Contrary to popular belief, the brightly-colored, cocoa-flavored dessert is not just red-dyed chocolate cake.
So what is red velvet cake?
What isred velvet cake?
Credit:Carson Downing
It’s one of the most common dessert-related questions.
While it’s widely regarded as red-dyed chocolate cake, red velvet cake is its own unique confection.
So what exactly is the crimson-colored dessert, and why is it such a vivid hue?
In the dessert world, this was initially called a “mahogany cake.”
This was a significant factor in red velvet cakes becoming increasingly popular during the Great Depression.
As friends, family, and neighbors increasingly baked the dessert, word quickly spread about velvet cocoa cake.
Seemingly simultaneously in Canada, Eatons Department Store, also started selling the renamed dessert.
The vivid red cake stood out against the stark-white frostingthe brand recommended pairing with their modernized red velvet cake.
This was good timing, as more and more cocoa powder manufacturers transitioned to selling Dutch-processed cocoa powder.
What Flavor Is Red Velvet Cake?
Red velvet cake is not just chocolate cake batter spiked with red food coloring.
Red velvet cake falls somewhere between white cake and chocolate cake on the flavor spectrum.
How Does Red Velvet Cake Differ From Chocolate Cake?
Buttermilk and vinegar also impact the cake’s texture.
Chocolate cake does not contain buttermilk or vinegar, so the chocolate flavor is much richer.
Additionally, chocolate cake is dense and moist, while red velvet cake is much lighter in texture.
Red velvet cake is most commonly paired with cream cheese frosting.
