Red Velvet Bundt Cake

This made-from-scratch, moist, tender, and lightly chocolatey homemade red velvet bundt cake brings bakery-worthy goodness to your kitchen in less than an hour!

Easy Red Velvet Bundt Cake 

Nothing puts a smile on faces like my red velvet bundt cake recipe! I mean, who doesn’t love a good bundt cake! It’s baked in a pan that creates a beautiful cake that needs little, to no, decorations. Gotta love that!

This recipe is easy — it comes together in an hour! — and makes a deliciously fluffy, tender crumb and has the perfect signature red velvet flavo. I hope you’ll try more of my red velvet specialties next: red velvet cupcakes, red velvet crinkle cookies, or red velvet brownies,

To be honest with you, this is one of my go-to cakes year-round. I do, however, love to serve it during the Christmas and Valentine’s seasons.

It’s also great for Memorial Day and the 4th of July. I add fresh blueberries to the top of the cake while the frosting is still wet, et viola! You have the perfect red, white and blue cake ready for your celebrations.

What Is Red Velvet Cake

Red velvet cake is a southern classic! The cake is a gorgeous ruby red with a stark, contrasting, bright white frosting. It’s should be very moist, with a tender crumb, a light chocolate flavor with a lot of tang from the buttermilk, vinegar, and cream cheese frosting. It was originally created during the Victorian era and was named after it’s incredible texture!

What Flavor Is Red Velvet Cake?

The flavor of red velvet cake is a slightly tangy, lightly cocoa flavor.

How To Prevent Bundt Cake From Sticking

I use Nordic Ware Baker’s Joy No stick bakers spray with flour. This recipe has never failed to release when I use this. Wait to spray the pan until after your batter is complete and you’re ready to pour the batter in the pan. I also use a Nordic Ware pro cast original bundt pan, which has a PFOA-free nonstick coating. The combo works like a charm!

What Is Red Velvet Cake Tips

• Sifter: This is one of the few recipes where I actually pull out my sifter! It helps keep the cake from being overly dense.
• Bake Time: Remember, oven temperatures may vary, but I’ve had great luck baking this cake recipe for 52 minutes overall! Also, if you use a more decorative bundt pan, that can affect the baking time too. Just be careful! Overbaking will produce a dry cake.
• Bowl Size: The first time I made my red velvet bundt cake recipe, I used my large Pyrex mixing bowl that has a nice diameter but is fairly shallow. I swear . . . that batter spattered out of the bowl and onto just about every inch of my kitchen! Learn from my mistakes and use a nice DEEP mixing bowl otherwise, your kitchen will look like a scene out of Dexter!
• Bundt Pan Size: So this may be stating the obvious, but not all bundt pans hold the same volume. This recipe is baked in a 12 cup bundt pan. I love the Nordic Ware Pro Cast Original Bundt Pan and use it ALL the time! The pan’s walls are nice and thick and made to last.

Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead Tips

• How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge?  This cake, with its cream cheese frosting, must be refrigerated.  I love how the cold temp gives the cake a chewier texture. You can leave it in the fridge, with the frosting on, for up to seven days. Without the frosting, you’ll get an even longer life out of your cake, so if you are wanting to store it more, withhold the frosting until you want to eat a slice.
• Can You Freeze This?  Yes! Make sure you do NOT put the frosting on, though. The dairy in the frosting will not mix well with the freezer’s low temps! Your frosting-less (aka naked) cake will last in the freezer for up to six months.
• Make-Ahead Tips: The best way to save time on this cake is to make the cake and frosting ahead of time, store them, and then ice right before serving. Like I said above, you can make and store the cake for up to seven days ahead of time!

Serving Recommendations

My favorite thing to serve with this delicious red velvet bundt cake with cream cheese frosting is a tall, ice-cold glass of milk.  A hot cup of coffee or tea are delicious accompaniments as well.

Is Red Velvet Cake Just Vanilla Cake With Food Coloring?

No. It’s more of a cocoa cake than vanilla.

How To Make Red Velvet Cake

1. Sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder; set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, add oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla. Using an electric mixer, beat on medium, for 1 minute. Turn mixer to low and add flour mixture, about 1/2 cup at a time, and mix until each addition is just combined.
3. Pour batter into bundt pan and bake in preheated oven 40-55 minutes, or until a cake tester or bamboo stick comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Cool completely before frosting.
4. Make frosting; In a medium mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and cream cheese  until just smooth and combined. Turn the mixer on low and add the powdered sugar slowly until frosting is smooth. Stir in vanilla
5. Spread or pipe frosting over completely cooled cake. Store any leftovers in the fridge!

****See Full Instructions Below

More Delicious Bundt Cake Recipes

• Pumpkin Bundt Cake
• Apple Bundt Cake
• Louisiana Crunch Cake
• Kentucky Butter Cake
• Baileys Irish Cream Cake
• Harvey Wallbanger Cake
• Chocolate Bundt Cake

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Red Velvet Bundt Cake

This made-from-scratch, moist, tender and chocolatey homemade red velvet bundt cake brings bakery-worthy goodness to your kitchen in less than an hour!

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr

Servings: 12 servings

Author: Kathleen

Ingredients

Cake:

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 1/4 cups vegetable oil (I use canola oil)
• 1 cup buttermilk well shaken
• 2 large eggs at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons (1-ounce bottle) red food coloring
• 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

Frosting:

• 4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter softened
• 8 ounces cream cheese softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar sifted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray.
• In a medium mixing bowl, sift together flour (2 ½ cups), sugar (1 ¾ cups), baking soda (1 teaspoon), salt (3/4 teaspoon), and cocoa powder (2 tablespoons). Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, add oil (1 ¼ cups), buttermilk (1 cup), eggs (2), food coloring (2 tablespoons), vinegar (1 teaspoon), and vanilla (2 teaspoons). Using an electric mixer, beat on medium, for 1 minute. Turn mixer to low and add flour mixture, about 1/2 cup at a time, and mix until each addition is just combined.
• Pour batter into prepared bundt pan and bake in preheated oven 40-55 minutes (the original instructions called for 40 minutes of baking. Mine took 52 minutes) or until a cake tester or bamboo stick comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Cool completely before frosting.
• Meanwhile, make frosting; In a medium mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter (4 ounces) and cream cheese (8 ounces) until just smooth and combined. Turn the mixer on low and add the powdered sugar (2 cups) slowly until frosting is smooth. Stir in vanilla (1 teaspoon).
• Spread or pipe frosting over completely cooled cake. Store any leftovers in the fridge!

Fans Also Made:

• 
  Red Velvet Cake Balls
• 
  Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
• 
  Red Velvet White Chocolate Chip Cookies
• 
  Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

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Notes

1. Sifter: This is one of the few recipes where I actually pull out my sifter! It helps keep the cake from being overly dense.
2. Bake Time: Remember, oven temperatures may vary, but I’ve had great luck baking this cake recipe for 52 minutes overall! Also, if you use a more decorative bundt pan, that can affect the baking time too. Just be careful! Overbaking will produce a dry cake.
3. Bowl Size: The first time I made my red velvet bundt cake recipe, I used my large Pyrex mixing bowl that has a nice diameter but is fairly shallow. I swear . . . that batter spattered out of the bowl and onto just about every inch of my kitchen!
   • Learn from my mistakes and use a nice DEEP mixing bowl otherwise, your kitchen will look like a scene out of Dexter!
4. Bundt Pan Size: So this may be stating the obvious, but not all bundt pans hold the same amount of volume. This recipe is baked in a 12 cup bundt pan.
   • I love the Nordic Ware Pro Cast Original Bundt Pan and use it ALL the time! The pans walls are nice and thick and made to last.

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Source: Very Slightly Adapted From Kiss My Bundt