Red Velvet Cupcakes, Part 2

I set out to try another recipe of Red Velvet cupcakes but what I kept thinking about looking through numerous recipes is why so many people love the taste of Red Velvet so much. I know I’ve loved it for a long time, eating the moist cake with sugary frosting, mmm. The flavor has so little cocoa you wouldn’t say it’s chocolate and I definitely hope the large amount of red dye that’s required doesn’t add flavor. But since I was curious I thought maybe Red Velvet tastes so wonderfully is because of how beautifully red and moist it looks to the human eye. Therefore, I split half my recipe in two and one I included the red dye, but the other half I did not add the red dye, chemical free.

I also did a very simple scientific study to see if there was a difference in taste between my two set of cupcakes. I had a willing volunteer taste 2 of the cupcakes and looking at them choose which one tasted better. Then did the same with a blindfold on. I thought by looks, the volunteer would think the Red Velvet (with red dye) tasted better, but blindfolded, taste the same cupcake.
Maybe my experiment wasn’t planned very well, but the volunteer thought the sans red dye cupcake tasted better in both rounds. Well I think that proves Red Velvet cupcakes are great even without the red dye, I thought it still looks a little dull but came out with a nice mocha color. So if you cringe at the thought of adding that much dye, at least the alternative is still tasty, I guess you just can’t call it Red Velvet anymore. Maybe, Light Brown Suede?

I found my recipe on epicurious.com and followed all the commenters suggested substitutes, using shortening in place of butter and sour cream in the place of buttermilk. I think this helped contribute to the overall moistness of the cake.

Red Velvet Cupcakes
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (I used shortening here)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 ounces water
2 ounces red food coloring
1 cup buttermilk (I used sour cream instead)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare cupcake tins as directed as directed in the recipe you are following.
2. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
3. Add eggs and blend well.
4. Make a paste of cocoa and food coloring and add to the butter mixture.
5. Sift flour and salt together into this mixture.
6. One at a time, add the following ingredients: buttermilk, vanilla, and water.
7. In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and baking soda. Fold it into the cake batter. Make sure it's incorporated, but don't beat it.
8. Pour the batter into the cupcake tins. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the cake springs back when touched.
9. Remove from oven and let cool for about 10 minutes, then turn the cupcakes out of the tins and onto a rack to finish cooling completely.