Transport yourself back in time with this old-school Red Velvet Cake recipe, featuring a dense, chocolatey cake layered and topped with a fluffy, cooked vanilla frosting. Perfect for special occasions like birthdays, Valentine’s Day, or holidays, this rich blend of eggs, shortening, buttermilk, cocoa, flour, sugar, and vanilla, made vibrant with red food coloring, is sure to impress. Forget the cream cheese frosting – this classic cooked frosting, a luscious combination of shortening, flour, milk, butter, sugar, and vanilla, takes this cake to the next level of indulgence.
Old-fashioned red velvet cake
This is an old-style dense red velvet cake recipe. A rich, chocolately cake is layered and topped with a fluffy vanilla-flavored frosting. If you need a cake for a special occasion – a birthday, Valentine’s Day, or a holiday – this red velvet cake recipe is for you. This cake is a rich blend of eggs, shortening, buttermilk, cocoa, flour, sugar, and vanilla made more colorful with red food coloring.
The cooked frosting is an equally rich blend of shortening, flour, milk, butter, sugar, and vanilla. It is so much better than cream cheese frosting, which pales in comparison to the cooked frosting the Waldorf uses. I prefer cream cheese frosting on carrot cake.
More reasons to love this cake
- Rich, dense texture: A throwback to the classic velvet cakes of the Victorian era
- Fluffy, cooked vanilla frosting: A decadent alternative to cream cheese frosting
- Vibrant red color: Enhanced with food coloring for a stunning visual impact
- Perfect for special occasions: Ideal for birthdays, Valentine’s Day, or holiday celebrations
- Nostalgic flavor: Transports you back to the iconic Red Velvet Cake served at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- Shortening – Provides a tender, moist crumb and helps the cake hold its structure
- Eggs – Add richness, moisture, and help bind the ingredients together
- Red food coloring – Enhances the natural red hue for a vibrant, eye-catching appearance
- Buttermilk – Contributes to a tender texture and adds a subtle tangy flavor
- Vinegar – Reacts with baking soda to create a light, fluffy texture
- Baking soda – Leavens the cake and helps create a tender crumb
- Sugar – Sweetens the cake and helps create a moist, tender texture
- Cocoa powder – Provides a rich, chocolatey flavor and contributes to the cake’s red hue
- All-purpose flour – Forms the structure of the cake and provides a tender crumb
- Salt – Enhances the flavors of the other ingredients and balances the sweetness
- Vanilla extract – Adds depth and complexity to the cake’s flavor profile
For the Cooked Frosting:
- Milk – Creates a smooth, creamy base for the frosting
- Flour – Thickens the milk mixture and provides a stable base for the frosting
- Shortening – Contributes to a light, fluffy texture and helps stabilize the frosting
- Butter – Adds rich flavor and creamy mouthfeel to the frosting
- Sugar – Sweetens the frosting and helps create a smooth, spreadable consistency
- Vanilla extract – Enhances the overall flavor and adds a warm, aromatic note
How to Make Red Velvet Cake with Cooked Frosting
- Make a paste of cocoa and food coloring.
- Cream shortening, sugar, and eggs. Add cocoa and food coloring mixture and mix well.
- Add buttermilk with vinegar and flour with salt alternately.
- By hand, fold in vanilla and baking soda.
- Pour batter evenly into three greased and floured cake pans.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
- Remove the cake layers from the pans and cool completely.
- Cook flour and milk until thick.
- Beat shortening, butter, sugar, and vanilla until creamy.
- Add milk and flour mixture a little at a time and beat well.
- Spread frosting on the cake, between each layer and on the sides.
Storage Instructions
- To freeze, wrap individual slices or the whole cake tightly in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- Store the cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- For longer storage, refrigerate the cake for up to 5 days and bring it to room temperature before serving.
Favorite Cake Recipes
- Pistachio Cake
- Ambrosia Cake
- Jello Poke Cake Recipe
- Ultimate Red Velvet Cheesecake
- Chocolate Pudding Cake Recipe
- Coca-Cola Cake
- Old Fashioned Carrot Cake Recipe with Pineapple
- Pound Cake Recipe with Cake Mix
- Italian Lemon Cream Cake
- Norwegian Almond Cake
More Holiday Treats Recipes
Be sure to check out more of my easy cake recipes and the best restaurant copycat recipes right here on CopyKat.com!
Old Fashioned Red Velvet Cake with Cooked Frosting
Ingredients
Cake ingredients
- 1/2 cup shortening
- 2 eggs
- 2 ounces red food coloring
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 3 tablespoons cocoa
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Frosting ingredients
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup shortening
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
Cake Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease and flour 3 cake pans.
- Make a paste of cocoa and food coloring.
- Cream shortening, sugar, and eggs. Add cocoa and food coloring mixture. Mix well.
- Add buttermilk with vinegar and flour with salt alternately.
- By hand, fold in vanilla and baking soda.
- Pour batter equally into cake pans.
- Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove cake layers from pans and cool completely.
Frosting Instructions
- Cook flour and milk until thick.
- Beat shortening, margarine, sugar, vanilla until creamy.
- Add milk and flour mixture a little at a time and beat well.
My mom used to make this one for my birthday because it was the day after Valentine’s Day. Her recipe came from one of my aunts who got it from a hotel chef. It doesn’t have cocoa powder in it, and the frosting was Ermine frosting. I make this cake for Christmas as well. Only one layer is red, and the second layer is green with white ermine frosting. The batter is divided, and the food coloring is added at the end of the mix before baking. It’s pretty gorgeous.
I have had this recipe for almost 50 yrs from my new mother in-law. Everything is correct except the flour,milk,buttersugar and vanilla is the FILLING between layers. Then the frosting is a “7 Minute Icing” recipe using egg whites and Karo.
Outstanding work! Enjoyed your recipe!!
This is the recipe my mom always used. It is my favorite & I always requested she make it for my birthday. I’m making her recipes now. She’s almost 90 and she enjoys the cakes I bake using her recipes plus others I create 🙂
My mom and grandma always made this for me for my birthday, but used green food coloring since my birthday is on St. Patrick’s Day! I am making this now, but cannot remember if it needs to be refrigerated because of the milk in the frosting.
I would refrigerate this cake! Oh, the green cake has to be great. Happy Birthday!
My grandmother makes this cake more than any other and never refrigerates it. I’ve made it about a dozen times myself and haven’t either. Buttercream also has milk in it.
This looks really yummy. I will try to prepare this cake this holiday season. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Could you make these as cupcakes? What would the cook time be?
Yes, you can make these as cupcakes, the baking time would be 15 to 20 minutes in an oven that was preheated to 350 degrees.
Because my birthday is on Valentine’s Day my mother made this cake for me every year. She even managed to send it to me when I was in boarding school in the sixties. So happy to find this recipé as I have lost her’s. Thank you.
My friend used to make this..so much better than cream cheese frosting.
HEART ATTACK ANYONE? YES, IT DOES LOOK GOOD BUT THINK ABOUT IT A FULL CUP OF SHORTENING? LOOK AWAY! LOL.
This looks so good!