Red Velvet Cake

Merry Christmas! Yesterday EC and I were invited by our friends to go and cut down a Christmas Tree. We went and it was so much fun! I have never cut down my own Christmas Tree before, it was slightly an adventure. We still had to pick one out, so we tromped around for a while and picked out a cute little Christmas tree. We got it home and it was slightly too tall for our apartment, so I had to trim it a little to get the star to fit. And then I was going to hang the Christmas ornaments on it that I bought the day after Christmas last year, so I opened up the box, and there were no ornament hooks in with the ornaments. I think that is slightly silly. Who sells ornaments without the hooks? So now I have to wait until tomorrow to go and buy hooks. But we got the lights on and the star, and it looks nice, except lights keep burning out, which then causes half of the strand of lights to go out. Oh the joys of having your own grown up Christmas tree.

I have officially started making Christmas goodies! Today I made Red Velvet Cupcakes, very festive. We sent some with EC as he went out Home Teaching which was slightly worrisome, since I have never tried them before and it is fast Sunday so I had to send them out without a taste test. But I have since tried one and it is A-OK. So here is the recipe!

Red Velvet Cake

Adapted from Mrs. Wilkes’ Boardinghouse Cookbook: Recipes and Recollections from Her Savannah Table by Selma Wilkes

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil

1 tsp white vinegar

2 1/2 cups cake flour

1 tsp baking soda

2 to 3 TBSP cocoa powder

1 cup buttermilk

1 tsp vanilla

5/8 ounce bottle red food coloring

Preheat the oven to 350F. Cream the eggs, sugar, oil and vinegar. Sift the cake flour, baking soda, and cocoa together. Add the flour mixture to the creamed ingredients while beating. Slowly add the buttermilk. While still beating, add the vanilla and the food coloring. Pour into three 8-inch layer pans and bake for about 25 minutes. Press lightly;if the layers are spongy, then the cake is done. Frost the cooled layers, assemble and frost the top and sides. Serves 12 to 14.

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Velvet Cake Frosting

1(8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter

1 (1 pound) box confectioners sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine the cream cheese and butter and melt over very low heat. Add the sugar, pecans and vanilla and mix well. If the frosting becomes too thick, add a little milk. Frost one 8-inch or 9-inch layer cake.