Red Velvet Cupcakes

Red velvet is an impressive treat to look at. Everyone has their own recipe and every bakery claims theirs to be the best. If you can make a great red velvet cupcake, you've really made it.

My problem is, is that most red velvet cupcakes just taste like a plain cupcake that happens to be red. Bleh!

Alas, my quest had ended and I've finally found the perfect recipe. What I <3 href="http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/2009/09/red-velvet-cake-with-fluffy-white-frosting/">recipe:

• It has more than the standard 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder, which gives it a rich chocolaty taste.
• No oil = no grease, but enough butter for the cake to be moist

Oh, and paired with this whipped cream cheese recipe!?! It was like the time I found this, my two favorite things in one dish...does life really get any better? Seriously.

Ingredients for Red Velvet

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

4 tablespoons red food coloring, or use red color gel, you will need less of it, just mix enough to get your desire color and make up the rest of the liquids with extra buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup buttermilk, plus more if you are substituting for coloring

2 1/2 cups cake flour (all purpose is ok as well)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

3 teaspoons distilled white vinegar

Ingredients for Frosting

1 1/2 cups of heavy whipping cream

8 ounces cream cheese

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 to 1/2 cup powdered sugar (confectioners sugar), depending on how sweet you like it

1/8 teaspoon salt

Optional: 1 cup crushed honey graham crackers

Red Velvet Cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a separate bowl, mix flour and salt evenly.
3. Cream sugar & butter until fluffy.
4. Add one egg at a time until evenly mixed. Make sure to scrape down the bowl before adding each egg.
5. Add cocoa & vanilla, mixed until combined.
6. Add red food coloring until you get your desired color.
7. Add half of the buttermilk, mix evenly.
8. Add half of the flour, mix evenly.
9. Repeat with the other half of the buttermilk and flour mixture.
10. Add baking soda and vinegar, mix evenly.
11. Line cupcake tins.
12. Bake regular cupcakes for 18-20 minutes, minis for about 12 minutes.
13. Cool completely before frosting.

Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting

1. Make sure your equipment is squeaky clean. If there is any fat on your equipment, the whipped cream will not rise properly.
2. Freeze your heavy whipping cream, mixing bowl and whisk for about 15 minutes.
3. Whip the cream until stiff peaks form, transfer to a clean bowl. Note: if you are worried about stabilizing it, you can add 2 tablespoons of Wilton's Piping Gel and 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar before the cream starts to stiffen.
4. In the same bowl that you whipped the cream in, whisk cream cheese, powdered sugar, salt and vanilla until fluffy.
5. Fold together cream cheese & whipped cream. It will look separated at first, but keep on working at it, it will smooth out and be the most delicious cream cheese frosting you've ever had. (*@*)
6. Frost cupcakes and sprinkle crushed graham crackers for texture.

My favorite thing about mini cupcakes is that they are technically 1/3 the size of a regular cupcake. That means I can have 3 and not feel guilty. OINK OINK

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