Fourth of July Red Velvet Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

5 from 1 vote

Fourth of July Red Velvet Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

This red velvet layer cake is perfect for the 4th! It has that bright red crumb with its signature velvety smooth texture. Paired with a luscious cream cheese frosting, this cake is easily addicting to eat. Pipe it with red, white, and blue stars to make it festive for the weekend celebrations!

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 25

Total Time 55

Servings8 slices

AuthorSloane

Ingredients

For the Cake:

240 g all-purpose flour
14 g cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
113 g unsalted butter, 1 stick, room temp
264 g granulated sugar
100 g vegetable oil
2 eggs, room temp
113 g buttermilk, room temp
113 g plain whole milk greek yogurt, room temp
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon red food gel

For the Frosting:

24 oz cream cheese, cold
340 g unsalted butter, 3 sticks, room temp
750 g powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
red and blue food gel

Instructions

For the Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three 6 inch cake pans and line each of them with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large glass measuring cup, combine the buttermilk and yogurt and warm in the microwave for about 20 seconds or so to bring to room temp. Stir in the vanilla, vinegar, and red food gel. Set aside.
In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together until fully combined. Pour in the vegetable oil and eggs and beat until completely combined. Scrape down the bowl to ensure everything is evenly incorporated.
Next, alternate adding the flour mixture and buttermilk mixture in thirds as the stand mixer mixes on low speed. Mix until just combined. Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula to ensure everything is evenly incorporated.
Pour batter into the three cake pans, using a kitchen scale to distribute the batter evenly.
Bake the cakes for 25-30 minutes or until the top of the cakes spring back when you touch them and the cakes begin to pull away from the sides of the pans.
Allow cakes to cool for 10 minutes in the pans, then turn them out onto cooling racks to cool completely.

For the Frosting:

In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth.
Slowly add the powdered sugar in, beating on low speed until fully combined. Add the vanilla and mix to incorporate.

For Assembly:

Secure the first layer of cake on the cake stand with a small amount of frosting on the bottom. Use a cookie or ice cream scoop to measure out the frosting for each layer. I used a 3 tablespoon cookie scoop and put 3 scoops of frosting on each layer. Cover the whole cake in a thin layer of frosting for the crumb coat. Place in the fridge to firm up for one hour.
If making red, white, and blue stars, take out 150g of frosting per color and place in three separate bowls. Color one red, one blue, and leave the last one white. Transfer each of them to piping bags with star piping tips of various sizes. Place in the freezer for a few minutes until ready to use.
After one hour, frost the cake with a thicker layer of frosting, making it as smooth as possible. Then, pipe red, white, and blue stars all over the cake as desired.
Keep the cake in the fridge until ready to serve.

Notes

You can make the cake layers the night before and decorate it the next day. Just wait until the cakes are completely cool, then wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight.

To ensure completely flat cake layers use cake strips on the outside of your pans. I like the ones by Wilton! Cake strips ensure that the cake bakes evenly, rather than the outside of the cake baking faster than the center, which makes the cake rise more in the center. If you bake cakes often, these are a very good investment! You can also make DIY ones by wrapping wet paper towels with aluminum foil and wrapping them around the cake pans.

Before piping the red, white, and blue stars, chill the frosting in the fridge or freezer so they hold their shape better.

Nutrition Facts

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