I know, I know, I *just* mentioned the other day that Halloween isn’t really my thing, and here I am posting the second skull-themed baked good in as many days. Mainly, this is because I wanted to use my skull pan that was given to me, and sure, why not, let’s make something red-velvet-y … I don’t do that nearly enough. The cakes turned out almost too fluffy and very airy, but they did taste good. And there is something satisfying about biting into a skull. Yeah, ok, that last part is a little weird to write. I promise I’m not a vampire.
Ingredients
for the cake
2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cocoa powder (unsweetened)
2 ounces red gel food coloring
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda
You will also need one of these Skull Pans.
Directions
Preheat oven to 350F. Liberally spray your skull pan with baking spray.
Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl; set aside. In a small bowl, mix food coloring and cocoa powder to form a thin paste without lumps; set aside.
In the mixing bowl of your stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3-4minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then beat in vanilla and the red cocoa paste, scraping down the bowl with a spatula as you go. Add one third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beat well, then beat in half of the buttermilk. Beat in another third of flour mixture, then second half of buttermilk. End with the last third of the flour mixture, beat until well combined, making sure to scrape down the bowl with a spatula. Note: if you have never made red velvet cake, the color is shockingly red … it’s supposed to be that way, obviously.
In a small bowl, mix vinegar and baking soda. Yes, it will fizz! Add it to the cake batter and stir well to combine. Fill cake pans approximately 2/3 of the way full and bake cakes for 25-28 minutes. Cool the cakes in the pan for 15 minutes, then release from the pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
