Red Velvet Cupcakes With Fluffy Meringue Icing Food

RED VELVET MERINGUE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
• Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt into a large bowl. Whisk together the buttermilk, oil, sour cream, food coloring, vinegar, vanilla and egg together in medium bowl.
• Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Divide evenly among the cupcake liners. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out with a few moist crumbs, 18 to 20 minutes. Remove the cupcakes from the tin and cool completely on a wire rack.
• Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a saucepan that can hold a bowl comfortably without touching the water. Whisk the sugar, lemon juice, cream of tartar, salt and egg whites in the bowl. Set the bowl above the boiling water and continue whisking until the mixture is hot to the touch and the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Remove the bowl from the water and whip with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until the meringue is cool and holds a stiff peak, about 7 minutes.
• Spoon or pipe the frosting decoratively and generously on the cupcakes.

RED VELVET CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 12-count muffin pan with cupcake liners. This recipe makes 14 cupcakes, so you will have 2 cupcakes to bake in a 2nd batch.
• With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat 2 egg whites on high speed in a medium bowl until soft peaks form, about 2-3 minutes. See photo at the bottom of this post for a visual. Set aside.
• Sift the flour and cornstarch together to make sure it is evenly combined. Whisk this, along with baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
• Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on high speed until smooth and creamy - about 1 minute. Add the sugar and beat on high speed for 2 minutes until creamed together fairly well. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the oil and beat on high for 2 minutes. The butter may look "piece-y" and not completely combine with the oil. This is normal and ok.
• Add 2 egg yolks and the vanilla. Beat on medium-high speed until combined. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Beat in the vinegar and the food coloring- until you reach your desired color. I use 2 Tablespoons. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in three additions alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, and mixing each addition just until incorporated. Do not overmix. Fold whipped egg whites into cupcake batter with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon. The batter will be silky and slightly thick. (If there are still pieces of butter - and there were in 1 test batch for me - again, this is ok. They will melt inside as the cupcakes bake. Making them even more buttery.)
• Spoon batter into cupcake liners filling 1/2 - 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 20-21 minutes or until the tops of the cupcakes spring back when gently touched and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Don't overbake; your cupcakes will dry out. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
• Prepare cream cheese frosting. Frost cooled cupcakes immediately before serving. I used a Wilton #12 tip; I don't recommend a star tip. This frosting is a little too thin.

RED VELVET CUPCAKES WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan). Line a standard 12 hole muffin tin with cupcake liners.
• Sift Dry ingredients together into a bowl.
• Cream butter: Put the butter in a separate bowl and beat on speed 2 for 1 minute with an electric mixer or stand mixer (paddle attachment).
• Cream sugar: Add sugar then beat for a further 2 minutes, same speed, until the butter is very pale yellow, almost white.
• Beat in eggs: Add the eggs one at a time beating for 30 seconds on speed 1 after each addition.
• Add remaining Wet ingredients: Add oil, buttermilk, vanilla and red food colouring then beat on Speed 1 until incorporated and the batter is smooth.
• Beat in flour: Sprinkle the Dry ingredients across the surface and mix on Speed 1 for just 20 seconds. Scrape down sides of the bowl, then mix again for 10 seconds. The batter should now be smooth - few small lumps is ok. Do not keep beating - overworks batter = cupcakes not as soft!
• Fill pan: Divide the batter between the 12 cupcake liners - it should fill 3/4 of the way, but it depends on the size of the cupcake liners you use.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the middle cupcake comes out clean.
• Cool: Immediately remove cupcakes onto a wire rack. Cool completely before frosting with cream cheese frosting.
• Cream butter: Place butter in a bowl and beat for 1 minute until it's smooth and starts to become paler in colour - speed 6 on stand mixer, speed 9 for electric beater.
• Cream cream cheese: Add cream cheese then beat for a further 1 minute on the same speed until smooth.
• Add icing sugar: Add icing sugar in 4 batches, beating in between until incorporated, starting on speed 1 so you don't get a dust storm in your face!
• Beat until fluffy: Add vanilla and salt, then beat for 2 minutes until fluffy - speed 6 with stand mixer, speed 9 with electric beater. It should be creamy but still hold its shape in a peak (see video). If it's too sloppy, place in fridge for 30 minutes, then beat again.
• Pipe: Transfer into piping bag with desired piping tip. Pipe onto cupcakes - makes enough to generously frost 12 cupcakes as pictured in post.

RED VELVET CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tins with paper liners.
• In a small bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a large measuring cup, combine the buttermilk, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed for 1 minute, until light. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until combined. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients alternately in 3 parts, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, and mix until combined. Stir with a rubber spatula to be sure the batter is mixed.
• Scoop the batter into the muffin cups with a 2 1/4-inch ice cream scoop or large spoon. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the centers comes out clean. Cool completely in the pans and frost the cupcakes with Red Velvet Frosting.
• Place the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and mix on medium speed just until combined. Don't whip! Add the sugar and mix until smooth.

RED VELVET CUPCAKES WITH CREAMY VANILLA ICING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and lightly flour three 9- by 2-inch round cake pans, then line the bottoms with waxed paper.
• To make the cake: In a small bowl, sift the cake flour and set aside. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In a small bowl, whisk together the red food coloring, cocoa, and vanilla. Add to the batter and beat well.
• In a measuring cup, stir the salt into the buttermilk. Add to the batter in three parts alternating with the flour. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not overbeat. In a small bowl, stir together the cider vinegar and baking soda. Add to the batter and mix well. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended and the batter is smooth.
• Divide the batter among the prepared pans. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the layers cool in the pans for 1 hour. Remove from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack.
• When the cake has cooled, spread the frosting between the layers, then ice the top and sides of the cake with Creamy Vanilla Frosting .