Birthday Cake

It was my husband's birthday recently...not a big one but another one and he was wanting some comfort cake to sweeten it.

I have a great recipe for Red Velvet Cake but I am nervous about all that dye in food. Plus has anyone noticed the price of red food color?? It would have been about $7.00 for the color alone.

So I have been playing with just a velvet cake recipe and this one is the best so far. I am posting the recipe for the cake. I filled the cake with ganache and seedless raspberry jelly. I iced the cake with a regular American style buttercream. You can fill and frost with just about anything. I am working through a peanut butter/cream cheese filling and frosting that I might just Elvis up with bananas. YUK, you might say but so far I am getting good reviews. I will post that recipe when I feel it won't elicit the scrunched nose effect.

The cake is very light and almost melts in the mouth. It has a rich chocolate flavor without overwhelming. I love the apple cider vinegar in it that adds depth to the chocolate. I think this is a keeper for an easy birthday cake and here's how you make it!

Velvet Cake

1/2 Cup Shortening
1 1/2 Cups Sugar
2 Eggs
2 Cups All-purpose Flour
2 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
10 Ounces Buttermilk
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar

1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Make sure all ingredients are room temperature. Grease two 8-inch pans and line the bottom with parchment paper.
2. Cream shortening. Add sugar and beat well with electric mixer. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.
3. Sift together the flour, cocoa and salt. Combine the buttermilk and the vanilla . Add dry ingredients to the creamed mixture alternatively with the buttermilk mixture beginning and ending with the flour mixture.
4. Dissolve the baking soda into the vinegar. Stir into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pans.
5. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, Remove cake layers from the pans, peel of the parchment paper and cool completely on wire racks. Fill and frost with favorite icing.