RECIPE
Red velvet cake with cheesecake buttercream
Juliet Sear
SERVES 16-20
• 250g unsalted butter , softened , plus extra for the tins
• 250g caster sugar
• 3 medium eggs
• 25g cocoa powder
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp red food colouring gel
• 2 tsp white vinegar
• 284ml buttermilk , at room temperature ( or use 275ml milk mixed with 2 tsp lemon juice )
• 325g self-raising flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
For the buttercream and decoration
• 650g unsalted butter , softened
• 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste
• 1.3kg icing sugar , sifted
• 340g full-fat soft cheese , at room temperature
• 200g festive sprinkles
• gold and pink edible metallic lustre dust ( optional )
• 8-10 white chocolate truffles or balls ( optional )
1 . Heat the oven to 200C / 180C fan / gas 6 . Butter the base and sides of two 20cm cake tins ( 4cm deep ) and line with baking parchment . Put the butter and sugar in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat for 2-3 mins until pale , light and fluffy . Alternatively , do this in a bowl using an electric whisk . Add the eggs one at a time , beating well between each addition until fully incorporated . 2 . Mix the cocoa powder , vanilla extract and red food colouring gel together in a small bowl or jug with 2-3 tbsp hot water until you have a smooth , lump-free paste . Tip this into the bowl with the cake batter and whisk briefly to combine . 3 . Mix the vinegar and buttermilk together in a jug . Combine the flour , bicarb and 1 tsp salt in a bowl . Pour a third of the buttermilk mixture into the cake batter , then mix in along with a third of the flour mixture until fully incorporated . Alternate between the remaining buttermilk and flour mixtures , mixing these in a third at a time until everything is fully combined , being careful not to overmix . 4 . Divide the cake batter equally between the prepared tins and bake for 30-35 mins until the sponges spring back when gently pressed with a fingertip and a skewer inserted into the centre of each comes out clean . Do not open the oven before 25 mins have elapsed , as this can cause the sponges to sink in the centre . Leave to cool in the tins for 5 mins , then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely . Once cool , the sponges can be wrapped and frozen for a month . 5 . To make the buttercream , clean out the bowl of the stand mixer , then tip in the butter and vanilla bean paste ( or do this in a bowl using an electric whisk ). Beat on high speed for about 1 min until creamy and smooth . Gradually add the icing sugar , about a quarter at a time , beating between each
addition on a low speed until just incorporated . When all the icing sugar has been added , turn the speed up to high and beat for 1 min . Turn the speed back down to low , then tip in the soft cheese and beat until just combined and smooth . 6 . Split both of the cooled sponges through the middle using a cake leveller or large bread knife so you have four equally sized , thin layers . Spread a little buttercream over the middle of a 20cm round cake board and top with a sponge layer . Spread buttercream generously over the top of the sponge layer so it sticks out over the edge slightly . Top with a second sponge layer and repeat until you ’ ve used all the sponges , inverting the final sponge layer so that the top is flat . Spread any buttercream that ’ s sticking out from between the sponge layers all around the side of the cake using a palette knife to seal the stack . 7 . Next , spread a thin , even layer of buttercream over the whole cake down to the cake board to seal it completely . Once you have covered the whole cake , clean the palette knife and go around the cake again to smooth the sides and remove any excess . This is called a crumb coat , which seals in any crumbs and will make the finished cake look neater . Chill the cake for at least 30 mins until firm and set . 8 . Spoon 300g of the remaining buttercream into a bowl and keep chilled to pipe with later . Spoon the rest of the buttercream over the top of the chilled cake ( reserving a little to secure the cake to a cake stand ), then use a palette knife to spread it to the edge and encourage it to drop slightly over the side . Then , hold the palette knife vertically against the side of the cake and smooth over the buttercream , turning the cake as you go so the side is covered in a thick , even layer ( a cake turntable can help with this , if you have one ). Once you ’ ve covered the side , you may wish to clean the palette knife and smooth the top
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