Scratch Pink Velvet Cake Recipe

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: pink velvet cake

Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 45

Total Time: 1 15

Servings: servings

Calories: 954kcal

Author: Kara @I Scream for Buttercream

This pink velvet cake is a moist and tender cake with a delicate pink color and light vanilla flavoring with just a hint of lemon, then covered in cream cheese buttercream frosting.

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US Customary - Metric

Ingredients

For the cake:

2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cup sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, almost room temperature but not warm
1 ½ cups milk (preferably whole milk)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (or canola oil)
2 ½ teaspoon princess emulsion (If you can't get this, substitute with 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon almond extract and ½ teaspoon lemon extract)
6 large egg whites
3 drops red or pink gel food coloring

For the buttercream:

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature room temp
1 cup salted butter. room temperature (Using half salted butter tastes better, but if you don't have it, just use unsalted here and add in a pinch of salt.)
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, room temperature (1 block)
7 cups confectioner’s sugar (may use an additional cups if needed)
1 ½ teaspoon princess emulsion (If you can't get this, substitute with 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¼ teaspoon almond extract and ¼ teaspoon lemon extract)
1-2 tablespoon milk
2 drops pink or red gel food coloring (optional)

Instructions

For the cake:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Grease and flour two 8" round (2" inch deep) cake pans and set aside.
Add one cup of milk to a measuring cup and add in one tablespoon of lemon juice. Stir and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
In another bowl, add the milk & lemon juice mixture, another ½ cup of plain milk, the vinegar, oil, food coloring, princess emulsion (or extracts) and egg whites. Whisk well and set aside.
Make sure the butter is almost room temperature, but not very warm. Add the butter (in chunks) slowly to the dry ingredients. If using a stand mixer, just turn the mixer on low and leave it on while the butter chunks are added a bit at a time, or just use a hand mixer.
Once all the butter has been added, turn the mixer up to medium-high and mix until all the flour is coated with the butter and the mixture is crumbly. It will have a sand-like texture. Stop mixing once the flour is all coated. Mixing too long will form the mixture into a paste.
Pour about a third of the liquid mixture into the flour and butter mixture. Mix on medium until just combined. About 15-20 seconds.
Pour the last of the liquid mixture in and mix again until well combined. Be careful not to overmix. Mixing the batter for several minutes is too long. Once all the ingredients are incorporated well, stop mixing.
Use a rubber spatula and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Mix again for only about 10 to 15 seconds.
Check the color, if it needs to be pinker, add in another drop or two of the gel food coloring. (The batter will need to be a bit brighter than you want the baked cake to be since the cake will become more golden brown and may overpower a subtle light pink color.) Mix until the food coloring is well incorporated, but be careful not to mix too long here, or it will affect your cake's texture.
Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake at 325 degrees F for approximately 45-55 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the middle of each layer should come out with a few moist crumbs on it or clean. The cake layers will flatten a bit once cooled.
Set the baked cake layers on wire racks to cool for 10-15 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto the racks and let them cool out of the pans completely before adding frosting.
Once cooled, add buttercream frosting.

For the buttercream:

Add the butter and cream cheese to a large mixing bowl and mix well with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until creamy.
Add in three cups of confectioner’s sugar and mix on low until incorporated and then on medium until well mixed.
Add one tablespoon of milk and mix on medium until incorporated.
Add the last four cups of confectioner’s sugar and mix on low, then on medium until well mixed.
Add in the food coloring (optional) and the princess emulsion (or extracts), then mix on medium to medium-high until well mixed.
Check the consistency. If it’s too thick, add another tablespoon of milk and mix. If it's too thin, add another ½ to 1 cup of confectioner's sugar and mix well.
Once the desired consistency is reached, mix on medium-high speed for about four to five minutes. The icing will fluff up and will lighten a bit in color.

Notes

How to Store: Because this cake is covered and filled with cream cheese buttercream, it should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator and can last up to about 5-6 days.

How to serve: This cake is best served close to room temperature. If the cake is cold, set it out to come closer to room temperature for about 20-30 minutes before serving.
You can also pop a slice in the microwave to warm up a bit.

For other questions: Make sure to check out the TIPS & FAQs for this recipe in the blog post, which should answer questions you may have about ingredients, substitutions, other pan sizes etc.

Nutritional values are an estimate.

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Nutrition