Red velvet cake recipe

Ingredients

• 21⁄4 cups sifted cake flour
• 1⁄4 cup sifted all-purpose flour
• 1⁄3 cup sifted Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 11⁄2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 3⁄4 cup sour milk or buttermilk
• 1 bottle (1 ounce) red food coloring (2 tablespoons)

• 1 box (1 pound) confectioner’s (10 X) sugar
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1⁄2 cup firmly packed sour cream (use “light,” if desired) or well-drained plain yogurt (I prefer thick Greek yogurt)
• 11⁄2 teaspoons vanilla extract Milk, if needed for spreading consistency

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat 13 × 9 × 2-inch baking pan with nonstick oil-and-flour baking spray and set aside.
2. Sift both flours with cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt onto piece of wax paper and set aside.
3. 3. Cream butter and vanilla at high electric mixer speed 3 to 5 minutes until fluffy, scraping bowl often. With mixer at low speed, add sugar in a slow stream, then beat at high speed 3 to 5 minutes until fluffy-light, scraping bowl and beaters often. Beat eggs in one by one.
4. Combine sour milk and food coloring, then at lowest mixer speed, add alternately with flour mixture, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. After each addition, beat batter only enough to combine no longer or you’ll toughen the cake. Scrape bowl and beaters as needed while adding flour mixture.
5. Pour batter into pan, spread to corners, and smooth top. Bake on middle oven shelf 45 to 50 minutes until cake is springy to the touch and cake tester inserted in middle of loaf comes out clean.
6. Transfer cake to wire rack and cool to room temperature in upright pan.
For Frosting
7. Beat all but final ingredient (milk) at low mixer speed, then at high until smooth and fluffy. If frosting seems too stiff to spread, add a little milk, then swirl over top of cake and allow to firm up for several hours.
8. Cut into squares and serve.