Slice of Red Velvet Cake served on a red plate

I’ll definitely make it again, mostly to nail the red — which didn’t really pop here (luckily without affecting the flavor).

Quick info

  • Servings: 10
  • Prep: 4.5 hours (20 min for the base, 10 min for the filling, lots of cooling and decorating time)
  • Baking: 45 minutes
  • Tools: 2 bowls, electric mixer, 24 cm (9.4 in) springform pan, spatula for spreading the filling, ruler and toothpicks
  • Heads-up: you can decorate it Christmas-style or however you like!
Red Velvet Cake frosted and decorated with red berries and rosemary

Ingredients

Base:

  • 250g (8.8 oz) all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
  • 200g (7.1 oz) brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 250g (8.8 oz) plain soy yogurt
  • 120ml (4.1 fl oz) soy milk
  • 120ml (4.1 fl oz) sunflower oil
  • 3 teaspoons red gel food coloring
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

Filling:

  • 250g (8.8 oz) vegan cream cheese
  • 200ml (6.8 fl oz) soy cream (or other plant cream)
  • 120g (4.2 oz) powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

To decorate:

  • Strawberries
  • Whipped soy cream (or other plant cream)

Method

1. Make the cake batter

  1. Set up dry and wet in two bowls: in a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients except the baking soda (all-purpose flour, cocoa, brown sugar, vanilla extract). In another bowl, mix the wet ingredients: soy yogurt, soy milk, sunflower oil, red food coloring, lemon juice.
  2. Pour the wet into the dry a little at a time, whisking until smooth.
  3. Wake up the baking soda: in a small bowl, combine the baking soda with the apple cider vinegar, it will foam up. Pour the foam straight into the batter and stir briefly (don’t overmix).

2. Bake the cake

  1. Pour the batter into a 24 cm (9.4 in) springform pan, greased and floured, and bake at 180°C (356°F) for 40–45 minutes, with the pan on the middle rack.
  2. Do the toothpick test: it should come out dry. Take the cake out and let it cool completely (at least 2 hours).

3. Make the filling

  1. Beat the vegan cream cheese in a bowl with the powdered sugar (add half first and taste) and the vanilla extract.
  2. Whip the cream separately with electric beaters, then fold it into the cream cheese mixture, working from the bottom up.

4. Assemble the Red Velvet

  1. Release the cake from the pan. If it won’t come out, soak a kitchen towel in boiling water and rest the pan on it: the vegan butter (or margarine) melts and the cake comes free! Then trim off the darker crust and keep the scraps aside (you can crumble them for decorating).
  2. Slice the cake into 3 discs: hold the ruler next to the cake, stick toothpicks in to mark the cutting line and use them as a guide.
  3. Fill the layers: place the first disc on the serving plate and spread on about 1/5 of the filling (a layer about 1 cm / 0.4 in thick). Top with the second disc, fill the same way, then add the third.
  4. Cover the sides and top with the remaining filling, using a spatula. If you want a crumb coat, first spread a little cream over the cake, smooth it out and chill for 5 minutes, then cover completely.
  5. Decorate the sides with red crumbs from the scraps and the top with whipped cream and strawberries.
Red Velvet Cake with Christmas-style decoration

5. Rest

Let the cake rest in the fridge for 1 hour before serving.