Red velvet cake with ermine frosting is the red velvet cake of the good old days. It’s not weighed down with heavy cream cheese but paired with the most delicate whipped ermine frosting. The combination is delicious!
(Oldie But Goodie: This post first appeared on The Unlikely Baker on January 27, 2016. I’ve given it fresh pictures and an updated recipe. Enjoy!)
I used to have a love-hate relationship with red velvet cake. I loved to eat it. But it hated me. I’ve failed at baking it so many times I’ve lost count. This was the recipe that changed everything. Now I can successfully make red velvet cake and know it will be a hit every single time.
What went wrong
Let’s get real for a second – red velvet cake is not for the fainthearted. One time my cake turned very brown – too little red food colour. So for my next try I added more food colouring.
That made the batter too runny that I’ve had to scoop the collapsed remnants out of the pan (and straight into the garbage bin).
Don’t even get me started on the cream cheese frosting. First it won’t stiffen to the proper consistency – my cream cheese and butter were always too soft. Or I thought it did, only to find it flowing like soup from within my layers like sweet, white, evil lava (now this is just wrong).
(I’m still not very good at cream cheese frosting so I usually make Swiss Meringue Buttercream instead.)
Keys for success
Happily, I’ve gotten over that dark period in my red velvet baking life and can now share two important tips so you can successfully bake red velvet cake too.
- Use gel food colour
. Stay away from the liquid ones – they are just not red enough so you’d tend to use more which affects the total liquid in your batter (and you’d get a strange aftertaste too).
- Measure your ingredients using a kitchen scale
if you can. Baking is a science after all. They’re pretty inexpensive and will improve your baking more than any other kitchen gadget (though I think it’s tied with an oven thermometer
– also cheap!)
. Stay away from the liquid ones – they are just not red enough so you’d tend to use more which affects the total liquid in your batter (and you’d get a strange aftertaste too).
if you can. Baking is a science after all. They’re pretty inexpensive and will improve your baking more than any other kitchen gadget (though I think it’s tied with an 
– also cheap!)Red velvet cake with ermine frosting
Also, try pairing your cake with ermine frosting instead of cream cheese frosting. It’s less finicky than cream cheese frosting and lighter too.
What is it exactly? It’s one of those classic recipes that our grandmas hold near and dear. And it is actually the original icing paired with red velvet cake. It’s essentially flour and milk whisked until the mixture resembles thick pudding. This pudding then becomes the base for your buttercream.
Ermine frosting or boiled milk frosting or roux frosting
It’s called so many names but it’s really the same thing. And what is it like? Light with the consistency of whipped cream. Not too sweet – just the kind that makes you want more. And It works so well with red velvet cake. No wonder they were the OG lol.
Not your typical red velvet cake…better!
This is definitely not the red velvet cake we’re used to but I think I absolutely like this version better. It’s just so unique; hope you give it a try and like it too!
Related: How to Take Stunning Food Photos
Red Velvet Cake with Ermine Frosting
Red velvet cake with ermine frosting is the red velvet cake of the good old days. It’s not weighed down with heavy cream cheese but paired with the most delicate whipped ermine frosting.
Ingredients
Red Velvet Cake
- 2 1/4 cups cake flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 0.70 oz gel red food colour
- 1 cup buttermilk room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp vinegar
Ermine Frosting
- 5 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Red Velvet Cake
Pre-heat oven to 350F. Grease 2 9-inch baking pans then put greased parchment paper at the bottom for easy release.
In a medium sized bowl, sift 2 1/4 cups cake flour, 1 teaspoon salt and 2 tablespoons cocoa powder. Set aside.
Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream 1/2 cup butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes).
- Add the eggs one at a time until combined.
In a separate bowl, add your red food colour to 1 cup buttermilk and stir until combined.
Switch to low speed and add a third of your flour mixture into the batter, then half of your buttermilk, then another third of the flour, the last of the buttermilk, then finally putting in the rest of the flour making sure each addition is fully combined before adding in the next. Scrape the bottom and sides of your bowl as needed.
Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and stir until you see no more streaks of flour in the batter. Remove the bowl from stand mixer, if using.
In a small bowl, mix 1 teaspoon baking soda with 1 teaspoon vinegar. Once the mixture foams and bubbles, quickly fold it into your cake batter.
Pour the batter into your prepared baking pans and bake for 24-30 minutes or until the cakes start to pull away from the sides of the pans and when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Take out from oven and cool on a rack for about 15 minutes or until the pans are cool enough to handle. Then remove the cakes from pans, remove the parchment paper from the cakes and let cool completely on the racks before frosting.
Ermine Frosting
In a medium sized sauce pan, combine 5 tablespoons flour and 1 cup milk and constantly stir over medium heat until very thick, like pudding (8-10 minutes).
Remove from heat, place plastic wrap on top and cool to room temperature. Then transfer it to the fridge and chill for 1 hour.
Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, cream 1 cup sugar, 1 cup butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract on medium high speed until light and fluffy (3-5 minutes).
Add the completely cool flour mixture and continue beating until you get the consistency of whipped cream (3-5 minutes).
- Fill, frost and decorate cake as desired.
Notes
While you can serve this cake immediately, it is at its best after at least a couple of hours in the fridge. Then let stand in room temperature for about 10 minutes before serving.
Happy baking!
Did you make red velvet cake with ermine frosting? How’d you like it? I’d love to hear from you in the comments section below.
Looking for other celebration cakes? Try these:
-
- London Fog Cake with Earl Grey Buttercream
-
- Rainbow Cake
-
- Lemon Curd Layer Cake with Lemon Buttercream
-
- Funfetti Cake
The rest of the cake recipes are here.
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just noticed you can toggle from “US customary” to “Metric” to get the weights of the ingredients. Thanks!
Glad you found it 🙂
in the article you point out a scale should be used to weigh ingredients. I like that. can you please update the recipe to list the ingredients by weight (not just volume measure)?
My boyfriend loves red velvet so on his birthday I decided to bake him one. I don’t really bake from scratch a lot (mostly boxed mixes) so reading your experiences with red velvet convinced me I can do this. It was hard!!!!! And my cake did not look nearly as pretty. But it came together and he still loved it and we were surprised that we liked the icing too. It was different. Maybe next time I will pick an easier cake ha ha.
Hello Kerri. You’re right, red velvet is one of the more technical cakes out there but glad yours came out ok. And that you guys liked it (that’s the most important thing!). Yay! I’m still learning too so hope you follow along 🙂
Oh my gosh! I want that red velvet cake, like right now! it looks so soft and delicious, I could eat the whole thing
Red velvet cake is truly my favorite cake! Omg yours looks too great to eat!
How decadent is that? I love a good red velvet cake, it’s also my fiancee’s favorite so if I could just perfect it I’d have clout for life. 🙂
This looks fantastic! Red velvet cake is my favorite. I hope to get one for my upcoming birthday.
Thanks! And I hope you do get your birthday cake wish 🙂
So interesting. I have never had red velvet cake without the cream cheese frosting. This sounds perfect. Your photos are gorgeous too. Im craving red velvet cake now.
It tastes different for sure, but nice different 🙂
This looks so delicious. I want to make this soon maybe for Valentines. It is awesome that you shared your mistakes and what you learned from it so that we can make hopefully a perfect one just like you did.
Looking at those photos and reading this post when I’m meant to be healthy eating is TORTURE! Looks absolutely delicious, though. Will have to try and make at some point for a special occasion.
This looks delicious! I absolutely love red velvet cake and will give this one a go! Thanks for sharing it!
Congratulations for mastering this recipe! I’m not sure I can but with your tips I’d definitely give it a try. I wouldn’t say that I love red velvet, but it would be nice to make it for the family or during gatherings!
I love red velvet cake, and with all the baking I’ve done, I’ve never tried to make one before. My husband and I both enjoy it so much our wedding cake was red velvet! I definitely agree that the gel food colors are the way to go, that’s all I will use.
Gel is so much more vibrant and you need less of it.
Yummu. Looks so delicious and perfectly described. Nice work
That is a creamy and delicious red velvet cake. I am looking at the picture and can literally taste it.
I’ve never tried to bake red velvet cake, I’m sure that the cake would hate me too. This is unique cake, and the color is amazing. I’m glade to hear that you haven’t given up on it. I don’t think I’d try to bake one 😀
Red velvet is my wife all-time favorite flavor. This would make a great Valentine’s Day gift for her – guess I’d better go get the ingredients!
That would be a nice surprise 🙂
I am a hardcore cream cheese frosting fan… so it took a lot for me to read this post! Just kidding. This actually looks really really good! I may attempt to try it!
Hahaha I love cream cheese too but man so much heartache frosting with it! Thanks Taria! If I find out you like this that would totally make my day 🙂
Yum yum yum! Red velvet cake is my absolute favorite cake and this so darn delicious. Can I come over? LOL
Anytime haha! 🙂 Thanks Crystal.
Red Velvet is one of my favorite guilty-pleasures! I love how your red velvet is such a deep red too!
Thanks Jessica! I think the cocoa I used has a lot to do with the rich dark colour 🙂
This loos delicious. I’ve never hear of ermine frosting…what exactly does it taste like?
Hi Mary! You know. I thought long and hard about this one. Conclusion: it’s really unlike any frosting I’ve ever had. It’s light, not too sweet, awesome texture. It’s indescribable! To taste is to believe. It is absolutely delicious is all I can say!
Red velvet and vanilla frosting sounds like a heaven to me. They both are my favorite flavors. pinning it
Thanks for the pin Surekha! Have a wonderful day!
This cake is super tempting! I feel like grabbing it from my lappy right now! Thanks for sharing the recipe with us!
Have always wanted to taste Red Velvet Cake. Somehow couldnt till now. But now that I know the recipe , i will give it a try at home.
Hi Subhadrika! This version is different from what we’re more used to (i.e. cream cheese frosting) though I like this version much much better. Let me know what you think!
This Red Velvet cake looks so delicious! It makes my mouth watering! Thanks for the recipe, I definitely should try to make it!
Red Velvet cake is one of my absolutely favorite desserts ever! I will definitely have to try out this recipe!
It’s just one of the default favourites right? Something about it being red and white I guess? Haha! Hope you like this version Carrie!
We love red velvet cake! We almost chose it for our wedding but did pumpkin cake instead! This frosting sounds amazing too!
Pumpkin is an awesome choice 🙂 I do like the frosting with the cake. They complement each other perfectly. Hope you like this version Neely!
You definitely have me intrigued about the ermine frosting. I am so curious how that tastes!
It’s frosting from the good old days! You should definitely give it a try Liz! 🙂
I’m not big on frosting. I’d much prefer double the size of the cake and leave off the frosting. But you make this kind of frosting sound so tempting!
If given a choice I would choose simple cakes like pound or butter cake too but this frosting is light and delicious so I don’t mind it slathered on my velvet cake haha. Hope you try it!
Thanks for sharing the recipe. Red Velvet Cake seems to be very tempting and yummy. I am fond of trying new recipes, i will try this one for sure.
So happy to hear that! Would love to hear how it goes 🙂 Thanks Shirley!
I love red velvet but have never tried making it myself. I’m a little nervous but I’ll start with your recipe since you had success.
Hi Crystal! You’d do great 🙂 I find this version is way easier to execute than the other recipes I’ve tried.
This looks amazing!!! I love a good red velvet cake, this would be perfect for the upcoming holiday season!
Absolutely! This makes for a wonderful holiday cake. In fact we served this last NYE 🙂
Thanks for the recipe! I really hopes this one works out for me! And I always thought cream cheese was the original frosting for red velvet cake, but thanks for letting me know what the original frosting is. Thats really helpful!
I had soooo many red velvet cake disasters which was what led me to this ermine frosting revelation. And it really tastes good and different. You’ll do great Shreya I’m sure 🙂 And I hope you like it!
I had to bake red velvet cakes all the time when I was a baker and we always had so many problems with them! Your frosting is really interesting though, I’ve never used flour in my frosting before so I’d be really interested to see how it tastes. You do make it sound very good though!
So it’s not just me lol! This cake was my nemesis for a very long time. This was the only recipe that worked! It was the first I heard of the frosting too but I read more about it and it turns out it was the original frosting for red velvet, not cream cheese. Interesting huh 🙂 Hope you get a chance to try it and let me know how you like it! Thanks Tess 🙂
Hahaha that makes me less sad! It’s just the hardest cake to bake in the world for me. Thanks for stopping by!
This looks like such a royal cake. Your piks are too good and make me eat some right now !
Haha, I’ve had a million red velvet cake fails, too! This sounds really good though, and I love your beautiful photography!
Hahaha that makes me less sad! It’s just the hardest cake to bake in the world for me. Thanks for stopping by!