Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!

On a whim, I decided to try making heart-shaped cinnamon rolls for a fun Valentine’s Day treat.  I had no idea if it would work, but I was thrilled  with the results.  They turned out so cute, I had to share the technique with you even if it’s a bit late to make them for today’s Valentine’s breakfast.

But who says you can only eat heart-shaped food on Valentine’s Day?

You can make heart-shaped rolls from any regular cinnamon roll recipe, but I happen to really like a dough made with buttermilk.  I improvised the dough for these rolls from the cinnamon bun recipe in The Bread Baker’s Apprentice.  Enjoy!

Heart-Shaped Cinnamon Rolls

4 tablespoons butter (1/2 stick), softened
4 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 egg, at room temperature
2 cups flour (plus extra as needed)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast (or use rapid rise or bread machine yeast)
1/2 cup warm buttermilk (90 – 110 degrees F)
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1  heaping teaspoon cinnamon

Cream butter and sugar using a stand mixer, or in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, until light and fluffy;  beat in egg.  In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and yeast.  Add buttermilk and flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix on low speed until all the flour is incorporated.

If using a stand  mixer, switch to the dough hook and knead on medium speed for 6 minutes, adding a bit of flour if necessary to form a very soft dough (will most likely be very sticky and that’s fine).  If kneading by hand, scrape dough onto a floured counter top or board and knead, adding only as much flour as necessary to keep dough from sticking, for 8 to 10 minutes.  Place dough in an oiled bowl and turn once to coat both sides of dough with oil.  Cover and let rise in a warm spot for about an hour and a half.

Gently push dough down to deflate and turn out onto a floured counter top or board.  Press dough out into a small rectangle then cover and let rest for ten minutes.  Meanwhile, mix together brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.  After dough rests, roll it out into a 20″ x 7 ” rectangle.  Brush surface of dough with melted butter then sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture evenly over the dough.  Gently press the sugar down into the dough with the palm of your hand.

Starting on a long side, begin rolling the dough towards the center, stopping before reaching the very center.  Repeat with other side then roll the two sides together until they meet in the middle.  Gently press together.

Slice the rolls into one-inch pieces then transfer to parchment or silpat-lined baking sheets.  Shape the pieces into hearts by pinching the bottom of the roll between two fingers.

You should end up with 20 -24 cinnamon rolls, divided between two baking sheets.  Cover with greased plastic wrap and let cinnamon rolls rise for 45 minutes.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees during last 15 minutes of rising time.

Bake cinnamon rolls at 350 degrees for a total of 15 minutes (or until lightly browned), rotating sheets from top to bottom halfway through baking time if using two oven racks.

Cream Cheese Glaze

4 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 ounces butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar (more to taste, if desired)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
splash of milk to thin, if necessary.

Beat together cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla then gradually beat in powdered sugar.  Spread glaze on warm cinnamon rolls and serve immediately.  You may also thin the glaze with a bit of milk to drizzle over the rolls, or decorate cooled rolls using a piping bag and round tip as shown below.

Click on the images above to view the recipes.

Other Valentine’s Day ideas from around the Web:

• Valentine’s Day Recipes from Simply Recipes
• Valentine’s Day Desserts from Brown-Eyed Baker
• Valentine’s Day Recipes from Cafe Fernando
• Valentine’s Day Recipes from Kalyn’s Kitchen
• Gluten-Free Valentine’s Day Recipes from Elana’s Pantry

I have a confession to make.  Before making them myself, the only madeleines I had ever tasted were from Starbucks.  No one had ever made them for me, I’d never had a special pan to make them myself, and somehow I managed to spend a weekend in Paris once without tasting either a madeleine or a macaron—sad, but true.

I’ve always been curious about madeleines.  I mean, is there really anything special about them other than their shape?  Obviously Proust thought so.  But what makes them so magical?  And the big question—are they cookies or tiny little cakes?  Well, curiosity got the better of me one day so I bought a little package of madeleines at Starbucks.  And even though I knew that what I tasted out of that little plastic package was probably not a great representation of the classic French cookie (or is it cake?), I fell madly in love with the madeleine.

So now I can tell you why madeleines are such a big deal:  butter.  Oh, and let’s not forget the lemon.  Have I ever mentioned that butter and lemon are pretty much my two favorite flavors?  Madeleines can also be flavored with orange, and I’m sure that orange-scented madeleines are wonderful, but it’s definitely the butter and lemon that sold me.  And if you ask me, they are miniature cakes, not cookies—little lemon butter cakes from heaven.

I knew I had to get my hands on some special equipment so that I could try making the little scalloped cakes myself, so I ordered a couple of madeleine pans from Amazon.  After they arrived, I let the gorgeous shiny things sit on the counter for a few weeks—promising myself daily that I would make madeleines soon—but eventually I tucked the pans away in a kitchen cabinet where I promptly forgot about them.  That was a few months ago.  Well, a new year is upon us and I’ve decided to start crossing some things off my baking to-do list.

There are tons of recipes floating around for madeleines, but I settled on one I remembered seeing at 101 Cookbooks a couple of years back.  Heidi’s photos always draw me in, and somehow I knew I could trust the recipe.  I followed the recipe to the letter, taking special care to thoroughly coat my madeleine pan with butter to ensure an easy release.

However, Heidi mentions in the recipe that although she uses butter and flour on her pans, the friend who taught her how to make madeleines uses cooking spray with flour.  Since I had two pans, I decided to experiment.  I thoroughly buttered and floured the first pan, but sprayed the second with Baker’s Joy—a nonstick baking spray that contains flour.  I knew in my heart that the buttered and floured pan would work better, but curiosity won out over gut instinct in this case.

Filling the pans with batter was a little intimidating.  I had read that the batter spreads in the oven, and not to overfill the molds, but I had a hard time judging whether they were 2/3 – 3/4 full (as the recipe instructed).  My method of transferring some of the batter to a measuring cup and trying to pour it into the mold didn’t work out so well for me.  Next time I’ll probably just spoon it in, or pipe it in using a bag.

But it turns out I had no reason to worry about whether they were filled properly.  The batter spread evenly and a beautiful batch of madeleines emerged from the oven.

The pan pictured above was the one that was buttered and floured, not coated in baking spray.  It turns out that there was a pretty big difference between the two.

The madeleines in the pan coated with Baker’s Joy (on the right) didn’t rise like their butter-coated siblings.  And though they all released from the pan without too much effort, the butter-coated ones were much easier to pop out.  All in all, the butter-coated madeleines had a better shape, better color, and released from the pan better than the other ones.  From now on, I will use nothing but butter to grease my madeleine pans and I suggest you do the same.

The little cakes are best eaten on the first day while the edges are still crisp, so I suggest inviting a few friends over the day you decide to make them.  But if you do have leftovers, they are perfectly fine the next day—especially dunked in your morning coffee.

If you’d like to try this recipe for buttery, lemon-scented madeleines, head over to 101 Cookbooks and let Heidi show you how.  I ended up with exactly 24 regular-sized madeleines using her recipe.

Related Recipes:

• Lemon Shortbread
• Giant Lemon Sugar Cookies
• Quick and Easy Lemon Cake

Around the Web:

• Madeleines from 101 Cookbooks
• Lemon-Glazed Madeleines from David Lebovitz
• Orange-Scented Madeleines from Mark Bittman
• Meyer Lemon Madeleines from Alpineberry
• Classic Madeleines from Smitten Kitchen

To me, nothing tastes more like Christmas than these sweet, salty and crunchy butterscotch candies.  They aren’t much to look at, but they are super simple to make, and I guarantee that your friends and family will rave about them.

For as far back as I can remember, my Nana always had a plate of these butterscotch corn flakes on the Christmas snack table.  One year, my mom got the recipe and started adding them to her plates of Christmas cookies, and so the butterscotch corn flakes got spread around to even more friends and family.  After I moved away from home, I started making them for my own friends and, after I got married, my husband’s family.  I’ve made them in Oregon, Florida, Sicily, and now southern Callifornia, and the recipe has been passed from friend to friend all across the country.   I have yet to meet a person who doesn’t love them, and if you make these for your friends, be prepared to share the recipe!

With only three ingredients, and no baking required, these are probably the simplest holiday treat you will ever make.  Enjoy!

Butterscotch Corn Flake Candy

1 package butterscotch chips (11 oz.)
3/4 cup dry-roasted salted peanuts
4 cups corn flakes cereal

1.  Pour butterscotch chips into a large microwave-safe bowl and heat in the microwave, checking and stirring every 30 seconds, until chips are melted.  It took about a minute and a half in my microwave.  Be sure not to cook them for too long, or the butterscotch candy will seize up.  If you prefer, you can melt the chips in a double boiler, then scrape the melted butterscotch into a large bowl.

2.  Add corn flakes and peanuts to the melted butterscotch and stir until everything is thoroughly coated.  Line a counter top with waxed paper and drop spoonfuls of the warm corn flake mixture onto the waxed paper.  Allow to cool for 15 minutes. Candy may be stored in an airtight container or large zippered plastic bags for two weeks.

Yield: 2 to 3 dozen pieces

While we normally eat spaghetti squash tossed with nothing more than a a bit of olive oil and a handful of fresh-grated parmigiano reggiano, I decided to splurge this time around and used the versatile squash to create a rich and creamy gratin.

This gratin was inspired by a recipe I found at Laura Rebecca’s Kitchen.  I’m sure her sour cream version is wonderful, and that’s what I had originally planned to make, but when I realized that I had some heavy cream that needed to be used, I opted for that instead.  I also added some shallots along with the garlic, and decreased the amount of herbs (mainly because I was completely out of fresh herbs).  The resulting dish was absolutely delicious!

We’ve actually been on a bit of a spaghetti squash kick around here lately, and have eaten it again since I made the  gratin.  This last time, I sauteed some garlic in olive oil, added a generous pinch of crushed red pepper, then tossed the spaghetti squash strands in the garlic oil until heated through.  I then seasoned it with salt and a handful of fresh chopped parsley and served it with a bit of fresh grated parmigiano reggiano.  Since this is one of my favorite ways to eat spaghetti, I thought I’d give it a try with spaghetti squash.  It was wonderful!

What’s your favorite way to eat spaghetti squash?

Spaghetti Squash Gratin

1 spaghetti squash, baked until tender*
1 large (or two small) shallot(s), chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 t. dried thyme (or 1 teaspoon fresh chopped thyme leaves)
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 cup grated parmigiano reggiano, divided
salt, to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees

2. Remove seeds and shred spaghetti squash.  Place spaghetti squash strands in a large bowl, and discard shell.

2. Cook shallots in butter over medium-low heat until softened.  Stir in garlic, cook for a minute longer.  Scrape shallots and garlic into bowl with squash.  Add thyme, heavy cream, sour cream, and half of the cheese.  Toss together well until ingredients are evenly distributed.  Pour into a greased casserole and top with remaining cheese.

3. Bake uncovered in a preheated 450 degree oven for 20 minutes or until lightly browned on top.

Yield: approximately 6 servings

*How to cook spaghetti squash

Spaghetti Squash with Garlic and Red Pepper

1 spaghetti squash, baked until tender*
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
generous pinch of crushed red pepper
2 tablespoons fresh chopped Italian parsley
salt to taste
fresh grated parmigiano reggiano (optional)

1. Remove seeds and shred spaghetti squash.  Place spaghetti squash strands in a large bowl, and discard shell.

2. In a large saute pan, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add garlic and cook until just lightly browned.  Add crushed red pepper, then add spaghetti squash.  Toss spaghetti squash strands until well-coated in the garlic oil and heated through.  Season with salt and toss with parsley.  Serve with fresh grated parmigiano reggiano, if desired.

*How to cook spaghetti squash

Around the Web:

• Spaghetti Squash Gratin from Laura Rebecca’s Kitchen
• Spaghetti Squash with Bacon and Turnip Greens from Cooking by the Seat of my Pants
• Spaghetti Squash and Chard Gratin from Kalyn’s Kitchen
• New Mexican Spaghetti Squash from Karina’s Kitchen
• Moroccan-Spiced Spaghetti Squash from Smitten Kitchen

This simple, delicious apple cake may be my new favorite fall dessert.  It is moist, tender, packed with tart apples and cinnamon, and very easy to prepare.  What’s not to love?

On a whim, I decided to update the popular Blueberry-Strawberry Buttermilk Cake with fall flavors by swapping in apples, cinnamon and extra vanilla for the blueberries and strawberries.  But the result of the experiment was so much better than the original, I’m not sure if I’ll ever make the other version of this cake again.  It’s that good.

Although the cake is excellent on its own, you could dress it up by drizzling slices with a salted caramel sauce and serving with dollops of freshly whipped cream.  At the moment,  I really can’t think of anything more appealing than that.

I really hope you give this cake a try, but if not, you should drop by my house.  I have a feeling it’s going to be a weekly standard for the next couple of months.

Apple Cinnamon Buttermilk Cake
Adapted from Gourmet

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter (1/2 stick), at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup peeled and chopped baking apple (I used granny smith)
heaping tablespoon of raw sugar (demerara, turbinado or Sugar in the Raw)
extra cinnamon for sprinkling

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, butter and flour an 8-inch round cake pan* (or spray with Baker’s Joy or equivalent).

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt; set aside.  In a separate bowl, beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about two minutes.  Add vanilla and egg and beat well.  With the mixer set to low speed, beat in 1/3 of the flour mixture.  Add half the buttermilk and continue beating on low speed until incorporated.  Scraping down sides of bowl as necessary, beat in another 1/3 of flour mixture then remaining buttermilk.  Finally beat in the last 1/3 of the flour mixture until just combined.

3. Scrape batter into the cake pan, smoothing the top with a spatula.  Scatter apple pieces evenly over the top of the cake batter then sprinkle evenly with raw sugar.  Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon.

4. Bake in a preheated 400-degree oven until cake is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.  Cool in the pan for ten minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool until warm.  Invert onto a plate.  Serve plain, or with whipped cream and salted caramel sauce.

*You may use a 9-inch cake pan, if you don’t have an 8-inch one.  The cake will be a bit thinner than it appears in my photos and will bake slightly faster.

Yield: 8 servings

Around the Web:

• Mom’s Apple Cake from Smitten Kitchen
• Cinnamon Apple Pecan Crumb Bars from What We’re Eating
• Gluten-Free Sour Cream Apple Cake from Karina’s Kitchen
• Apple Coffee Cake from Simply Recipes
• Whole Wheat Apple Pear Cake from Kalyn’s Kitchen

Although this was my first time making them, I’m beginning to think that these warm and spicy pumpkin doughnuts are going to become a fall tradition around here.  Filled with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and even a hint of cardamom, these doughnuts will warm your soul on a crisp autumn morning.

Have you ever made doughnuts from scratch?  The closest I had ever come to making doughnuts was back in my college days when I learned how to make faux doughnuts (fauxnuts?) by poking holes in refrigerated biscuit dough rounds and frying them up in a skillet.  They were pretty good if you dipped them in sugar and ate them warm, but not quite the real thing.  Ok, not even close.

I have memories of the real thing, though.  You see, my mom made homemade doughnuts for us once.  They were yeast-raised doughnuts, the kind which are lightly glazed or sugar-crusted on the outside, but only slightly sweet and impossibly soft and fluffy on the inside.  Though I was small, and the recollection is a bit fuzzy, I know in my heart that they were the best doughnuts I’ve ever tasted.  While the “hot now” sign at Krispy-Kreme may make your heart flutter, I’m telling you that nothing compares to a doughnut fried up in your own kitchen.  My mom only made doughnuts once that I can recall, but that one memory fills me with so much warmth, I know that I have to make doughnuts from scratch one day for my own children.  Yes, food memories are powerful.

My favorite doughnuts are yeast-raised and glazed, and rarely do I stray from that standard when visiting a local doughnut shop.  But after deciding to make doughnuts at home, I thought it would be best to start with a simple cake doughnut on my first go-round.  And while I generally prefer plain cake doughnuts to flavored ones, I decided to give pumpkin doughnuts a try when I noticed that the leaning tower of organic canned pumpkin that had been perched precariously on my counter since that last trip to Trader Joe’s (when rumors of canned pumpkin shortages briefly got the best of me), was finally threatening to topple and, perhaps, hurt someone.

After looking through several pumpkin doughnut recipes, I chose to use one from Bon Appetit found on Epicurious. And since I can never leave a perfectly good recipe alone, I made a few changes like doubling all the spices and adding a touch of molasses.  I also chose not to add the white glaze, and instead dusted the finished doughnuts lightly with powdered sugar mixed with a bit of pumpkin pie spice.  They were absolutely delicious!

The dough is very sticky when it’s first mixed, so you need to chill it in the refrigerator for a few hours before you can work with it.

The next step reminded me a lot of making biscuits, and in fact I did use a biscuit cutter.  Just dump some of the dough out onto a lightly floured surface,  then pat it out lightly with your hands.

Since the dough is still rather sticky, even after refrigeration, I dipped the cutter in flour before cutting each round.

After you cut out some rounds, it’s time to cut the holes.  I wasn’t sure what to use, since I don’t have a one-inch round cutter like the recipe specified.  But I do have an apple corer, and it worked well, even though the holes were a bit smaller than one inch.  Again, I made sure to dip the apple corer in flour before cutting each hole.

When deep-frying, you need to make sure you control the temperature of the oil.  Although it’s hard to keep it at the same exact temperature all the time, you should adjust the heat to try to keep the oil between 365 and 370 degrees as much as possible.  If it’s too cool, the doughnuts will absorb too much oil and if it’s too hot, the doughnuts will brown too fast and the middles won’t be fully cooked.  Make sure you have a thermometer clipped to side of your pan to make it easy to monitor the temperature of the oil.

Cook the doughnuts in batches, without overcrowding the pot.  Adding too many doughnuts at once will cause the oil temperature to drop rapidly, resulting in greasy doughnuts.

Cook the doughnuts until they are golden brown, then remove with a slotted spoon to a tray lined with paper towels.

After the doughnut holes have cooled, they can be rolled in cinnamon sugar, or whatever topping you decide to create.

I decided that I like these pumpkin doughnuts plain, but I did sprinkle a few with powdered sugar and a dash of pumpkin pie spice.  Perfect!

Pumpkin Doughnuts
(adapted from Bon Appétit)

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large egg
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon molasses
1 cup canned pure pumpkin
Canola or Peanut Oil (for deep-frying)

toppings:
1 cup sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon
powdered sugar

1. Whisk first 9 ingredients (flour through cardamom) in a medium bowl to blend well; set aside.

2. Using an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until well blended (mixture will be a bit grainy). Beat in egg, then yolks, then vanilla. Gradually beat in buttermilk and molasses, then beat in pumpkin, in four additions.

3. Fold the flour mixture into the egg mixture in 4 additions, blending gently after each. Cover the bowl and chill in the refrigerator for at least three hours.

4. Lightly flour two baking sheets.  When dough is well-chilled, lightly flour a work surface.  Starting with about 1/3 of dough, gently press it out to a round that is 1/2- to 2/3-inch thick. Using a 2 1/2-inch-diameter round cutter, cut out dough rounds. Using 1-inch-diameter round cutter, cut out center of each dough round to make doughnuts and doughnut holes.  Arrange doughnuts and holes on the baking sheets as you go.  Gather dough scraps. Press out dough and cut out more dough rounds until all dough is used.  If dough is very sticky, dip the round cutters into flour before cutting each doughnut.

5. Line two baking sheets with several layers of paper towels.  Pour oil into large deep skillet or dutch oven to a depth of 1 1/2 inches. Attach a deep-fry thermometer  to the side of the pot and heat oil to 365°F to 370°F.  Fry doughnut holes in 2 batches until golden brown, turning occasionally, about 2 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer to paper towels to drain.  Fry doughnuts, 3 or 4 at a time, until golden brown, adjusting heat to maintain temperature, about 1 minute per side.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer doughnuts to paper towels to drain.  Cool completely.

While doughnuts are cooling, mix sugar and cinnamon.  Roll doughnut holes in the cinnamon and sugar mixture.  Lightly dust doughnuts with powdered sugar, if desired.

Related Recipes:

• Pumpkin Pancakes
• Pumpkin Scones
• Pumpkin Spice Cake
• Pumpkin Cream Cheese Roll
• Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes

Around the Web:

• Pumpkin Doughnuts from A Mingling of Tastes
• Pumpkin Donuts with Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting from Pete Bakes!
• Baked Pumpkin Donuts from Culinary Cory
• Pumpkin and Hazelnut Doughnuts from Canelle et Vanille
• Baked Pumpkin Doughnuts from Recipe Girl

Click any of the photos above to be taken to the recipe.  Enjoy!

I’ve written about Egg in a Nest before, but I decided it was time to revisit this breakfast classic just in time for Valentine’s Day. I felt like making something fun for breakfast this past weekend and since February is the month of heart-shaped food (at least in the world of food blogs), I decided to break out my heart-shaped cookie cutter to create Eggs in a Heart for breakfast!

The method is simple. Grab a piece of bread, an egg, a cookie cutter or a knife, some butter, and a frying pan. Cut a heart-shaped hole in the bread.  Heat the pan over medium heat, add a bit of butter and swirl around.  Place the slice of bread in pan (as well as the little heart-shaped piece) and carefully crack the egg into the hole in the bread.

Sprinkle egg with a bit of salt and pepper and cook until the bread is nicely browned on the bottom.  Next, you can either carefully flip the slice of bread over to cook the other side, or you can slide the whole pan under the broiler and cook until the top of the bread is browned and the egg is cooked to your liking.  If you use the broiler method,  I suggest brushing the top of the bread lightly with melted butter (or a bit of bacon grease if you have some handy) before putting it under the broiler.

Serve with the little heart on top, or place it on the side.  Would be perfect with a side of fresh-squeezed blood orange juice.

Enjoy with your sweetheart!

If this is your first time learning about Egg in a Nest, it might be fun to read my first post about it, especially the comments!  There are over 80 comments on that post, most of them giving different names for this simple breakfast dish.  And if you happen to call it something else, head on over and join the discussion!

Other Valentine’s Day Ideas:

• Blood Orange Salad
• Heart-Shaped Buttermilk Cranberry Scones
• Bacon-Wrapped Beef Tenderloin with Smoked Paprika Butter
• Double Dark Chocolate Beet Muffins
• Red Velvet Cake
• Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
• Naughty Ice Cream Sandwiches
• Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

Intimidated by baking, assembling, and decorating a homemade red velvet cake for Valentine’s Day?  Give cupcakes a try instead!

As you probably know, I have already written about my husband’s family recipe for a gorgeous Red Velvet Cake.  But when I noticed that lots of readers were asking questions about how to turn the cake recipe into a cupcake recipe, I decided it was time to give it a try myself!

At first I was going to try a version using less red food coloring than the cake recipe, but at the last minute I decided to stay true to the original.  These aren’t pink, they aren’t reddish-brown, they are a dramatic RED, perfect for Valentine’s Day!  And in addition to the beautiful color, these little cakes are light, tender, and downright delicious!

There are several different types of red velvet cake. Some are heavier on the chocolate flavor than others, some use less food coloring, and some use beets instead of artificial coloring.  This one does not taste like a chocolate cake, although there is a subtle hint of cocoa.  The flavor is unique and delicious, and I prefer it to the red velvet cakes that contain more cocoa powder.  And as I’ve already mentioned, this cake recipe does not shy away from the food coloring!

Although red velvet cake is definitely a Southern tradition, it’s popularity has never been limited to the South.  The recipe I’m going to share today is also called Waldorf-Astoria Cake, and is supposedly based on a red velvet cake that was popular at the New York hotel in the 1920’s. For more on the history of red velvet cake, check out this great New York Times article.

But regardless of where the cake originated, red velvet cakes and cupcakes have become an American tradition that is holding on strong.  Whether it’s Christmas, Valentine’s Day, a birthday, or even a wedding day, red velvet is a wonderful way to celebrate!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour*
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 oz. red food coloring (two bottles)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake papers.

2. Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl; set aside.  In a small bowl, mix food coloring and cocoa powder to form a thin paste without lumps; set aside.

3. In a large bowl, using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about three minutes.  Beat in eggs, one at a time, then beat in vanilla and the red cocoa paste, scraping down the bowl with a spatula as you go.  Add one third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beat well, then beat in half of the buttermilk. Beat in another third of flour mixture, then second half of buttermilk. End with the last third of the flour mixture, beat until well combined, making sure to scrape down the bowl with a spatula.

4. In a small bowl, mix vinegar and baking soda.  Yes, it will fizz!  Add vinegar mixture to the cake batter and stir well to combine. Using an ice cream scoop, fill cupcake cups with cake batter (they should be 2/3 – 3/4 full).  You may not fill all the cups, I ended up with 20 cupcakes.  Place muffin tins on the middle rack of a preheated 350 degree oven.  Bake for approximately 20-22 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Check early and don’t overbake!

5. Cool the cupcakes in their tins on a wire rack for 10 minutes then remove and allow to cool completely before frosting.  Frost cupcakes with cream cheese icing (recipe below) and decorate with red sprinkles if desired.  The cupcakes above were decorated using the Wilton Cupcake Decorating Kit and Valentine’s Sprinkles. They can usually be found at craft stores like Michaels or Joann.

6. Enjoy the cupcakes with those you love!

Recipe Notes: *Sift cake flour once before measuring, then sift again with the other dry ingredients per recipe instructions. Wear an apron and be careful with the red food coloring–no matter how hard I try, I always end up staining something!  As you’re mixing the cake batter, use a spatula to scrape down the bowl frequently throughout the entire process.  Since the batter is fairly thick, I have found that an old-fashioned ice cream scoop works best for filling the cupcake wells (also great for muffin batter!).  Since all ovens are different, make sure you check the cupcakes a little early.  Mine were ready in just over 2o minutes, yours may be done sooner, or they may take a minute or two longer.

Cream Cheese Frosting

16 oz. cream cheese (2 packages), softened
1/2 cup unsalted butter (one stick), softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
pinch of salt

With an electric mixer, blend together cream cheese and butter until smooth.  Turn mixer to low speed and blend in powdered sugar, salt and vanilla extract.  Turn mixer on high and beat until light and fluffy. Use immediately or refrigerate, covered, until ready to use.  If refrigerated, the frosting will need to be brought to room temperature before using (after frosting softens up, beat with mixer until smooth).

Recipe Notes: If you prefer a sweeter and/or stiffer frosting, more powdered sugar can be added (up to four cups). But remember, the more sugar you add, the less you’ll be able to taste the tangy cream cheese!

Related Recipes:

• Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
• Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
• Double Dark Chocolate Beet Muffins
• Double Chocolate Pumpkin Cupcakes with Spiced Cream Cheese Frosting

Around the Web:

• Red Velvet Cake from Smitten Kitchen
• Red Velvet Cupcakes from Firefly Pie
• Red Velvet Cupcakes with Sprinkles Cream Cheese Frosting from Alice Q. Foodie
• Red Velvet Cupcakes from Off the (meat)hook
• Red Velvet Black and White Cookies from Joy the Baker