Red Velvet Cupcakes = True Love

Of all of the baked goods that I've made lately, the one that seems to have given rise to the most enthusiastic and devoted following is the red velvet cake. I'm starting to think that the intense red color of the cake has some sort of hypnotic effect, because people are always delighted just to lay eyes on the cake, and then absolutely smitten when they finally taste it. (Maybe this is a holdover from the widespread childhood fascination with artificially-colored foods.)

So I was not all that surprised when I offered to supply some baked goods to a friend's celebratory happy hour following her courthouse wedding, and her request was for red velvet cake. At first, we discussed a large cake that could serve 50 or 60 people. While I don't make multi-tier cakes, I told her that I could make a large (say 14-inch round) two-layer cake that would serve all of her guests. But after further discussion, and wanting to avoid the mess and extra work that would be required to cut and serve slices from a large cake, we decided to go with cupcakes instead.

I made four batches of Cake Man Raven's red velvet cake recipe into 78 cupcakes, and frosted them with 8 batches of pumpkin-raisin bar frosting. To make the cupcakes a little more festive, I used red foil baking cups and topped them with white, pink and red heart-shaped sprinkles. To transport the cupcakes to the happy hour, I used my two cupcake couriers. The cupcake courier is an ingenious invention that carries 36 cupcakes neatly and securely without any danger of smooshed frosting. I know that most people don't need to carry three dozen cupcakes at a time, but for those of us who do, this thing is a godsend. (My only complaint is that it is quite heavy, especially when loaded down with cupcakes... I would love to see a cupcake courier on wheels with a retractable handle, like a rolling brief bag.)

Best wishes to the happy couple for a lifetime of sweetness and love!

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Comments

Anonymous said…
As I predicted, the cupcakes were amazingly delicious! Thank you so much - this will always be a happy memory for us. So many of my friends asked if you were a professional baker, had your own business, were available for hire, etc. Your devoted following continues to grow! Thanks again!!
February 1, 2009 at 8:59 AM
Elizabeth said…
Red velvet cupcakes are hands down my fave to bake and eat. What brand of food coloring are you using?
February 2, 2009 at 2:49 PM
Littlebakerbunny said…
I use McCormick from the supermarket. While I normally use Wilton icing colors for frosting, liquid McCormick food color is the easiest for me to get a hold of in the quantities I need for red velvet cake.
February 2, 2009 at 3:46 PM
Gretchen the Household Deity said…
You think I'm kidding, but I am *still* thinking about these. They were pretty much the best cupcakes I've ever had, and I've had a lot of cupcakes in my life. I may try the recipe this weekend.
February 6, 2009 at 9:58 AM
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