Shelly's Recipe

RED VELVET CAKE

Category: Cakes

Frosting
1 1/2 cups milk
5 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Cake
1 tsp white vinegar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1-1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
2 tsp unsweetened cocoa
4 tbsp red food coloring
1 cup buttermilk
2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
1 tsp vanilla

To begin frosting: Place milk in saucepan and slowly whisk in flour. Stir over medium heat until quite thick. Chill until cold. Do this step first and prepare cake while it chills.

To make cake: Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour 2 (9 inch) round cake pans; set aside. In a small bowl, mix vinegar and baking soda, set aside.

In a large bowl, beat shortening, sugar, eggs and salt until fluffy.

In a separate small bowl, mix cocoa and red food coloring; then add to shortening mixture and mix thoroughly. Add buttermilk alternately with cake flour; beat. Gently mix in the vanilla and reserved vinegar mixture. Pour batter into prepared cake pans. Bake 30 minutes, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven, cool on cake racks.

To finish frosting: Beat the sugar, butter and vanilla until very light, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the cooled flour- milk mixture.

When cake layers are cool, split each layer horizontally. Place one split layer on a plate and frost with 1/4- to 1/2 inch frosting. Top with second cake layer; repeat frosting. Top with third layer, and repeat frosting. Add top layer; frost side of cake first, then frost top with remaining frosting.