Sourdough Red Velvet Cake (Naturally Colored)
This red velvet cake is buttery, sweet, and richly decadent, as any good red velvet should be. But it is also balanced by the subtle savory tang of sourdough discard and the earthy bitterness of chocolate. It forgoes the copious amounts of red food coloring found in tradition red velvet cakes and instead relies on beets to provide a pleasant brick-red hue, and also contribute to the bold, well-rounded flavor.
Equipment
- 1 10-cup size Bundt pan
- 1 medium bowl
- 1 blender
- 1 stand mixer with paddle attachment or large bowl and hand mixer
- 1 piping bag fitted with wide, round tip
Ingredients
Cake
- 248 grams (1¾ cups) all purpose flour
- 21 grams (¼ cup) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 grams (1 tsp) baking powder
- 3 grams (½ tsp) baking soda
- 3 grams (½ tsp) fine salt
- 75 grams (¾ cups) beets coarsely grated
- 2 large eggs
- 80 grams (⅓ cup) whole milk
- 30 grams (2 tbsp) white vinegar
- 15 grams (1 tbsp) vanilla
- 62 grams (¼ cup) sourdough discard 100% hydration
- 133 grams (⅔ cup) vegetable or canola oil
- 113 grams (8 tbsp/1 stick) unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 247 grams (1¼ cups) granulated sugar
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 113 grams (1 stick) butter room temperature
- 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
- 339 grams (3 cups) powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- Generously butter a standard 10-cup bundt pan.
- In a medium bowl combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
- In a blender combine beets, eggs, milk, vinegar, vanilla extract, sourdough discard, oil, melted butter, and sugar. Blend until smooth.
- Add flour mixture to blender and mix on low speed until mostly combined (avoid over-mixing). Scrape down the sides of the bowl and finish mixing by hand until evenly combined.
- Pour batter into prepared Bundt pan. Firmly and repeatedly tap pan on the counter or another hard surface for about a minute to work out any air bubbles. Bake for 35-45 minutes, until a cake tester or skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, or internal temperature of 210℉.
- Allow cake to cool in pan for 10 minutes then invert onto a wire rack and remove pan. Cool completely before frosting.
- Once cooled, make frosting: In a large bowl, or stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter and cream cheese on medium speed until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl and sift in powdered sugar. Mix until smooth.
- Place frosting into a piping bag fitted with a wide, round tip. Pipe large stripes of frosting onto the cake.
Notes
For cupcakes, line a standard muffin tin with cupcake liners. Fill ¾ full with batter. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Use remaining batter to make more cupcakes, or bake in a buttered loaf pan or 20-25 minutes.