Moist red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting

Soft, moist, and velvety, these red velvet cupcakes are easy to make. They are topped with homemade cream cheese frosting. The best red velvet cupcakes ever! These cupcakes are made with the classic ingredients for a red velvet cake – buttermilk, vinegar, and cacao powder.

Red velvet cupcakes are derived from the well-known American red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting. Red velvet owes its name to the beautiful red color and the velvety structure. Because of the cocoa, red velvet also has a chocolate taste.

These homemade cupcakes are exactly as red velvet should be, with a good full, and soft taste and a velvety texture. A matching vanilla cream cheese topping cannot be missed with the recipe for these red velvet cupcakes. The secret to the perfect red velvet cupcakes is not to overmix them. Both butter and vegetable oil are used in this recipe. The butter is used for the flavor and the vegetable oil to make the cupcakes smoother. That results in a moist red velvet cupcake.

I made these red velvet cupcakes with buttermilk. Adding buttermilk and vinegar makes the red velvet cupcakes moist and tender. The combination with the texture of the cream cheese frosting is amazing. This is definitely the best recipe for red velvet cupcakes.

You can make these cute red velvet cupcakes for any occasion. Because of its red color red velvet is also very popular for Valentine’s day. Try out my Churro Cupcakes or Chocolate Cupcakes as well.

How do you get red velvet cupcakes so beautifully red?

A fun fact: red velvet dishes used to get a red color by mixing cocoa with vinegar and buttermilk. A chemical reaction took place in the oven, which turned the product red. Today, cocoa has changed so much that no chemical reaction can occur. Because of that red food coloring is used to give the cupcakes the typical red color.

The first time I made these red velvet cupcakes, I had a coloring agent that didn’t do its job well and the cupcakes were still brown. That is really a shame with a red velvet cupcake, you really want to see a beautiful red color there. Therefore don’t buy food coloring in supermarkets. But order a good one online or buy one in a baking shop.

Ingredient Notes & Substitutions

Be sure that the eggs and butter are at room temperature.

• Self-raising flour – You can substitute the self-raising flour with all-purpose flour. If you s

• Eggs – are used to add structure to baked goods. You need 3 eggs at room temperature.

• Buttermilk – adds moisture and flavor to the cupcakes. If you don’t have buttermilk don’t worry. You can also use normal milk combined with lemon juice. Allow it to sit for about 5 minutes before use.

• Vinegar – together with the buttermilk provides the light and airy structure of the red velvet cupcakes

• Vegetable oil – baked goods with oils are more tender and moist. The best oil for baking is canola or vegetable oil. Because they have minimal flavor, mainly when used in baked goods.

• Unsalted butter – I love to regulate the amount of salt I use for baking, that is why I always use unsalted butter. Make sure the butter is at room temperature. You can use salted butter as well, but don’t add extra salt to the batter.

• Granulated sugar – keeps the cupcakes moist and sweetens the cupcakes.

• Red food coloring – use good quality red food coloring. To give the cupcakes their beautiful red color.

• Vanilla extract – gives baked goods more taste. Choose a good quality vanilla extract, because that really makes a difference.

🍽 Equipment

The equipment you need for making red velvet cupcakes.

• Whisk, hand mixer or a stand mixer
• Mixing bowl
• Cupcake pan (optional)
• Cupcake baking cups
• Kitchen scale

🔪 Step-by-step instructions

Let’s walk through how to make cream cheese red velvet cupcakes from scratch. For full ingredients and instructions, scroll down to the recipe card. 

Instructions red velvet cupcakes

Step 1 – Preheat the oven

Preheat the conventional oven to 160℃ / 320 °F. Position an oven rack in the center position. Prepare a muffin pan and place the muffin cups in it.

Step 2 – Cream butter

Beat the unsalted butter – at room temperature in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer at a low speed, until it becomes soft and creamy. Gradually at the granulated sugar and increase the speed (high speed) and continue beating until smooth and creamy. The butter needs to be paler (more white). TIP – If the butter is not at room temperature, you can also heat it for 30-60 seconds in the microwave, so that no lumps form in the mix (make sure that the butter doesn’t melt).

Step 3 – Add eggs

Add the eggs, room temperature, one by one into the creamed butter and mix it together briefly. Don’t overmix.

Step 4 – Add wet ingredients

Add all the wet ingredients (vegetable oil, buttermilk, red food coloring, and vanilla extract) to the butter mixture. Mix this briefly on the lowest setting until everything is dissolved.

Step 5 – Dry ingredients

Sift all the self-raising flour, cocoa powder, and a pinch of salt into a separate bowl and whisk together to evenly incorporate. Add the dry ingredients to the red velvet mixture and mix on the lowest setting for half a minute until combined. Don’t overmix!

Step 6 – Divide the batter into the cupcake cups

Divide the cupcake batter over the cupcake cups with an ice cream scoop. Make sure that the cupcake cups are 3/4 full with the red velvet batter.

Step – 7 Bake the cupcakes

Bake at 160℃ / 320 °F for 20 minutes. Do not open the oven during the first 15 minutes of baking, or the cupcakes might fall. Check the doneness of the cupcakes with a wooden tooth stick. Insert a wooden toothpick near the center of a cupcake. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cupcake is done.

Step 8 – Cool down

After baking, set the pans on a cooling rack until completely cool. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before decorating or serving.

Instructions cream cheese frosting

Step 1 – beat butter and cream cheese

Beat the unsalted butter – at room temperature in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer at a low speed for about 2 minutes, until it becomes soft and creamy. Add cream cheese at room temperature and mix at high speed for about 2 minutes.

Step 2 – add other ingredients

Little by little, add icing sugar and mix everything with a mixer on the lowest setting until everything is well dissolved. Finally add salt, and vanilla extract. Mix with a mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes until the mixture is fluffy.

Step 3 – decorate

Place the cream cheese topping in a piping bag and add the desired tip. Pipe the topping over the cooled cupcakes. Take some crumbs from a red velvet cupcake and decorate the cupcakes by sprinkling the crumbs on top of the cream cheese topping.

👩🏼‍🍳 Expert Tips

• Don’t overmix the batter. If you overmix the batter it will result in a gummy and unpleasantly chewy cupcake instead of a light and airy cupcake.
• Don’t open the oven door while baking. You can only do that at the end of the baking time to check the doneness of the cupcakes.
• Don’t overbake. If you put the cupcakes in the oven for a longer time than needed. They will dry out.
• Use a food coloring of good quality. For the perfect red color of the cupcakes.
• Use a kitchen scale to properly measure your baked goods.

🍞 How long can you store red velvet cupcakes?

Out of the refrigerator

Red velvet cupcakes without topping or decoration can be stored for 4-5 days in an airtight container outside the refrigerator. Don’t refrigerate them, because they dry out in the fridge. The best way to store them is to store the cupcakes in a cool place.

You can keep the red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese topping for a maximum of 2 days, but it is best that you decorate them on the same day and eat them on the same day. Store the cupcakes in a cool place.

Freezer

Undecorated cupcakes can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Then pack them airtight and possibly in small portions. Unfortunately, you cannot freeze the red velvet cupcakes with the cream cheese topping.

⚖️ Baking in grams

The most accurate way to bake is by baking by weight. Measuring cups are very inaccurate and can lead to baking failures. Therefore all of my recipes are posted in grams. I always bake with a scale, so I have a recipe card that automatically converts metrics to US customary, but it can have errors. So I advise you to bake with a digital scale. You can find them on Amazon for a small price.

❓ FAQ

⭐️ Did you make this? Please leave a star rating below or a review in the comments section.

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