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Pink Velvet Cake Recipe

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3.9 from 10 reviews

This Best Pink Velvet Cake is a vibrant twist on the classic red velvet, featuring soft, pink-hued cake layers layered with a rich and fluffy cream cheese frosting. With a moist crumb and delicate crumb coat frosting technique, this cake is finished beautifully with piped decorations in gradients of pink and white. Perfect for celebrations or anytime you want a stunning dessert that’s both delicious and visually impressive.

Ingredients

Cake Layers

  • ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 6 large egg whites, room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon vinegar
  • ¼ teaspoon pink gel food coloring
  • 3 cups cake flour (345g)
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 ¼ cups buttermilk, room temperature

Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 2 cups unsalted butter, softened
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 6–7 cups powdered sugar
  • 8 oz cream cheese, softened for 10 minutes at room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
  • Pink gel food coloring
  • Red gel food coloring
  • Edible glitter spray (optional)

Instructions

  1. Preheat and Prepare Pans: Preheat your oven to 355°F (180°C). Grease three 8-inch round baking pans with cold butter and line the bottoms with parchment paper rounds to prevent sticking.
  2. Mix Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the softened butter, vegetable oil, sugar, and salt with an electric mixer until the mixture is light in color and volume increases. Scrape down the sides of the bowl thoroughly.
  3. Add Egg Whites and Flavors: Incorporate half of the egg whites and blend well, then add the remaining egg whites and beat until the mixture is thick and volumized. Add vanilla extract and vinegar, blending to combine thoroughly.
  4. Add Food Coloring: Add pink gel food coloring a pea-sized amount at a time, mixing in between until you reach a deep pink shade, as the color will lighten after adding flour.
  5. Incorporate Dry Ingredients and Buttermilk: Sift half of the cake flour, all the baking powder, and baking soda into the wet mixture. Add the buttermilk and fold gently with a whisk to combine without overmixing. Sift in the remaining flour and fold until mostly smooth, avoiding overworking the batter.
  6. Fill Pans and Bake: Divide the batter evenly into the prepared pans. Smooth the tops and gently tap the pans on the counter to release air pockets. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs.
  7. Cool the Layers: Let the cake layers cool in their pans for 8 minutes. Then loosen the edges with a spatula and turn them out onto cooling racks to cool completely.
  8. Trim the Layers: Once cooled, use a serrated knife to gently trim the golden brown edges, tops, and bottoms of the layers to reveal clean, even pink cake layers.
  9. Prepare Cream Cheese Frosting: Beat the softened butter with a paddle attachment until creamy and light in color. Add salt and powdered sugar, one cup at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl between additions until very light and fluffy.
  10. Add Cream Cheese and Vanilla: Blend in cream cheese pieces one at a time until fully incorporated and the frosting is very light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla extract.
  11. Assemble the Cake: Spread a small dollop of frosting onto your serving plate or cake stand to secure the first cake layer. Place the first layer down, spread about ⅓ cup of frosting evenly on top, and continue stacking layers, frosting each layer.
  12. Crumb Coat and Chill: Cover the stacked cake with a thin layer of frosting on the top and sides to lock in crumbs. Smooth with a metal spatula or cake scraper. Freeze the cake for 10 minutes to set the crumb coat.
  13. Color Frosting for Decoration: Divide the remaining frosting into portions: about 1 cup left white for piping, the rest tinted pale pink, and then further divide pale pink frosting to add more red and pink gel colors for a darker pink. Prepare three piping bags with white, pale pink, and dark pink frostings.
  14. Decorate: Use a large open star tip for dark pink (bottom border and embellishments), a small open star tip for pale pink, and a round tip for white frosting to pipe borders, swoops, and decorative accents along the edges, sides, and top as desired. Optionally, finish with edible glitter spray for extra sparkle.

Notes

  • Make sure all ingredients, especially eggs and buttermilk, are at room temperature to ensure a smooth batter and even baking.
  • Be careful not to overmix the batter once the flour is added to maintain a tender texture.
  • Softening cream cheese at room temperature makes it easier to blend and results in a smoother frosting.
  • Allow cake layers to cool completely before frosting to prevent melting or sliding.
  • Use gel food coloring to avoid adding extra liquid to the batter, which can affect texture.
  • Gently tap the cake pans on the counter after filling to release trapped air bubbles for a uniform crumb.
  • For best results pipe the frosting decorations when the crumb coat is firm and chilled.
  • The crumb coat step helps achieve a clean, crumb-free finish on the final frosted cake.

Find it online: https://bitezly.com/pink-velvet-cake-recipe/