Week 5: Red Velvet Redemption

You may recall that my plan way back in Week 1 was to bake Martha Stewart's Red Velvet cupcakes, but that my perfect plan was ruined when we discovered that our local stores didn't carry Dutch-processed cocoa (a key ingredient for the chemistry of these cupcakes).  You may also recall that I am ever so slightly OCD.  So naturally, I spent several weeks scouring every grocery store within a few miles of our house in search of Dutch-processed cocoa.  After giving up on local sources, I searched on Amazon.com.  As luck would have it, I recognized one of the brands (Droste) as one I had seen while searching through Whole Foods.  So I high-tailed it back to Whole Foods & acquired the elusive Dutch-processed cocoa.    FINALLY!

Chuck decided to pick up the camera & document the occasion, so I have more pics of the baking process than usual.  But seeing as how this was the one cupcake recipe I desperately wanted to bake, that feels right to me.

As you can see, this recipe indeed makes RED cupcakes.  Not mauve.

This recipe also involves this uber-cool chemical reaction between baking soda & vinegar.

I can hardly contain my excitement as I'm filling liners...

Glorious!

Piping action shot

Finished cupcakes!

Lessons learned and recipe thoughts:

1. So, so much better than the Mauve Velvet cupcakes I made in week one.  And surprisingly easy to make.

2. Martha Stewart's cream cheese frosting recipe is really delicious.  However, it is too soft for piping.

3. It is infinitely easier to fill cupcake tins using an old-fashioned ice cream scoop than it is with spoons or other devices.  Far faster, and makes for simple portion control.

Recipes available at MarthaStewart.com: Red Velvet Cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.