Southern Comfort Red Velvet Cake
Try this Southern Comfort Red Velvet Cake recipe, or contribute your own.
Try this Southern Comfort Red Velvet Cake recipe, or contribute your own.
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 cups cake flour
- for the cake:
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- for the frosting:
- 4 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 11/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/4 cup southern comfort
- 1 (1-ounce) bottle red food coloring
- 12 tablespoons (11/2 sticks) unsalted butter softened
- 14 tablespoons (13/4 sticks) unsalted butter softened
- 6 to 8 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1/4 cup southern comfort
- chopped toasted pecans for garnish (optional)
- Carbohydrate 103.363749100155 g
- Cholesterol 345.502083334537 mg
- Fat 94.2436463899478 g
- Fiber 2.38049117337156 g
- Protein 15.7388950853656 g
- Saturated Fat 58.0762366061869 g
- Serving Size 1 1 -16 (317g)
- Sodium 724.458891783391 mg
- Sugar 100.983257926784 g
- Trans Fat 7.3695691972815 g
- Calories 1340 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans with butter, or spray them with nonstick spray. Dust them with flour and tap out the excess.
- To make the cake, whisk together the cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, Southern Comfort, vanilla, vinegar, and food coloring.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk mixture in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour.
- Divide the batter between the prepared pans and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans on a wire rack, and then remove them from the pans and cool completely.
- To make the frosting, beat the butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer for about 2 minutes. Add 6 cups of the confectioners’ sugar, the milk, and the Southern Comfort. Beat on low speed until creamy. Gradually add the remaining confectioners’ sugar, a little at a time, until the frosting has reached the desired consistency.
- Place one cake layer on a plate and spread it with about one-third of the frosting. Top with the remaining cake layer and spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake. Sprinkle the cake with chopped pecans, if using.
- Shake It Up: For a bolder flavor, substitute Tennessee whiskey, such as Jack Daniels, for the Southern Comfort.
Overbeating the batter after adding the flour creates a tough crumb instead of the tender structure required for red velvet cake. Cake flour contains a lower protein content than all-purpose flour, making it sensitive to gluten development. Incorporate the dry ingredients and the liquid components in alternating additions, mixing only until combined. This alternating method hydrates the flour evenly without overworking the batter.
Creaming the butter and granulated sugar properly sets the structural foundation of the dessert. Beat the dairy and sugar with an electric mixer for exactly two to three minutes until the mixture turns pale and visibly fluffy. Skipping this step traps insufficient air, resulting in a dense cake that fails to rise adequately during the thirty to forty minutes in the oven.
Testing for doneness requires inserting a wooden toothpick into the exact center of the layers. The baked layers must be completely cool on a wire rack before frosting application begins to prevent the butter-based icing from melting. Softened unsalted butter whipped for two full minutes yields a smooth base for the confectioners sugar and liqueur.
Serving this rich confection alongside unsweetened black coffee or iced tea balances the high sugar content of the frosting. Clear spirits or neat bourbon complement the liqueur profile if poured in small glasses beside the plates.
