Red Velvet Cake with Madagascar Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing

Ingredients

Cake Ingredients

2 2/3 cups plain cake flour

1½ cups granulated white sugar/p>

1 cup vegetable oil

1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

3 tbsp cocoa powder, unsweetened

2 eggs, at room temperature

2½ tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp white vinegar

1 fl oz red food coloring liquid (1 small bottle)

Icing Ingredients

14 oz Philadelphia Cream Cheese, block (softened)

½ cup salted butter (softened)

1½ tsp vanilla extract

4 cups powdered sugar (sifted)

Preparation

Cake instructions

Preheat the oven to 350℉ (180℃). Butter two separate 8" or 9” round cake pans and line them with Kana Pre-Cut 8-inch Parchment Paper Rounds. Dust them with cocoa powder.

Sift the dry ingredients and whisk them to combine in a bowl. Set aside.

Place the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat with an electric beater or in a stand mixer until smooth (use the paddle attachment if using a stand mixer). Add eggs, one at a time, beating in between to combine. Add vegetable oil, vinegar, vanilla, buttermilk, and red food coloring. Beat until combined and smooth.

Add the dry ingredients to the mixture. Beat until just combined - some small lumps is okay, and better than over mixing. Divide batter equally between cake pans.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes on the same shelf, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Rest for 10 to 15 minutes in the pan then turn out onto a cooling rack and allow to cool.

Icing instructions

Beat together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla for 3-5 minutes (this makes it smooth and changes it from yellow to almost white). Add powdered sugar and beat for 2 minutes or until icing is light and fluffy to your taste. Add more powdered sugar if icing is too runny for your preference.

Optional: Cut the top off the cake using a serrated knife (to make the layers neat. You can also leave the cake as-is.

Spread the first cake layer with 1½ cups of frosting. Top with the second cake layer. Spread the top layer and sides with the remaining frosting. Enjoy!