Red Velvet Cake and "The Best Frosting I Ever Had" courtesy of the Pioneer Woman

Oh this cake is yummy!  And the frosting is just divine!  I did make a couple of changes.  I got out the red food coloring, but there wasn't enough.  I searched two other boxes, but the red was inexplicably missing in each of them, so I decided to use cherry extract.  Still red, an experimental bit of flavor, but then I was worried the cherry would be overpowering, so I added a few drops of vanilla.  The consistency and everything still worked out, and the flavor of the batter was exquisite!  

I also use milk with a teaspoon of lemon juice as a buttermilk substitute since I don't usually keep buttermilk on hand.

Here's how the recipe goes...

Oh darn!  I absolutely know that I took a picture of the ingredients.  I lined them all up prettily and told them to "smile"!  But I can't find it anywhere!  

Here's what you need to have on hand:

• 1 cup Shortening
• 1-3/4 cup Sugar
• 2-1/2 cups Cake Flour
• 1-1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 2 whole Eggs
• 1 cup Buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1-1/2 teaspoon Vinegar
• 1-1/2 ounce, fluid Red Food Coloring
• 1-1/2 teaspoon Cocoa Powder

 Okay now, here are the things I did differently...instead of 1 and 1/2 ounce of red, I used half an ounce of red, two teaspoons of cherry extract, and half a teaspoon of vanilla.  I don't own a sifter, so I just mixed the flour and salt, I used 1 cup of milk with 1 teaspoon of lemon juice rather than buttermilk, and I used butter instead of shortening.

Step 1:  Sift together (or mix) flour and salt in a bowl, then set it aside for later.

In a separate bowl, stir together buttermilk (or milk with lemon juice), eggs, vanilla, and baking soda. Then add vinegar and stir before setting aside.

In a separate smaller bowl, mix together cocoa and red food coloring (and extracts).

In yet another bowl (in my case the bowl of my mixer), cream together shortening and sugar until the mixture is fluffy.  Then alternately add the flour and milk mixtures until all combined. Lastly, pour the red mixture in and beat until combined. 

Now the recipe says to pour it into a sheet cake pan, but I don't have one.  I did make one 10x13 cake pan, as well as a dozen cupcakes.  20 minutes at 350 degrees.

 

The surprising thing is the frosting!  And oh, it is so good!  I changed absolutely nothing with this recipe, wanting to have the true pairing.  It is literally called "That's the Best Frosting I've Ever Had"

Here's what you need to put it together!

• 5 Tablespoons Flour
• 1 cup Milk
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• 1 cup Butter
• 1 cup Granulated Sugar (not Powdered Sugar!)

In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. And when it says thick, it means very thick.  Brownie batter thick.  Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature.  It must be completely cool before you use it in the next step. Stir in vanilla. 

While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. You don't want any sugar graininess left. Then add the completely cooled milk/flour/vanilla mixture and beat the living daylights out of it (word for word from the recipe). If it looks separated, you haven't beaten it enough! Beat it until it all combines and resembles whipped cream.

 After the cake has cooled, bring on the frosting!  And, enjoy!

 

My source is The Pioneer Woman on Television, Saturday, February 25, 2012.  http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/04/red-velvet-sheet-cake/