Red Velvet Cake

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, five to seven minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Beat in the food coloring, vinegar and vanilla. Editor’s Tip: Turn the mixer off when adding the food coloring so it doesn’t splash everywhere. Once the food coloring is poured in, gently turn the mixer onto the low speed, and make sure the food coloring is completely incorporated before turning the mixer any higher.

In another bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beating just until combined after each addition.

Pour the batter into two greased and floured 9-inch round baking pans. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted in the centers comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool the layers at room temperature for 10 minutes. Remove the cakes from the pans, and transfer to wire racks. Let cool completely to room temperature.

Trim 1/4 inch off the top of each cake layer. Finely crumble the remaining trimmings onto a baking sheet. Let the crumbs stand at room temperature while making the frosting. Editor’s Tip: Don’t be daunted about leveling the cakes! Let us show you how to level a cake without a leveler like a pro.

In a small saucepan, stir together the water and cornstarch over medium heat. Stir until thickened and opaque, two to three minutes. Cool the mixture to room temperature. In a separate bowl, use a hand mixer or stand mixer to beat the butter and vanilla until light and fluffy. Beat in the cornstarch mixture. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar. Beat the frosting until light and fluffy.

Place one cake layer on the center of the serving platter. Dollop some of the frosting onto the center of the cake layer and, using a mini offset spatula, spread the frosting evenly all the way to the sides of the cake. Place the second cake layer on top (cut side down), making sure the cake is lined up perfectly edge to edge with the cake layer underneath. At this point, feel free to either frost a crumb coat and finish with a final frosting layer, or go ahead and evenly frost the entire outside of the cake. Press the reserved cake crumbs into the side of the cake for extra decoration. Editor’s Tip: We get it, frosting a cake is hard! Let us teach you how to frost a cake the easy way. With time, practice and patience, you’ll get the hang of it.