Everyone's Favorite Red Velvet Cupcakes (with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting)
Red velvet cake is essentially chocolate cake with a whole lot of red food coloring, right? Well, not how my Aunt Linda makes it!
I was never a fan of red velvet cake until I tasted these. I whipped up a batch for my friend Whitney's birthday this week and they were so popular, I thought I'd share the recipe for which all night long I was pulled aside and told, "this is seriously the best red velvet I've ever had!" THANK YOU AUNT LINDA!
(Taylor Swift put "22" on her Red album and took the birthday following the 21st hype from a let down to something to be celebrated. And danced about! And sang about! For my friend Whitney's 22nd, I baked her RED velvet cupcakes. They were a huge hit!)
Seriously, I thought I hated red velvet until these. While baking these cupcakes, I couldn't stop eating the batter and may have "taste tested" two of them before I had everything done and iced. The following recipes come from Linda Hofstetter's (my Aunt Linda's) cookbook, Mothers, Brothers, Sisters, and Others. She is a baking queen and the cookbook is one of my favorites! If you are interested in buying a copy, message Linda Hofstetter through the book's Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/slhbooksllc) or shoot me an email and I'll make sure you get one! The book contains favorite recipes from friends and family for the everyday to the special occasion! There are some serious staples in there!
That said, prepare for the best red velvet cake you will ever have.
Red Velvet Cupcakes
p.154 of Mothers, Brothers, Sisters, and Others
Ingredients:
24 Paper Liners for cupcake pans
1 pkg. (18.25 oz.) Plain German Chocolate Cake Mix
1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix
1 cup Sour Cream
1/2 cup Water
1/2 cup Vegetable Oil (I used canola oil)
1 oz. Red Food Coloring
3 large Eggs
1 cup Miniature Semisweet Chocolate Chips (I didn't have the mini's so I used regular sized chocolate chips)
Instructions:
Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 cupcake cups with paper liners. Set the pans aside. Place the cake mix, pudding mix, sour cream, water, oil, food coloring, and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more, scraping down the sides again if needed. The batter should look thick and well combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. Spoon or scoop 1/3 cup batter into each lined cupcake cup, filling it three-quarters of the way full. Bake the cupcakes until they spring back when lightly pressed with your finger, 15-20 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and place them on wire racks to cool fro 5 minutes. Place on wire rack to cool before frosting.
White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
p. 134 of Mothers, Brothers, Sisters, and Others
Ingredients:
6 oz. White Chocolate Chips
4 oz. Reduced Fat Cream Cheese, room temperature (I used original cream cheese--regular fat content)
4 tbsp. Butter, room temperature
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
2 1/2 cups Powdered Sugar, sifted
Instructions:
Place the white chocolate chips in microwavable bowl and microwave on high for 1 minute. Remove the bowl and stir, may need to add additional 30 seconds until smooth. Set the chocolate aside to cool. In a large bowl, blend the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add the melted white chocolate and combine. Add the vanilla and the powdered sugar and blend on low until the sugar is incorporated. Increase the speed to medium and beat until fluffy.