Red Velvet: a North American cake with striking visual appeal

The Red Velvet Cake is a dessert of North American origin, whose origins are disputed between the United States and Canada. It is therefore not strictly an “Anglo-Saxon” cake, as it is sometimes generically described.

In recent years, it has also attracted growing interest in Italy, especially thanks to its striking visual effect: the alternation between the red cake layers and the white cream creates a particularly eye-catching contrast.

From the original recipe to the modern Red Velvet

The Red Velvet we know today is, however, very different from the original version, both in terms of the colour of the cake and its texture, which is now similar to that of a soft sponge cake.

Originally, the reddish colour was the result of an unintended chemical reaction. At the time, the cake contained a significant amount of natural, non-alkalised cocoa, meaning cocoa that had not undergone the Dutching process, which reacted with some of the acidic ingredients in the batter.

The result was certainly not the bright red colour of modern Red Velvet cakes, but rather a more subdued shade tending towards brick red, reddish brown or burgundy.

What is the Dutching process?

The Dutching process, or cocoa alkalisation, is a treatment developed in the nineteenth century by the Dutch chemist Coenraad van Houten.

During this process, cocoa is treated with alkaline substances, such as potassium carbonate, in order to:

• reduce its acidity and bitterness;
• make its flavour smoother and less sharp;
• darken its colour, producing deep brown or almost black shades;
• improve its solubility in liquids.

With Dutching, the natural acidity of cocoa is largely neutralised, and the product generally takes on a darker and less reddish colour.

In modern Red Velvet recipes, cocoa is therefore used in very small quantities: just enough to provide a delicate aromatic note and recall the chocolate flavour of older versions, without affecting the cake’s characteristic red colour.

From Ermine frosting to cream cheese frosting

The cream used in Red Velvet has also changed considerably over time.

The traditional recipe involved cooking milk and flour and then whipping the mixture with butter and sugar. This cream was known as Ermine frosting, but also as cooked flour frosting, boiled milk frosting or roux frosting.

Today, the most common option is cream cheese frosting, prepared with cream cheese, butter and sugar.

Even the term “filling” is not entirely accurate, as the cream can be used not only between the red cake layers, but also as an outer coating.

A particularly interesting recipe, one might say a little Italianized and widely tested by us, is the following:

• 300 ml of vegetable whipping cream;
• 180 g of mascarpone;
• 150 g of cream cheese, such as Philadelphia;
• 100 g of icing sugar.

How did Red Velvet become famous?

The history of Red Velvet is surrounded by numerous stories and competing claims.

According to one of the most widespread accounts, the famous Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York helped increase its popularity during the 1930s. However, there is no conclusive evidence that the cake was actually invented by the hotel.

The Eaton’s department stores in Toronto also claimed authorship, although similar recipes had already been circulating beforehand.

The cake returned to the spotlight in the late 1980s thanks to the film Steel Magnolias, which features a striking Red Velvet cake. Its popularity grew further in the following years, also thanks to its appearance in the television series Sex and the City.

Today, Instagram and TikTok help keep its popularity alive, mainly because of its undeniable photogenic appeal.

The role of the Adams Extract Company

A contribution that was probably decisive in spreading the modern Red Velvet cake came from the Adams Extract Company, a Texas-based producer of flavourings and food colourings.

The company successfully promoted a recipe that used a generous amount of red food colouring, distributing it as an advertising tool to encourage the sale of its colourings and flavourings.

This is how Red Velvet began to acquire the intense, bright colour with which it is still identified today.

A cake that is beautiful to look at and delicious to eat

Red Velvet is undoubtedly a particularly striking cake, especially in the partially uncovered layered version, in which the alternation between the red cake and the white cream remains clearly visible.

It is precisely this colour contrast that makes it so inviting and instantly mouth-watering.

And the taste? It certainly deserves top marks!

Make your own Red Velvet

Our catalogue includes a mix for preparing Red Velvet cake made with colourings of natural origin.

For the cream between the layers, the recipe suggested above is thoroughly tested, delicious and pleasantly light.