Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

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My cousin loves red velvet cake.  Every year on her birthday she begs for someone to make it and usually that person ends up being me.  I must add in that our birthday parties have always been together since the time I was born.  We are 2 years, 2 days, and 2 hours apart and even though we’re in our 30’s now we continue to have our family birthday party together.  When we were younger we used to have to open our presents at the same time because we would get the exact same thing, just in different colors.  Now that we’re older we generally get different presents, but there are occasions when we still get matching shirts.

Last year I made Kristin a red velvet layer cake so I wanted to do something a little different this year.  I recently found my cupcake cookbook and was looking through for ideas.  I found beautiful red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, a chocolate drizzle, and sprinkles.  They were perfect for her.

This recipe had a little more chocolate in it then I’m used to and I found that it made the cupcakes darker then usual.  The cupcakes were light and had a great chocolate flavor.  The cream cheese frosting was thick, rich, and amazing.  I loved how the chocolate drizzle looked against the bright white frosting.  Everyone enjoyed the cupcakes, including the birthday girl!  I’ll be keeping these in mind for Valentine’s Day this year.

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting  (adapte from Betty Crocker’s Big Book of Cupcakes)
For the cupcakes:
2 1/4 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
3 T. cocoa powder
1 t. salt
1/2 c. butter, softened
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 t. Americolor Soft Gel Paste in Red (or 2 T. of regular red food coloring)
2 t. vanilla
1 c. buttermilk
1 T. white vinegar
For the cream cheese frosting:
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese (I used 1/3 less fat)
1/4 c. butter, softened
1 t. vanilla
1 T. milk
4 c. powdered sugar
For decorating:
2 oz. chocolate melts
1 t. vegetable oil
sprinkles

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place cupcake liners in 24 muffin cups.

2.  In a small bowl combine the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.

3.  In a large mixing bowl beat the butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add in the eggs one at a time beating after each addition.

4.  Stir in the food coloring and vanilla.

5.  Mix in 1/3 of the flour mixture and then 1/2 of the buttermilk, stirring well until combined.  Then mix in half of the remaining flour.

6.  Stir in the remaining milk and then remaining flour, mixing until just blended.  Beat in the vinegar.

7.  Divide the batter evenly among muffin cups, filling each 2/3 of the way full.

8.  Bake for 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

9.  Meanwhile, combine the butter, cream cheese, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl.  Mix on low speed until smooth.  Gently stir in the milk.

10.  Add the powdered sugar in a cup at a time until desired consistency is reached.

11.  Once the cupcakes have cooled frost each one with cream cheese frosting.

12.  Place the chocolate melts and vegetable oil in a microwave safe dish and heat on high in 30 seconds intervals until the chocolate is melted and smooth.  Spoon into a zip top baggie and snip off the end.  Drizzle chocolate over cupcakes and then top with sprinkles.