Red Velvet Cake

[rubychan]

how important is the vinegar in red velvet cake?
say i was trying to make it into a cheesecake.. dose the vinegar need to be there??

[funniegrrl]

I'm not sure how you would convert a cake to a cheesecake ...

The vinegar in a traditional RV Cake provides part of the leavening, or rising power. That, in addition to buttermilk, the LIGHT chocolate flavor, and the red food coloring, make it "red velvet." Traditional red velvet also has a cooked icing rather than cream cheese icing which you commonly see nowadays.

So ... no, you don't need to add the vinegar to the cheesecake because you don't need leavening. If you took a regular cheesecake recipe and just added a little cocoa and the red food coloring, you'd be getting the essential flavors, since the cream cheese would be tangy like the buttermilk and vinegar in the cake.

[rubychan]

Okay, that is what I was thinking too.... but believe it or not.. I have never had a piece of RV Cake!! So I wasn't sure how the vinegar played in it!! Thanks!!

[annagins]

Southern Living kept the vinegar in their cheesecake. Personally, I would leave it in.

This is a great recipe, BTW -- VERY popular.

Red Velvet Cheesecake

1 1/2 cups, chocolate graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whole buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
2 (1 ounce) bottles red food coloring
1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Garnish: fresh mint sprigs

Stir together graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar; press mixture into bottom of a 9-inch springform pan.

Beat 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese and 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar at medium-low speed with an electric mixer 1 minute. Add egg and next 6 ingredients, mixing on low speed until fully combined. Pour batter into prepared crust.

Bake at 325 degrees for 10 minutes; reduce heat to 300 degrees, and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until center is firm. Run knife along outer edge of cheesecake. Turn oven off. Let cheesecake stand in oven 30 minutes. Remove cheesecake from oven; cool in pan on a wire rack 30 minutes. Cover and chill 8 hours.

Beat 1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese and 1/4 cup butter at medium speed with a electric mixer until smooth; gradually add powdered sugar and vanilla, beating until smoot. Spread evenly over top of cheesecake. Remove sides of springform pan. Granish, if desied.

[funniegrrl]

Annagins --

That's good to know! I see they left in the buttermilk, too.

Hmmm ... that looks awfully good ... I may have to make that ...

:D

[annagins]

I made it back around Christmas after reading all the reviews on the gone-but-not-forgotten SL board. It was incredibly rich, but not cloying. It tasted just as you would expect a red velvet cheesecake to taste. A few people from this board made it as well, if you want to dig up some old reviews.

[Clover]

I've been wondering for some time now--is there any reason I couldn't just leave the food coloring out of red velvet cake (or cheesecake)? Does it do anything other than color it? I guess I'd have to change the name, but would the cake still work?

[funniegrrl]

It doesn't really add anything but color as far as I know. I'd throw in 2 oz of water if I left it out. But, without it the color is just sort of nondescript because it has just a bit of chocolate in it. To me, part of the punch is the color, esp. contrasted with the white icing.

[Clover]

Thanks, I'll try it without. Never having eaten or even seen a red velvet cake, outside of that armadillo one in Steel Magnolias, I think it will be fine if it's not bright red.