Red Velvet Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
This red velvet layer cake is the most requested by my family among all my cake recipes! It's a moist red velvet cake recipe that uses lemon juice instead of vinegar, and it's layered with a pipeable cream cheese frosting just like these easy red velvet cupcakes.
What really makes these cupcakes special is the coconut extract! I use a little bit in all my red velvet recipes, like this red velvet cheesecake tres leches. It complements the cocoa powder and makes this cake unforgettable!
Whether you're looking for the perfect recipe for a birthday cake, Juneteenth dessert recipes, or just a new favorite, this is the best homemade red velvet cake you can make!
Recipe Overview: Red Velvet Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
✅ Recipe Name: Red Velvet Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
🕒 Ready In: 1 hour and 15 minutes, excluding cooling time
👪 Serves: 14
🍽 Calories: 775 calories per slice (estimated)
🥣 Main Ingredients: flour, cocoa powder, sugar, butter, oil, lemon juice, cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, heavy cream
👌 Difficulty: Easy!
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Why You'll Love This Cake
- It's easy and perfect for beginners! The acid from the buttermilk and lemon juice help make this cake tender so it's hard to mess up!
- It's more flavorful than your typical red velvet cake recipe. Swapping vinegar for lemon juice makes the tangy flavor smoother and adds a nice floral element that's complemented even more by the coconut extract.
- The whipped cream cheese frosting recipe is easy and stable enough for stacking and filling cakes, and even for piping. It's the same pipeable cream cheese frosting I use in these easy red velvet cupcakes.
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Key Ingredients
All-purpose flour. Has enough gluten to give the cake structure. There's no need to swap out with cake flour since cocoa powder and the high ratio of fat give this cake a plush crumb.
Buttermilk. Classic addition for red velvet cake. If needed, swap with a 1:2 part mixture of whole milk and full-fat sour cream.
Cocoa powder. Use regular unsweetened cocoa powder.
Fat. A mixture of butter and oil. Butter boosts the flavor of the cake while the oil gives it a more tender texture.
Lemon juice. Offers a smoother tang than vinegar would in a classic red velvet cake recipe, along with a subtle floral flavor, which makes this recipe stand out.
Coconut extract. Complements the cocoa flavor. Trust me, do not omit this.
How to Make a Red Velvet Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Step 1: Sift all the dry ingredients and set aside.
- Step 2: Mix the red food coloring, buttermilk and lemon juice and set aside.
- Step 3: Beat the butter, oil, sugar, vanilla and coconut extract together on high speed for 2-3 minutes until pale and fluffy.
- Step 4: Add the eggs and beat again until combined.
- Step 5: Add the dry ingredients and buttermilk mixture set aside earlier in 2 increments.
- Step 6: Pour the red velvet cake batter in three greased 8-inch cake pans.
- Step 7: Make the fluffy cream cheese frosting. Beat the cream cheese and mascarpone together.
- Step 8: In a separate bowl, whip heavy cream on high speed until soft peaks form.
- Step 9: Add the beat cream cheese and mascarpone cheese mixture to the heavy cream and beat again until smooth
- Step 10: Use the cream cheese frosting to fill and cover the red velvet layer cake as desired.
FAQs
No. Red velvet cake only has a small amount of cocoa powder compared to a true chocolate cake. Paired with the addition of tangy elements like buttermilk and lemon juice, homemade red velvet cake has its own unique flavor.
Red food coloring is what gives modern versions of the traditional cake its vibrant red color, but it doesn't affect the flavor of the cake at all, so you can omit it if you like. In fact, the original red velvet cake had more of a reddish-brown hue since it didn't include food coloring.
While a whipped cream cheese frosting or ermine frosting is typically the go-to for red velvet cake, you can use virtually any frosting you like. This stabilized whipped cream (without gelatin) is a perfect option. It's light but stable enough to stack a cake. You can even try a cream cheese ermine frosting like with these easy lemon cupcakes.
Ainseanlea's Top Tips & Substitutions
- Don't overmix the batter; this will make the cake dense. One of the hallmarks of a red velvet cake is its soft and velvety texture, so mix only until the ingredients are combined.
- Keep the cakes moist as they cool. Press plastic wrap lightly to the top of the cakes while they are still warm from the oven. This will trap moisture that would otherwise escape as steam.
- Short on buttermilk? Use a 2:1 mix of full-fat sour cream and milk.
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Red Velvet Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat oven to 325℉
- Sift the all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl and set aside.385 grams all-purpose flour, 15 grams cocoa powder, 2 teaspoon baking soda, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt
- Mix the buttermilk, lemon juice and red food coloring together in a spouted measuring cup. Set aside.340 mL buttermilk, 55 mL lemon juice, red food coloring
- Add the butter, granulated sugar, oil, vanilla extract and coconut extract to a large mixing bowl and beat on high speed with mixer for 3-5 minutes until pale and fluffy.450 grams granulated sugar, 285 grams unsalted butter, 2 teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 teaspoon coconut extract
- Add eggs one at a time to the mixing bowl beating on medium speed and waiting until each has been completely incorporated before adding the next.4 large eggs
- Scrape down the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl using a spatula. Beat again on medium speed until the mixture is uniform.
- Add the dry ingredients and buttermilk mixture set aside earlier in 2 increments. Beat on low speed just until there are no dry spots.
- Scrape the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl down again using the spatula to incorporate any unmixed portions into the batter.
- Equally divide the batter among three 8-inch cake pans prepared with baking spray and bake at 325°F for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes from the center with a few crumbs.
- Allow the layers to cool completely before decorating with the cream cheese frosting.
- Add the cream cheese and mascarpone cheese to a bowl and beat on high speed until the mixture is smooth and easily spreadable. If using a stand mixer, transfer the mixture to another bowl/container and set aside so you can use the mixing bowl for the next step. There's no need to clean the bowl before moving on.452 grams full-fat cream cheese, 226 grams mascarpone cheese
- Add the heavy cream, confectioner's sugar and vanilla extract to the mixing bowl and whip on high speed until the heavy cream reaches soft peaks. When the whisk is inverted, the peak should flop over easily like a Santa's hat.455 mL heavy whipping cream, 230 grams confectioner's (powdered) sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add the mascarpone/cream cheese mixture from earlier to the heavy cream and whip again on high speed until the mixture is completely smooth.
- Using an offset spatula, spread a thin layer of the cream cheese frosting on a cake circle. This will help your cake layer "stick" and prevent it from moving around as you decorate.The purpose of the cake circle is to make transferring and refrigerator storage easier and less bulky.
- Start layering the red velvet cake by placing one layer on your cake circle. Ensure that the layer is properly centered on the cake circle then use an offset spatula to spread an even layer of cream cheese frosting across the top.Repeat this process with the additional red velvet cake layers.
- Once all the layers have been stacked, spread a thin layer of cream cheese frosting along the sides and top of the cake for the crumb coat. Refrigerate the cake for at least 10 minutes to allow the crumb coat to set.
- Use an offset spatula and/or cake scraper to spread the remaining cream cheese frosting over the cake. You may reserve some of the frosting in a piping bag for decorative piping if desired.
- Serve at room temperature and refrigerate any leftovers in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap.
Nutrition
Notes
- All ingredients for the cake should be at room temperature.
- If using a natural food coloring, combine it with the lemon juice and allow it to sit for a couple of minutes for a more intense color.
- Cover the cake layers with plastic wrap as they cool. Press the plastic wrap lightly to the top of the cake and tuck any excess into the sides along the edge of the cake pan. This preserves moisture that would otherwise escape as steam.
- If some cake layers are thicker/taller than others, use the tallest one as the base to avoid the cake collapsing on itself.
- This cake contains butter, so for the best texture, it should not be served cold. Allow 15-20 minutes for it come to room/ambient temperature once removed from the refrigerator.
This red velvet cake was absolutely incredible! The texture was perfectly moist, the flavor was rich with just the right hint of cocoa, and the frosting was smooth, creamy, and not overly sweet. Every bite melted in my mouth and left me wanting more. My only regret is not eating more!
So glad you liked it Candice!
As a person who is very picky with desserts this hits all of the right notes. Not too sweet, light, and moist. Perfectly balanced cake that leaves you coming back the day after and the day after that! Excellent recipe
This is the best red velvet cake I've ever tasted. It is Very moist and delicious. You really must try the recipe!!
I promise you; this will be the best red velvet cake you've ever had!! It is amazingly delicious and wonderfully moist.
The BEST recipe for a red velvet cake, hands down, PERIOD!