For the better part of the past century, red velvet cake has appeared in cookbooks and on menus, dazzling diners with its lipstick-red and snow-white layers. Popular year-round, today, the cake is often seen at celebrations and holidays where red makes a showing, including Christmas, Valentine’s Day and Juneteenth.

This versatile version pulls from generations of red velvet recipes for a cake that’s well-balanced and not too sweet. It’s also supremely tender and, as the name declares, velvety in texture.

Red velvet cake is ‘the color of joy.’ Here’s how it rose into America’s dessert canon.

A combination of unsalted butter and vegetable oil give it flavor and ensure a moist cake. A bit of baking soda gives it just enough lift, but not so much that the batter bubbles over or domes as it bakes. Cocoa powder and lots of vanilla provide dark or fruity chocolate notes alongside musky vanilla.

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The only question is, how red do you like your red velvet? This recipe can do it all.

For a mahogany-colored cake, use raw cocoa powder in combination with buttermilk. The acidity in the buttermilk will react with the anthocyanins in the cocoa to give the cake a reddish hue.

Want a deeper magenta tint? Use beet juice. Easily found at most supermarkets, it adds moisture and natural color, but thanks to its interactions with the other ingredients in the cake batter, leaves the earthy flavor of beets behind. (You can also use a combination of beet juice and buttermilk.)

The only thing that will deliver a cake red as Santa’s suit is food coloring. Two ounces of liquid Red 40, found at most grocery stores, will do the trick, whether you decide to use buttermilk — for its tangy flavor — or beet juice — for some semblance of added nutrition.

Bake this cake into two 8- or 9-inch layers, three 8-inch layers or 24 tidy cupcakes. Then, make the cream cheese frosting. It’s easy to whip up, and just needs a quick chill before it’s ready to use. This recipe makes a very generous amount of frosting — enough to go between, on top and around three layers — so if you’d like less, feel free to halve it.

Where to Buy: Beet juice can be found at well-stocked grocery stores; it may contain lemon juice, which is fine.

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Storage: Leftover cake may be stored, wrapped airtight or in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Make ahead: Cake layers may be baked up to 3 days in advance. Allow them to cool completely before wrapping airtight and refrigerating. The cake layers may also be frozen, wrapped airtight, for up to 3 months. Once frosted, the cake can be carefully covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days.

NOTES: For best results, use finely granulated sugar such as Florida Crystals, Domino or C&H. Some brands have larger crystals, which may require a longer creaming time. If you’re concerned about crumbs in your frosting, you can first apply a thin coating, called a crumb coat, and let it chill before applying the rest of the frosting.

You may bake the cake in three 8-inch pans: Each pan will get about 500 grams of batter and take about 30 minutes to bake. You may also bake it in two 9-inch pans, but the layers will be somewhat shorter. You may also bake this batter into 24 cupcakes: Line a standard muffin tins with paper cupcake liners and fill each with 1/3 to 1/2 cup (approximately 60 grams) of batter. Bake at 325 degrees for 20 to 22 minutes, or until each cupcake springs back when lightly poked. Cool completely in pans set on a wire rack before frosting.

Get the recipe: Red Velvet Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting

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