#4 Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

I've made a couple of red velvet recipes recently, but I wasn't getting the texture and flavour I wanted.   But then I came across this one by Brown Eyed Baker and I was so happy with it that I had to make a blog post! Of course I paired it with cream cheese frosting - didn't even have to think twice about that one.

Typical of the red velvet cake, the batter includes buttermilk, vinegar and baking soda (yes you will get some exciting fizzling when the vinegar and baking soda react, yay!). Its hard to describe what is so appealing about red velvet. The cocoa only adds a very subtle flavour, but I think its the light but crumby texture of the cake that makes it so enticing - oh and the vibrant red colour!

In the past I've made a few cream cheese frostings, but never one with a thick consistency for piping. As I said, I didn't follow a recipe, but I used a touch more cream cheese than butter, just to ensure the frosting tasted how it sounded. Of course I also added icing sugar, vanilla and a touch of cream. The Wilton 1M gave me these beautiful swirls and although many of them were lop-sided, I can say that my piping abilities are much better than they were a year ago!