Spread with another fifth of the icing, then top with a third sponge. Spread one fifth of the icing over the first sponge, then top with a second sponge. Smear a little of the icing onto the middle of a cake plate or cake stand and top with the first sponge. Slice each sponge in half horizontally so you have 6 thin sponges. Using a large, serrated knife, level the sponges, keeping any offcuts for the decoration. Remove one bowl of the icing from the fridge.

Divide the icing equally between two bowls, then chill it until needed.Īssemble the cake. Whisk the cream cheese, cream, vanilla, icing sugar, mascarpone and salt in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk until the mixture is smooth and holds stiff peaks.

Leave the sponges to cool in the tins for 5 minutes, then carefully turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Bake the sponges on the middle shelves for 20–25 minutes, until risen and a skewer inserted into the centres comes out clean. In a small bowl, mix the vinegar and bicarbonate of soda together, then add this to the bowl and beat gently until the mixture is smooth.ĭivide the mixture equally between the lined tins and spread it level. Continue to mix in the buttermilk and flour alternately until thoroughly combined. Mix one third into the bowl, then add one third of the flour. Add this to the bowl and mix well until combined.Ĭombine the buttermilk and salt in a jug. In a small jug, mix the cocoa powder, vanilla, red food colouring and hot water together to form a paste. Add the eggs, a little at a time, beating well between each addition until combined. Beat the butter and sugar in a stand mixer fitted with the beater, on medium speed for 3–5 minutes, scraping down the inside of the bowl from time to time, until pale and creamy. Make sure the red velvet cakes are completely cool – I often put mine in the fridge in cling film for a few hours, especially when working with multiple layers, as they become stiffer and far easier to handle and ice.This is a recipe taken from The Great British Bake Off: Favourite Flavours.Your cream cheese frosting will go through a gloopy stage, but stick with it, and it will get to a lovely piping consistency – leave it to cool in the fridge for 30 minutes and it will become even stiffer.When you’ve sieved the icing sugar (this is crucial, icing sugar ALWAYS has lumps), use a wooden spoon to mix it into the butter and cheese mixture – 100g at a time.Whisk the butter and cheese together vigorously, until creamy and homogeneous.The butter and cheese will have a similar consistency, which prevents lumps in the frosting. Heat the butter until just melted, and leave to cool until it’s just become solid again.Hold it over a bowl or the sink (I like using a bowl so that I can see how much liquid has come out ) and apply pressure – the tea towel will get wet, and liquid will start dripping off.We're trying to remove as much moisture as possible from the cheese, so that the final icing is stiff enough to hold (and be piped, should you want to pipe it) - cream cheese has a tendency to get too liquid, which makes the cake look less neat. Gather up the tea towel and wring, so that the cheese is in a tight ball. Make a start on your cream cheese frosting: drain the water from the cream cheese packet, and place the cheese in the middle of a clean tea towel or muslin cloth.Leave the cakes in the tins to cool for 15-30 minutes, and then move them onto a wire rack to finish cooling – they will be very fragile while warm, be gentle!.Bake for 30 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it – don’t dry it out, take it out as soon as it is cooked.Pour half of the batter into each of the two cake tins.Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients with a spatula or wooden spoon, a little bit at a time, until just combined.When you add in the dry ingredients, the cocoa powder will lend depth and darkness to the red. Add in the food colouring, a very small amount at a time, so you can judge when the colour is right.Whisk in the buttermilk, followed by the eggs (one at a time) and vanilla.

Whisk together the sugar and vegetable oil in a large bowl.Combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder).Grease 2 round 9 inch tins and pre-heat your oven to 180☌ if it's a conventional oven, or 170☌ for a fan oven.

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