These classic red velvet cupcakes with velvety texture and buttery soft crumbs are ridiculously easy to make and so perfect with tangy cream cheese frosting!
Table of Contents
Why you’ll love this recipe?
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I love pretty much anything red. However, the color of this cake is not the only reason I love it so much.
And no, red velvet cake is not just a chocolate cake tinted with red color!! It’s so much more!
When done right, red velvet cake has a smooth velvet-y texture with soft buttery crumbs. It has just a hint of cocoa without overpowering chocolate flavor.
Paired with tangy cream cheese frosting, these homemade cupcakes are simply irresistible!
Why red velvet cupcakes are red?
Traditionally, red velvet cakes didn’t call for any artificial food coloring to get that bright red color. It was a natural result of combining vinegar with cocoa powder.
Cocoa powder (and other fruits and vegetables, like purple cabbage, plums, blueberries, raspberries) naturally contain anthocyanins, a pigment that changes the color due to pH level. So back in the day, when natural cocoa powder was mixed with acidic ingredients like vinegar and buttermilk,the cake batter naturally turned red.
Today, cocoa powders are processed with acid-neutralizing agent and it doesn’t react to acidic ingredients as it used to. That’s why we have to add food coloring to get that beautiful red color.
And I’m about to show you how to make absolutely perfect red velvet cupcakes from scratch.
Ingredient Notes:
To makes these soft and velvet-y cupcakes, you’ll need a few simple ingredients: flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, egg, vegetable oil, buttermilk, vanilla extract, baking soda and white vinegar.
- Cocoa powder – When it comes to cocoa powder, I recommend using unsweetened natural cocoa powder. Dutch-processed cocoa powder has a darker color, which may result darker cupcakes. Here’s an excellent article on difference between natural and dutch processed cocoa powder.
- Buttermilk is a must for that beautiful velvet-y texture, moist and soft crumbs and a slight tang, the signature taste and texture of these classic cupcakes. Oh and I prefer store-bought buttermilk over DIY version. But homemade buttermilk will work in a pinch.
- Food coloring – Either liquid or gel food coloring will work for this recipe. To achieve the level of brightness of my cupcakes, you’ll need: 1 tablespoon of liquid food coloring, or 1 teaspoon of gel food coloring.
DIY Buttermilk:
I realize not everyone have buttermilk in the fridge like we do at all times. (We sure love our buttermilk pancakes!) Here’re 2 ways you can make a quick homemade buttermilk:
- Option #1: 1/3 cup sour cream, or plain Greek yogurt + milk (or water) to make 1/2 cup. Stir well before using.
- Option #2: 1/2 cup of milk + 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice (or white vinegar). Stir and let it sit for 5 minutes for milk to curdle.
Tip
While homemade buttermilk works in a pinch, I personally prefer store-bought buttermilk for making these red velvet cupcakes.
How to make these cupcakes:
It’s really easy to make these cupcakes, you don’t even need a mixer, as I did in my video below.
- Mix dry ingredients.
- Mix wet ingredients.
- Combine dry and wet ingredients.
- Stir in baking soda/vinegar mixture.
- Bake!
And here’s the step by step frosting recipe with a troubleshooting guide.
Make-Ahead Tips:
You can make both cupcakes and frosting in advance.
- Store the cooled cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Refrigerate the frosting, covered, until ready to decorate the cupcakes.
Tip
I recommend frosting the cupcakes preferably right before serving, or 2-3 hours in advance at the most.
Storing Tips:
- Store unfrosted cupcakes at room temperature, covered, for 1-2 days.
- You can also freeze unfrosted cupcakes in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- Store leftover cupcakes in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 3 days. Cover the cupcakes with a plastic wrap to prevent them from drying out.
Hope you enjoy this recipe and let me know what you think. 🙂
Red Velvet Cupcakes
Ingredients
For cupcakes:
- 1 ½ cups (190g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cups (200g) sugar
- 1 tablespoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder Note 1
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- ½ cup (120ml) vegetable oil
- ¾ cup (180ml) buttermilk at room temperature, Note 2
- 1 tablespoon liquid red food coloring or 1 teaspoon gel food coloring, Note 3
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon white distilled vinegar
For cream cheese frosting:
- 8 oz (225g) cream cheese at room temperature
- ¼ cup (55g) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 cups (250g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
To make cupcakes:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line muffin pans with paper cupcake liners.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the egg, vegetable oil, buttermilk, red food coloring, and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Add prepared dry ingredients and mix until smooth, about a minute.
- In a small dish, mix together baking soda and vinegar. While the soda/vinegar mixture is bubbling, add it to the batter and mix it well.
- Using a large cookie scoop, divide the batter into 12 muffin cups. (Fill the cups 2/3 of the way.)
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool the cupcakes for 5 minutes in the pan. Then transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely.
To make frosting:
- In a mixing bowl with paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter on medium high speed until fluffy, about 1 minute.
- Add powdered sugar and beat on low speed for a minute. Then increase the speed to medium high and continue to beat until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Stir in vanilla extract and salt. Whip again until incorporated, 30 seconds.
- Transfer the frosting into a pastry bag, fitted with decorative tip (I used this Wilton M1 piping tip).
- Frost the cooled cupcakes preferably right before serving, or a few hours prior.
Tips & Notes
– Store unfrosted cupcakes at room temperature, covered, for 1-2 days.
– You can also freeze unfrosted cupcakes in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
– Store leftover cupcakes in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published on December 3, 2013 and updated on July 20th, 2021.
Is this unsweetened cocoa ?
Yes, natural unsweetened cocoa powder. I just updated the recipe. Thank you for asking, Andrian.
I tried these cupcakes twice and both times it came out nasty. I went over the recipe. I took my time and it still came out the same way the only thing good about this recipe is the icing which I plan on keeping…
I’m sorry that you didn’t like the cupcakes, Lee. I wonder what went wrong? Would you elaborate on nasty? Was it bland, was it dense, or something else? Did you substitute anything, or changed quantity? I’m just trying to see if it was something that was preventable. It’s my go-to red velvet cupcake recipe, and I’ve made it so many times, including for a wedding with 150+ guests. Everyone loves it.
Hey Shinee!! I just discovered your website and i love it!!!! Your recipies are amazing and the website looks very nice and professional. Im loving it!!! This red velvet cupcake looks amazing and im actually going to use it for a class project. however, i will be changing up the icing into a white chocolate cream cheese frosting. Thanks for your help. Ill be sure to give you credit when i present the project in class!!!
Thank you, Nilzaida! White chocolate addition in the frosting sounds wonderful! Hope you (and your classmates) will enjoy it. 🙂
Red velvet is still my all time favorite. Love this!
The same here. My favorite!
hi, what kind of flour do you used?what’s the best flour do you recommend?
Kaybee, I use all-purpose flour here.
Hi Shinee,
These look lovely and I’d like to make them for my husband’s birthday. Did you use the liquid or powdered red food colouring? I have the powdered one.
Thank you!
Hi, Suparna! I used liquid food coloring. I’m sure powdered one will work fine, but I can’t advise how much to use, because I never used them. Thank you for stopping by!
Red Velvet is definitely one of my favorite cupcake. Love it. I’m gonna try to bake it. I know it’s gonna be fun.
These are my favorite cupcakes as well. Have fun making these beauties! 🙂
These pics were beautifully taken and styled I just love it. I haven’t made red velvet cupcakes in a long time maybe too long but these pictures have inspired me to do just that. After all it’s Christmas time!
Thank you, Jessica! Yay, Red Velvet cake/cupcakes are the best! Hope you bake them soon. 🙂
Yum! And again beautifully styled! This is why despite a weekend of cranberry relish, chocolate chip cookies, everything bagels, a yummy new salmon recipe and brownies with homemade vanilla bean ice cream my blog is neglected.
If you love red velvet, this ice cream is delicious. http://www.annies-eats.com/2013/02/08/red-velvet-ice-cream-with-cream-cheese-frosting-swirl/
Audrey, you have a blog? What is it?
And thank you for sharing this awesome ice cream recipe! Now I really want to try it. 🙂 I have a growing list of ice cream recipes that I want try and I really need to buy an ice cream machine asap!
A mostly (at least for now) inactive blog that I’m fairly shy about. I mainly used it for meal planning/ recording things I’d made and now that I found the BigOven program just keep track of weekly meal plans and recipes on there. After much reviewing (I tend to review kitchen purchases extensively) got the cuisinart ice cream maker . David Lebovitz’s book the perfect scoop is fabulous as well. The Guinness ice cream alone is worth the purchase.
http://dakotaliving.wordpress.com/2013/05/26/memorial-day-weekend-treats/
I love the meal plan idea… I always try to do that, but never got around it. 🙂 Oh, I too do extensive review before any big purchases, and it was very helpful to read your review on ice cream maker. Thanks for sharing your blog. Very informative!
Yamarch tsaraylag cupcake ve, manai huu nadaas red velvet cake hiigeech gej asuugaad baisan enuugeer hiij uznee. Cake hiihed elbeg hurne bizdee. Bayarlalaa.
Bayarlalaa, Khaliunaa egchee. Ene 12 cupcakenii zuurmag shuu. 2 6-7inch pan, esvel 1 9-inch pan boloh bh gej bodoj bn.
Ok, oilgoloo 🙂