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    Home » Cakes and Desserts

    We use cookies · See Privacy Policy in footer · Post contains affiliate links · Updated: Mar 5, 2020

    Red Velvet Valentine Cupcakes

    Red Velvet Valentines Cupcakes on a plate
    Red Velvet Valentines Cupcakes on a plate
    Red Velvet Valentines Cupcakes on a plate

    Red Velvet Valentine Cupcakes, with a cream cheese frosting, are rich, red, and decadent. Perfect for Valentine's Day - or any other day.

    Red Velvet Valentines Cupcakes on a plate

    Red Velvet Valentines Cupcakes

    Jump to Recipe

    Most of the cakes I cook I've been making for years, but occasionally something new comes along and a Red Velvet Cake is one of them. I'm not a big fan of artificial colourings, but for this, I make an exception. It is quite a big exception because there's a lot of colouring and if anyone who might eat reacts to colouring, then don't make these cakes. Otherwise, this amount won't hurt once in a while.

    Key ingredients in Red Velvet Valentine Cupcakes

    There are a few unusual ingredients in these cakes, and really they are necessary to give the cakes their distinctive Red Velvet flavour.

    Buttermilk

    Buttermilk is needed to provide an acidic medium for the bicarbonate of soda to act.

    In theory, you can use yoghurt thinned with milk, or milk with added wine vinegar or lemon juice. For 90ml, use 85ml milk (whole is best) and 5ml lemon juice. (For 250ml, use 235 ml milk and 15ml lemon juice.) Stir together and wait for 5 minutes.

    However, in this recipe, it is better to use buttermilk if you can get it and you can easily buy it in most supermarkets these days. I've seen it in Waitrose and Sainsbury's, and both Tesco and Asda show it online, so I guess they have it in-store too.

    You don't need a whole carton for this recipe, so either make some Buttermilk Scones or freeze what's left - ideally measure it into e.g. 30ml quantities. If you like these cakes, then freeze 90ml at a time, ready for your next baking session.

    Cider Vinegar or White Wine Vinegar

    Again, it's about providing some acidity. I prefer Cider Vinegar, but please don't buy it just for this recipe! At a push, you could use lemon juice.

    Christmas-Red Paste Colouring

    The colourings I usually use are liquid and fairly natural. This isn't. A liquid red will not work because you won't get a strong enough colour. I bought mine from Amazon (Sugarflair Christmas-Red Paste food colouring) or you can find it in specialist cake decorating shops.

    If you really don't want to use this strength of colouring and prefer the natural colours, you can still make the cakes but they will be more pink or peach than red - which is a good compromise if colouring is a problem, e.g with hyperactivity.

    Cream Cheese for the Frosting

    You do need full-fat cream cheese or the frosting won't work properly. To be honest, if you're making cake, just go the whole hog (as my grandfather used to say) and ENJOY!

    Helpful Tools

    • Kenwood Hand Mixer – My old hand mixer – also a Kenwood – finally gave up the ghost after about 25 years. I replaced it last year with this model and it’s a joy to use. My stand mixer is too big for the quantities of the Red Velvet Valentine Cupcakes, so the hand mixer is a perfect substitute.

    If you like this...

    ...Why don’t you try:

    Three Triple Cherry Cupcakes on the worktop

    Triple Cherry Cupcakes

    Triple Cherry Cupcakes are cherry cakes with cherry-flavoured buttercream icing and a maraschino cherry on top.
    3 easy valentine cupcakes in a line. Chocolate flavour with pink buttercream and a heart on top

    Easy Valentine Cupcakes

    Very easy Valentine cupcakes, using a standard chocolate cake recipe with fruit-flavoured buttercream. Perfect for a Valentines Day tea or as dessert
    Heart-shaped Valentine biscuits with white or pale pink icing and pink, gold and silver sprinkles

    Valentine Biscuits

    Heart-shaped rose-scented Valentine Biscuits with pink icing and sprinkles. How romantic is that?

    Stockists

    White hand mixer with beaters

    Kenwood Hand Mixer

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    Red Velvet Valentines Cupcakes on a plate
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    Red Velvet Valentine Cupcakes

    Red Velvet Valentine Cupcakes, with a cream cheese frosting - rich, red, and decadent.
    Prep Time30 mins
    Cook Time20 mins
    Total Time50 mins
    Course: Teatime
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: cupcakes, red velvet, Valentine
    Servings: 10 cupcakes
    Author: [email protected] Cooks

    Ingredients

    For the Cupcakes:

    • 125 g plain/all-purpose flour
    • 15 g cocoa powder
    • 1 teaspoon baking powder (5ml)
    • ¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (1.25ml)
    • 50 g butter softened
    • 100 g caster sugar
    • 1 level tablespoon Christmas Red paste food colouring (15ml)
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (5ml)
    • 1 large egg
    • 90 ml buttermilk
    • ½ teaspoon cider vinegar or white wine vinegar (2.5ml)

    For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

    • 250 g icing sugar
    • 75 g cream cheese
    • 50 g butter, softened
    • ½ teaspoon cider vinegar (or lemon juice) (2.5ml)
    • Sugar hearts for decoration
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    Equipment

    12-hole cupcake/muffin tin
    12-hole cupcake/muffin tin
    Metallic cupcake cases in rainbow colours
    Cupcake/muffin cases
    Ideally, hand or stand mixer
    Piping bag
    Large star icing nozzle

    Instructions

    Preparation:

    • Preheat the oven to 170°C/ 150°C fan/ gas mark 3/ 325°F
    • Line the muffin tins with paper cases.

    For the Cupcakes:

    • Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl
      (Flour, sieved cocoa, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda)
    • Using a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until you have a soft, pale mixture
      You could also use a hand mixer
    • Beat in the food colouring and the vanilla extract. The resulting mixture is a vivid red colour
    • Beat 1 tablespoonful of the dried ingredients into the mixture, then the egg, followed by the rest of the dried ingredients - just enough to combine
    • Scrape down the bowl with a spatula between additions
    • Beat in the buttermilk and the vinegar and divide the batter between the 10 cases
    • Bake for about 20 minutes until the top springs bake when lightly pressed. The resulting cakes won't be quite as bright, but still a good, red colour
    • Leave the cakes to cool on a wire rack until completely cold.

    For the Frosting:

    • Put the cream cheese and butter into a bowl and beat together until soft
    • Add the cider vinegar or lemon juice and beat again
    • Sieve a third of the icing sugar into the bowl and beat
      Start slowly to avoid icing sugar everywhere
    • Add the remaining icing sugar in two batches, scraping down between additions
    • Ice each cupcake, using a teaspoon or pipe using a large nozzle
      If you pipe you may need more icing!
    • Decorate with heart sprinkles
    • Serve to your loved one.

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    Hi, I'm Susie. Mostly I love cooking and baking, but combining work and home life often leaves me feeling that providing healthy, tasty food for my family is a chore. On those days I am decidedly an Everyday Cook...

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