Southern Red Velvet Cake Recipe

Reviews (99)

Most helpful positive review

thanks for everyone who has given my Ravishing Red Velvet cake a chance - I'm sorry to see that some of you did not enjoy your experience. i just thought that i would add a sidenote that i am located in south louisiana, where it is extremely humid - perhaps this could be why some have found the cake to be a bit "dry". here in LA, it is quite moist and delicious! perhaps an adjustment to baking time & temp would help for you guys? thanks again! julie Read More

Most helpful critical review

Both my husband and I love red velvet cake however I'm disappointed by the end results for this recipe. I'm puzzled why this recipe calls for butter extract and not vanilla extract. The frosting is okay -and perfectly acceptable on a carrot cake or spice cake but after years of reviewing red velvet cakes it is a fact that the only frosting that should even be used is a Butter roux frosting (similiar to a butter cream frosting but the butter roux frosting is a cooked frosting) I appreciate your sharing the recipe but I will not be making this cake ever again. Read More

95 Ratings

5 star values: 52
4 star values: 19
3 star values: 13
2 star values: 6
1 star values: 5

I replaced the shortening and butter extract with 1 stick of butter and added vanilla extract to the cake mix. Very moist. Frosting is excellent. Read More

This was the best cake in the whole world. I followed the receipe exactly and watched my oven very, very closely. I took this cake to my job, which is a restuarant, it was a huge success. Read More

This cake is fantastic! I had used another Red Velvet cake recipe from my church cookbook for years, but it always seemed to bake too dry. The only difference between this cake and the one I have is the added shortening and the butter flavoring, but that was enough to really make a beautiful product! This is one of my families favorite desserts and this one will now become the recipe I use to make it:) A previous poster said to check the cake after 20 minutes and that is a good idea. Also, if you have a gas oven, I would bake it at 300 to 325. Read More

Thanks for such a great recipe! This was my first attempt at making a red velvet cake. This recipe resulted in a cake that was "off the hook". My family and I really enjoyed it. I will certainly use this recipe again! I made a few slight modifations such as using butter flavored shortening baking at 325 degrees (since I used dark colored round pans and I have a gas oven) and I increased the cooking time by an additional 10 minutes (total 40 minutes). I really love the sour cream frosting! Read More

I tried this recipe expecting a delicious homemade red velvet cake. Well the cake was red and that's about it. It was dry and void of flavor. I will not use this recipe again. Read More

This cake came out so good!! I've never made a cake from "scratch" and was a little nervous because it was for a friend's birthday. I was the hit of the party. Thanks for the great recipe. Moist and delicious! Read More

This recipe was FABULOUS!! I had rave reviews. I did add the extra 1/2 cup of sugar, but other than that followed the recipe and it turned out wonderfully. I didn't sift the flour though, and it didn't seem to present a problem. The only other tip I have was that you HAVE to mix the 2nd part of ingredients in a separate bowl. I tried it out twice and the 1st time, I just added the vinegar, baking soda, ect to the already mixed ingredents and it started fizzing and popping like a science fair project. (I was trying to be quick and make less of a mess and wasn't thinking!) Anyway, it turned out good, but the 2nd time I made them they were even better! I took them to work and they were inhaled. They were very moist and the frosting recipe is a winner also, I will no longer buy store bought frosting!! Thanks for the great recipe, I am in IL, I am not sure why so many people had difficulties with this, it's AWESOME!! Read More