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Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting

Published: · Modified: by · This post may contain affiliate links · 1 Comment

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This decadent Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting features rich, moist, and flavorful cake with a tangy, fluffy frosting. This recipe whips up in less than an hour and is the perfect treat for Valentine’s Day or anytime!

Red Velvet Cupcakes on Dark Table

Delicious cupcakes are good, but delicious cupcakes that support a good cause are even better. I made these cookies to support a very important cause: Good Cookies Food Bloggers’ Valentines Event organized by Julie!

This is now the fifth year that Julie organized this event to support Cookies for Kid’s Cancer.

Cancer is the leading cause of children’s disease-related death in the U.S. Right now, 40,000 children here are actively battling cancer. And less than 4% of the National Cancer Institute’s budget goes to childhood cancer. This is why Julie got involved. Because of her efforts with this project, this event has raised over $87,000!

The goal is to raise $3,000 in donations. The three event sponsors (Dixie Crystals, MediaVine, and OXO) have each agreed to match the donations up to $3,000. That means when we raise $1, it turns into $4! You can read more about this event on Julie’s blog or donate here.

I have so much respect for Julie for her incredible work supporting such a great cause. And thank you, Dear Readers, for reading and considering donating. Please do what you can, even if it’s just helping to spread the word about childhood cancer awareness. xoxo, Faith

Red Velvet Cupcake Recipe with Description

Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe

Confession time! I like Red Velvet Cake, but when left to my own devices I’m really a chocolate girl and the amount of chocolate in Red Velvet is minimal. But the thing is, I also like a great vanilla cake!

I stopped thinking of Red Velvet as chocolate cake because it’s not. But Red Velvet Cake is delicious in its own right. It’s a moist, velvety cake with a tangy vanilla flavor with just a whisper of chocolate. And it pairs perfectly with the rich tanginess of Cream Cheese Frosting.

There are two things you’re going to love about this Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe:

  1. These cupcakes are so pretty and so delicious that they just feel special, like something you’d pick up at a bakery. Make them for someone you love and you’re sure to brighten their day.
  2. It makes a small batch so even if you’re just whipping them up for you and your sweetie for Valentine’s Day, you won’t have a ton leftover! (And they freeze well.)

Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting with Bite

How to Make Red Velvet Cupcakes From Scratch

Measure out the ingredients to make this Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe.

Red Velvet Cupcakes Ingredients

Whisk together the butter, oil, sugars, egg, buttermilk, and vanilla.

Mixing Wet Ingredients for Red Velvet Cupcakes

Once the wet ingredients are combined, add the dry ingredients and whisk to combine.

Whisking Dry Ingredients Into Wet Ingredients

The batter will be brown because of the cocoa powder before adding the red food coloring.

Red Velvet Cake Batter Before Adding Red Dye

After adding the red food coloring, this is how the batter will look. Note that you can omit the coloring if you prefer, but your cupcakes will be brown instead of red.

Red Velvet Cake Batter After Adding Red Food Coloring

Scoop the batter into 8 muffin wells lined with paper liners in a muffin tray.

Pouring Batter Into Cupcake Tray

And bake until a toothpick inserted inside comes out clean.

Baked Red Velvet Cupcakes

While the cupcakes cool, make the Cream Cheese Frosting! Measure out all the ingredients.

Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients

Add the butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and salt to a large bowl.

Butter Cream Cheese Vanilla

And beat them with a handheld electric mixer.

Creaming Butter for Cream Cheese Frosting

Add the powdered sugar.

Adding Powdered Sugar to Creamed Butter

And beat until the frosting is smooth and creamy.

Cream Cheese Frosting Swirls

Frost the cupcakes once they're cool. You can pipe on the frosting, or go old school and spread it on with a butter knife.

Piping Cream Cheese Frosting on Red Velvet Cupcakes

Enjoy!

Red Velvet FAQs

What Does Red Velvet Cake Taste Like?

Red Velvet Cake is a moist cake with a velvety texture that strikes a perfect balance between fluffy and dense.

It’s a red-colored cake with a hint of both chocolate and vanilla flavor, and a slight tang from buttermilk. Not only does buttermilk lend a slightly tangy flavor to this recipe, but it also helps keep this cake moist.

Red Velvet Cupcake Recipe

Can I Use Regular Milk Instead of Buttermilk to Make This Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe?

Yes! If you want to use milk instead of buttermilk in this Red Velvet Cupcakes recipe, use ¼ cup of whole milk + ½ tablespoon distilled vinegar.

Can I Freeze Red Velvet Cupcakes?

Yes! You can easily freeze frosted cupcakes of any kind.

How to Freeze Cupcakes:

  1. Place the frosted cupcakes on a tray so they’re not touching, and place them (uncovered) in the freezer.
  2. Keep them in the freezer until they’re frozen solid, about 2 to 4 hours.
  3. Once they’re frozen, remove the cupcakes from the freezer, wrap each in plastic wrap, and place them in a zip-top plastic bag. When you close the bag, be sure to squeeze out as much air as possible.
  4. Label the bag with the date and contents and freeze for up to 3 months.
  5. When you want a cupcake, remove one from the freezer and let it thaw to room temperature.

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

What Kind of Frosting Goes with Red Velvet Cake?

I personally love the tangy flavor and creamy, yet fluffy texture of Cream Cheese Frosting paired with Red Velvet Cake. And it’s a total bonus that this type of frosting is so easy to make!

American-style vanilla buttercream (that I used to frost my Cranberry Cake) is also a good choice. If you go this route, you can cut the buttercream recipe in half and you will still have plenty to frost this small batch of Red Velvet Cupcakes.

I can’t remember where I heard it, but I heard that the classic frosting for Red Velvet Cake is Ermine Frosting, which is also known as Flour Buttercream or Roux Buttercream. To make this type of buttercream, flour, sugar, and milk are first cooked together. They’re cooled, and then whipped with butter. For a recipe and to read more about Ermine Frosting, check out How to Make Ermine Frosting on Liv for Cake.

Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe on White Tabletop

More Cupcake Recipes to Try:

Red Velvet Cupcake on White Table

Did you make this recipe? Please rate it and leave a comment below because I love hearing from you! You can also tag @anediblemosaic on social media. To stay up-to-date FOLLOW ME on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Xoxo, Faith

Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe on White Tabletop

Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting

By: Faith Gorsky
This decadent Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting features rich, moist, and flavorful cake with a tangy, fluffy frosting. This recipe whips up in less than an hour and is the perfect treat for Valentine’s Day or anytime!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 22 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 8 servings
Calories 393 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

Red Velvet Cupcakes:

Cream Cheese Frosting:

Instructions
 

For the Red Velvet Cupcakes:

  • Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a muffin tray with 8 paper liners.
  • Whisk together the butter, oil, sugar, brown sugar, egg, buttermilk, and vanilla in a large bowl. Whisk in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Add the food coloring and whisk until it’s fully incorporated.
  • Pour the batter evenly into the 8 lined muffin wells. Bake until a toothpick inserted inside comes out clean, about 22 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes in the muffin tray, and then carefully transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to finish cooling.

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

  • Beat together the butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl.
  • Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth and creamy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
  • Frost the cupcakes once they’re completely cool.

Faith's Tips

  • If desired, you can omit the red gel food coloring from this recipe.
  • Store Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting covered in the fridge for up to 5 days. Before serving, let them sit at room temperature for 15 minutes so the frosting can soften.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting
Amount Per Serving (1 frosted cupcake)
Calories 393 Calories from Fat 162
% Daily Value*
Fat 18g28%
Saturated Fat 9g56%
Trans Fat 1g
Cholesterol 59mg20%
Sodium 191mg8%
Potassium 116mg3%
Carbohydrates 56g19%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 46g51%
Protein 3g6%
Vitamin A 495IU10%
Calcium 51mg5%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Keyword Red Velvet Cupcakes, Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe, Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese
Tried this recipe?Let me know how it was!

Easy Red Velvet Cupcakes Recipe Pin

Be sure to visit the other bloggers participating in the Valentine’s Day event and check out their recipes!

Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links to products I believe in, which means that even though it doesn’t cost you anything extra, I will receive a small amount of money from the sale of these items. Thank you for helping to support An Edible Mosaic!

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  1. Wendy Klik says

    Thanks so much for this small batch recipe. They look lovely and I'm sure they are delicious.

    Reply