What is the difference between red velvet and chocolate cake?
- German Chocolate Cake. German Chocolate Cake is famous for its filling—it has a rich, sticky-sweet custard studded with coconut flakes and chopped pecans.
- Red Velvet and Devil's Food Cake Compared. ...
- Frosting Finishes. ...
- A Quick Word About That Devilish Name. ...
- Celebrate Each Cake. ...
What is the best red velvet cake?
To make the tasty frozen treat, Dairy Queen mixes its vanilla soft-serve with red velvet cake pieces and cream cheese icing. The blend results in a pretty pink ice cream-like treat with red chunks of cake, so not only does it tastes festive, but it looks festive, too.
What is the best recipe for red velvet cake?
To make the red velvet cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). ...
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. ...
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large mixing bowl using an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar on medium ...
What is red velvet, and what does it taste like?
Red velvet is a term used to describe a type of cake (or cupcake) with a deep red to burgundy color. The flavor is easy to remember, yet harder to describe. The simplest explanation is that it tastes like a mashup of chocolate and vanilla cake. But really, it's not exactly like either.
Is red velvet cake the same as chocolate cake?
Many people wonder, is red velvet cake really just a chocolate cake? While it certainly has a chocolate flavor and cocoa powder as a main ingredient, a red velvet cake is not a chocolate cake. It has far less cocoa powder in it than a traditional chocolate cake recipe.
Is red velvet cake just chocolate cake with food coloring?
The INSIDER Summary: There's more to red velvet cake than just the added food coloring. Red velvet is made with cocoa powder, vinegar and buttermilk. The chemical reaction between these ingredients help give the cake a deep maroon color that is often enhanced by extra food coloring.
What makes red velvet cake different than chocolate cake?
The main difference between red velvet and chocolate cake is that red velvet cakes tend to be richer and finer than chocolate cakes. Red velvet cake is a type of rich chocolate-flavoured sponge cake that is coloured red, while a chocolate cake is simply a cake made with chocolate or cocoa.
Is red velvet cake basically chocolate?
Both red velvet cake and chocolate cake contains cocoa. But red velvet cake contains additional ingredients like buttermilk, vinegar, and cream cheese, which gives it a more complex flavour and texture. Therefore, red velvet cakes are richer and finer than simple chocolate cakes.
What is the actual flavor of red velvet cake?
What Flavor Is Red Velvet Cake? Red velvet cake tastes like very mild cocoa with a slightly tart edge. The cream cheese frosting is the most forward flavor. Perhaps even more important than the taste is the texture: smooth, soft, tender and light with creamy icing.
Is red velvet vanilla or chocolate?
Most red velvet cakes, in a nod to the traditional origin story of the cake, contain buttermilk and a very small amount of cocoa powder. These ingredients give the cake a subtle, yet distinctive and delicious flavor that is not quite chocolate and not quite plain vanilla.
Why is it called red velvet cake?
All used red food coloring. The reaction of acidic vinegar and buttermilk tends to better reveal the red anthocyanin in cocoa and keeps the cake moist, light, and fluffy. This natural tinting may have been the source for the name "red velvet", as well as "Devil's food" and similar names for chocolate cakes.
What makes up red velvet cake?
On top of having all the typical cake ingredients (flour, sugar, butter, and eggs), red velvet cake is also comprised of cocoa powder, buttermilk, and vinegar. When combined, these ingredients create the color as the cocoa powder reacts to the acids.
What makes a velvet cake?
We can all see that it's red…but what makes it “velvet”? I mean, it's a valid question. Simply put it's a cake made with buttermilk, and in my recipe also a little vinegar to really give it a tender crumb. My recipe also used oil instead of butter, which gives the cake a fluffy texture.
What flavor is blue velvet?
The flavor of blue velvet cake is the same as a red velvet cake—fluffy vanilla cake with a hint of chocolate slathered in tangy cream cheese frosting.
Why is red velvet cake not red?
The trick to using our Red Velvet Color when baking cakes and cupcakes is to lower the pH. Some ways to do this is by substituting baking powder in place of baking soda, using a natural non-alkalized cocoa powder, adding more white vinegar or buttermilk to your red velvet recipe, to achieve a bright red color.
How was red velvet cake originally made?
The first velvet cake was born in the 1800s, during a time when American cooks were perfecting their own cake recipes. Using almond flour, cocoa, or cornstarch to break down the protein in flour, a finer textured cake emerged – dubbed velvet cake – followed by sister cakes, the mahogany cake and devil's food cake.
Red Velvet Cake
The story of the red velvet cake started in the Victorian era when velvet cakes were popularized and frequently served at dessert parties. As the name suggests, velvet cakes are known for their tender, “velvety” texture. To achieve the velvety texture, cocoa powder was used to soften the flour.
Chocolate Cake
Unlike the red velvet cake, which is quite specific without many variations to it, chocolate cake is an umbrella term that covers all different cakes made with some form of chocolate in it.
Key Similarities
There’s a reason why people would sometimes confuse the two. Here’s why.
Key Differences
Ingredients, texture, and flavor are the key difference that makes red velvet cake and chocolate cake different.
FAQs
Here I will answer some questions you might still have about red velvet and chocolate cakes.
Final Thoughts
If you haven’t gotten the idea already, red velvet cakes and chocolate cakes are quite different. I would never mistake one for another and after reading this article, neither should you!
What Is Red Velvet?
While some people think the Red Velvet comes from the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in the 1920s, it's actually a product from the Great Depression. It was a marketing ploy from Adams Extract, a food coloring company.
What Can I Do With Red Velvet?
Luckily for you, red velvet can be used in a variety of desserts or breakfasts. These red velvet pancakes actually use the classic vinegar and cocoa powder combination to create its color (along with a little bit of red coloring). These cinnamon rolls and cookies use a cake mix, but are still oh so good.
Explore
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There's a lot you can do with ground beef in your slow cooker. Plus, ground beef will last three to four months in the freezer, so stockpiling this staple ingredient will serve you well.
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Dessert Recipes
The sweet and salty combination of chocolate and peanut butter is a sensory experience we can't get enough of — after all, who can eat just one peanut butter cup? There's something about the contrasting flavors that lends itself so well to a variety of desserts, including brownies, cookies, cakes, pies, and more.
Main Dishes
Your favorite dinnertime protein is served with a kick in these 20 Mexican-inspired casseroles. Cook your own chicken, or pick up a rotisserie chicken to make things a breeze.
Salad Recipes
Put your bok choy to good use by whipping up a healthy, fresh-tasting, and satisfying salad. The crisp-tasting leafy green, a staple ingredient in many Asian cuisines, has a mild — though pleasantly peppery and fresh — flavor that blends beautifully into all kinds of salads.
Soup, Stew & Chili Recipes
Gnocchi are a great alternative to noodles in soups. The doughy potato dumplings absorb the broth's flavor and provide a delightful textural experience; and gnocchi work just as well with tomato-based broths as they do with a certain Italian restaurant's chicken soup. In short, adding gnocchi to a soup instantly makes it comfort food.

Red Velvet Cake
Chocolate Cake
- Unlike the red velvet cake, which is quite specific without many variations to it, chocolate cake is an umbrella term that covers all different cakes made with some form of chocolate in it. You might be familiar with the traditional chocolate cake, the one that’s so moist and so dark in color, rich in chocolate flavor, and stacked together with gan...
Key Similarities
- There’s a reason why people would sometimes confuse the two. Here’s why. Both chocolate and red velvet cakes contain cocoa powder in their recipes. In a red velvet cake, cocoa powder most serves the purpose of softening the flour and thereby creating finer and more tender crumbs. Cocoa powder used in chocolate cakes, on the other hand, is added for the rich chocolate taste i…
Key Differences
- Ingredients, texture, and flavor are the key difference that makes red velvet cake and chocolate cake different.
Final Thoughts
- If you haven’t gotten the idea already, red velvet cakes and chocolate cakes are quite different. I would never mistake one for another and after reading this article, neither should you! Do you prefer a red velvet cake or a chocolate cake? And is there a recipe you recommend? I’m always looking to test out new recipes so let me know in the comments below!