mini red velvet cupcakes

Every time I bite into a red velvet cupcake, it reminds me of the couple of months I spent in New York in 2011. Home to the world’s most decadent cupcakes and many other delicious bites, New York has this amazing bakery that most of you have probably all heard about: Magnolia Bakery. Magnolia Bakery now has five locations in New York (as well as two shops in Chicago and LA) and is famous for its red velvet cupcakes among many other desserts that get the crowds cueing up in front of their store. The  dessert-addict that I am, I admit that I would also be one of the many people standing in line eager to get my hands on a scrumptious cupcake! As soon as I moved back to Geneva I started working on recreating some of my favorites from Magnolia Bakery, with the first one on the list being the famous Red Velvet Cupcake.

Maybe it’s because pink and red are my favorite colors, or maybe it’s the high sweet content in these cupcakes that get me addicted, but there’s something about Red Velvet Cupcakes that make them my favorites. I decided to bake miniature versions for my birthday cocktail party, working with a Red Velvet Cupcake recipe I found over at Epicurious. They look hard to whip up but are in fact rather easy to make, as long as you respect the right quantities. I have to tell you that the first time I made them for the party they came out all soggy, flat and unattractive…simply because I miscalculated the butter content needed for the recipe. My bad, math was never my thing in high school! You can’t be good at everything.

Red velvet cupcakes get their name and beautiful vivid color from red food coloring paired with a vanilla cake base mixed with a tiny bit of cocoa powder. They’re chocolatly and extremely sugary, which probably explains why I love them so much. These miniature versions are great to serve as small bites after a cocktail party but are also freezer-friendly so that you can just grab a small bite whenever you’re craving sugar!

Other sweet stuff on savormania: oreo white chocolate truffles, apple cinnamon bread and strawberry and cream roll

New category: Cocktail Party for many great small bites!

mini red velvet cupcakes

 

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Prep time

40 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

1 hour 5 mins

 

Serves: 24 mini cupcakes

Ingredients

Ingredients for the cupcakes:

• 6 tablespoons (85g) butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ teaspoon red food coloring gel, or 1 tablespoon liquid food coloring
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup milk
• ¼ cup plain yoghurt
• 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Ingredients for the creamy vanilla frosting:

• ⅔ cup milk
• 2 tablespoons flour
• ⅔ cup butter
• ⅔ granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Steps for the cupcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C and grease and flour a mini muffin pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter until creamy on high speed, about 5 minutes. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes more. Add the eggs and beat until combined.
3. In a small mixing bowl, combine the cocoa powder, red food coloring and vanilla extract. Add the mixture to the large mixing bowl and beat until well combined. The batter should be evenly red. If it is not red enough, feel free to add a bit more food coloring until you obtain the desired shade.
4. In a glass, combine the milk and plain yoghurt. Add to the large mixing bowl, alternating with the flour, and beat until thoroughly combined.
5. In a small bowl, combine the cider vinegar with the baking soda. Add to the large mixing bowl and beat until well combined.
6. Pour the batter into a piping bag and pipe a tablespoon of the liquid into each muffin mold. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool in the baking pan for 10 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely.

Steps to make the creamy vanilla icing:

1. Combine the milk and flour in a small saucepan. Over medium heat, whisk constantly until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick, about 10 to 15 minutes. The mixture should be thick enough to use as a frosting. Turn off the heat and move the pan away from the heat source. Place wax paper over the mixture in the saucepan and let it cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter until creamy, about 5 minutes. Add the granulated sugar and the vanilla extract, and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes more. Add the milk-flour mixture and beat for 7 minutes until it reaches a spreading consistency and becomes very white in color. Cover and refrigerate the bowl for 15 minutes.
3. Put the frosting into a piping bag and pipe it over each cupcake. Top the frosting with sprinkles.

Notes

SLIGHTLY ADAPTED FROM: Epicurious's Red Velvet Cupcakes with Creamy Vanilla Frosting
CAN BE FROZEN: I made these cupcakes a week in advance and froze them until ready to use. They tasted identical and looked amazing.

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How did your mini red velvet cupcakes come out? Share photos of your recipe on Instagram by tagging #savormania