Ruby Red Velvet Cake & French Cream Icing

[Lolpigs]

Dumb question. If it's chocolate cake with red food dye, then does it just taste like chocolate cake? In which case, apart from adjusting the colour, why not just make chocolate cake?

Does it taste much different if you use beets?

The beets add more texture than taste IYKWIM? They can and do add a lovley texture and moistness to chocolate cake. They don't however make it takes like a vegetable or anything like that. Hehe, Red velvet cake is mostly about the look of the cake and the contrast with the Icing which is why you will most often see it with cream cheese or butter cream icing.

[LionsandBears]

Ok. Thanks. The beets don't put me off. I recently made the most fantastic chocolate cake using red kidney beans instead of flour. Simply divine and stayed moist for a week too.

So it's just an asthetic thing then?

The French Cream icing sounds noms.

[Phteven]

So how would I make the cake using beets?
I bake very seldom (if I bake I have to eat it and that makes me large) so I need a bit of guidance when it comes to substitutions.

[Lolpigs]

Yeah Tashy mostly asthetic, It never really alters the flavour at all. It does look very flash however

(not sure if I can link pics? please remove it if it violates something) Here is one I found on google.

http://bedroomtoboardroom.com.au/wp-...et-cupcake.jpg

Onyx, The beets replace moisture so generally in a cake recipie so it really does depend on your base cake recipe however as there are so many variations. Normally you can remove eggs or reduce oil content to add beetroot. Almond meal, is a good thing to have when experiementing with your base cake recipie, beucase it is good to add for less moisture without adding more flour which an mess up the recipie IYKWIM?

This is the recipie I use, I got it from Cook Yourself Thin and love it. This is a chocolate beetroot fudge cake. You can make the topping whatever you want. This cake is a really all out kinda cake LOL

For the cake

250g good-quality dark chocolate
3 medium free-range eggs
250g light muscovado sugar
1 vanilla pod, cut in half lengthways and seeds scraped out
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp clear honey
40g self-raising flour
40g plain flour
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
¼ tsp salt
25g cocoa powder
50g ground almonds
250g raw beetroot, peeled and finely grated
100ml strong black coffee
30ml oil

For the topping

150g good-quality dark chocolate
3 tbsp strong black coffee
1 tsp vanilla essence
3 tbsp clear honey

Method

Preheat a conventional oven to 160ºC, or a fan-assisted one to 140ºC. With the help of a brush and a tiny bit of oil, grease the surface of a round 20cm diameter by 8cm high loose-bottomed tin and set aside.

Melt the chocolate gently in a bowl over a pan of simmering water until all dissolved, then set aside to cool.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar, the scraped-out vanilla seeds, the maple syrup and the honey for three minutes with an electric hand whisk until pale and quite fluffy.

Gently fold in the flours, bicarbonate of soda, salt, cocoa and ground almonds until fully incorporated.

Using some kitchen paper, dab the grated beetroot thoroughly to remove some of the excess moisture. Fold in the beetroot, cooled chocolate, coffee and oil with the help of a spatula until thoroughly mixed together.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and cook in the middle of the oven for 1 hour 30 minutes. After this time, cover the cake with foil and bake for another 30 minutes.

Test the cake by inserting a skewer into the centre to see if it comes out clean (although this cake is so moist that even when the cake is fully cooked, the skewer comes out looking slightly messy). Leave to cool on a wire rack.

To make the fudge topping, melt the chocolate gently in a bowl over a pan of simmering water, then remove from the heat and add the coffee and the vanilla essence.

At this stage the chocolate will seize up slightly, but it will relax back once you add the honey and gently mix in.

Set aside to cool for 15 minutes before icing the cake. Cut the cake through the middle and ice it in the centre and on all sides.

Decorate the top with whatever you fancy

[Netix]

it is rather *just* a choc cake with red colour, but that said, it doesn't taste like chocolate cake. I can't describe the taste.

[Party-of-five]

I don't think it tastes like a chocolate cake. It has a different flavour every one who I know thats tried it has said the same. its simply yum!

[NaeNae]

Lolpigs - OMG that looks devine - is that recipe as tasty as it sounds?? I have never heard of light muscovado sugar, what is it? I love in a rural area so not sure how available it would be

Nae x