Baking Red to Remember - Red Velvet Cupcakes

Today I am going to introduce you to a friend of mine, Angela AKA SpinachTiger. We met just a few weeks ago during the FoodBuzz Festival in San Francisco and although I haven't known her for an extended period of time, I feel like we've been long time friends.

Angela happens to be a very talented, creative, funny, and outgoing food blogger. To help put that into perspective, she was nominated as one of the Bloggers we would most like to see have their own show on the Food Network. (Yep, that pretty much says it all...)

Saturday afternoon as we were waiting for the chartered bus to take us to the FoodBuzz Dinner & Awards Ceremony she casually mentioned that she was planing on hosting a "Cooking Red to Remember" day on her blog December 1st in honor of World AIDS Day and asked of I would like to participate.

Being that we had only met that same morning, I had no idea how deeply impacted she has been by this disease. I told her I would love to show my support and told her that I would be making Red Velvet Cupcakes, and we left it at that.

Once I went to her blog and I read her story I was speechless...

If you look at the top picture, you see one cupcake in the foreground, there standing strong is Angela, the cupcake in the background to your right is her brother James, and the one to your left is her cousin Sam. Although no longer in the foreground with Angela, they are forever present.


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Baking Red to Remember - Red Velvet Cupcakes
adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

2 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising) sifted
2 tablespoons unsweetened ductch-process cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs, room temperature
6 tablespoons red food coloring
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together cake flour, cocoa, and salt.

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat together sugar and butter until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Mix in food color and vanilla.

Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of buttermilk, and whisking well after each. Stir together the baking soda and vinegar in a small bowl (it will foam); add mixture to the batter, and mix on medium speed 10 seconds.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake about 18-20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire rack to cool for about 15 minutes before removing the cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months in airtight containers.

Cream Cheese Frosting
adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
5 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
pinch of salt

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Add sugar 1/2 a cup at a time, and then vanilla, and mix until smooth and combined, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.

Frosting can be refrigerated up to 3 days in an airtight container, before using, bring to room temperature, and beat on low speed until smooth again.