It's no secret that I have an obsession with all things red velvet. In fact, today I caught myself eyeing a "red velvet burrito" on a Mexican restaurant menu, desperately hoping that it was some sweet rolled up concoction oozing with cream cheese filling. Turns out it's really just a spicy red tortilla filled with the usual burrito ingredients. I think that qualifies as false advertising, but who am I to argue with a chain of restaurants?
I've never been to the Waldorf Astoria. Only two things come to my mind when I think of the swanky hotel; Blair Waldorf from Gossip Girl and that weird salad with apples and mayonnaise. I really can't vouch for how closely this cake resembles theirs. I do know that this cake is dense, yet moist with that slight hint of cocoa, which is exactly how any red velvet cake should be. The addition of this light and fluffy pudding frosting makes it a surprisingly light slice of cake. And even though it's light and fluffy, the frosting still has as slight hint of tang from the cream cheese which is why it pairs perfectly with red velvet.
Waldorf Astoria Red Velvet Cake with Pudding Frosting
cake from Food.com, frosting from the little kitchen
For the cake:
½ cup shortening
1 ½ cups sugar
2 eggs
2 ounces red food coloring
2 tablespoons cocoa (heaping)
1 cup buttermilk
2 ¼ cups cake flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vinegar
Preheat oven to 350. Grease two round cake pans and line the bottoms with a round piece of parchment paper (trim the paper to fit the pan).
In a stand mixer, cream the shortening, sugar and eggs. In a separate bowl, mix the food coloring and cocoa powder to form a paste. Add the cocoa paste to the creamed mixture and mix until combined. Add the buttermilk, alternating it with additions of the flour and salt until all have been combined. Add vanilla and mix for a few seconds. In a separate bowl, combine vinegar and baking soda (note, combining these two ingredients will create a reaction). Add the mixture to the batter and mix until combined.
Evenly distribute the batter between the two cake pans. Bake 24-30 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the cake comes out clean.
Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes each, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the frosting:
1 cup milk
1 3.4 oz box of instant vanilla pudding
8 oz. cream cheese (at room temperature)
12 oz. tub of Cool Whip (remove from refrigerator 10-15 minutes before making the frosting)
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste (this is my addition to the original recipe)
In a stand mixer, cream the cream cheese until smooth. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk the milk and vanilla pudding until it is smooth and begins to thicken.
Add the Cool Whip to the cream cheese mixture and mix on medium speed until combined. Add the pudding and mix again, until combined. Stir in the vanilla bean paste (this gives it those cute little vanilla bean flecks and some extra vanilla flavor) using a rubber spatula.
To assemble:
Slice each cake in two to create 4 layers. Begin with one layer and top with a generous dollop of frosting. Spread the frosting to the outer edge of the cake. Place another layer on top and repeat until each layer is frosted. Frost the sides of the cake and use any remaining frosting to finish frosting the top.
