Day 97 - Red Velvet

Baked the cakes for the graduation party on Saturday.  Our friend wanted red velvet cake and funfetti cake.  The bottom tier is a 10" red velvet cake, the center and top tier are 8" and 6" funfetti cakes all topped off with a graduation cap (mini wonder mold cake pan) in red velvet.  I know, my family is cringing after the disaster that was the red velvet cake for Christmas.  I made two square red velvet cakes and my sister did an absolutely fabulous job decorating them as Christmas gifts.  The cake looked so good but when we cut into it the cake was intolerably dry (no really - it was awful)!

I really watched the timing on the cake this time as it approached being done.  I also used moist cake wraps around the pan to increase the humidity in the oven.  When done they were beautiful and they look ultra moist.  We tested the mini cake that was done with left over batter for lunch - it is definitely little boy approved (and moist).  I also used the Wilton red food coloring (gel) rather than liquid food coloring which yielded a beautiful red throughout the cake (not marbled at all).

With the funfetti cake I did use a cake mix - I know I cheated!  I realized after adding the eggs that my white cake was going to be a deep golden yellow cake.  My chickens lay eggs with tremendously yellow yolks - store bought yolks simply don't compare.  However, since this is an ISU graduation the yellow and red cakes just make perfect sense.  So, I did it on purpose! Yeah, that's it!  I did "upgrade" the cake mix.  I used buttermilk instead of the water and 4 eggs rather than the 3 called for.  It did yield a nicer cake than just the regular cake mix would have.

Now to decorate it all tomorrow night!