcakes and/or muffins for a minimum of 12 minutes and start watching the oven until I get a good feel as to how a recipe cooks.

Once completely baked to your liking, remove the pan from the oven and allow cupcakes to cool for about ten minutes in the pan. Remove from the pan and let the cupcakes further cool on a wire rack.

Let’s not forget we’ve got to ice these delicious mini-cakes. This is my perfect butter cream icing (for now) and I use it on every cake, cup cake, wherever icing is required, which is subjective, and it is delicious. I’m still working on the exact measurement of milk.

Butter Cream Icing

8 tablespoons butter (NO MARGARINE)
3 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Milk – Start with 1/8 cup first and add very, very slowly from there because it can get thin really quickly.

Directions
Combine butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk. Add more milk as needed until icing is thick enough to hold, but thin enough to spread smoothly. Hand your children some sprinkles and let them loose to sprinkle away!

Notes
1. If you prefer to make a two-layer cake, then butter two 9-by-2” round cake pans.
2. If you prefer less RED food coloring, then using the as little as .25 fluid ounces will give you more of a chocolate cake, with some red accent. I buy the red food coloring in a big jug from Cash & Carry (or a Smart & Final, or other bulk product store) because those little bottles at the grocery store are quite pricey. Since I make this recipe a lot, the price balances out. If you dye eggs, then red can be your favorite color until you run out.
3. The cupcakes freeze well and also last in the refrigerator well for at least one week (even up to two weeks during a reduced sugar craving period).

You can read more from Jennifer at Little Green Secrets where she writes about green and natural living and shares delicious vegetarian recipes.