Gruber’s Grubs: Halloween Red Velvet Cake

By Gabriella Gruber, Online Shadow Editor

// As Halloween quickly approaches, celebrate this year’s spooky season with goblins, ghosts, and Gruber’s Grubs! In the first installment of this new cooking series, Gabriella Gruber bakes a Halloween themed red velvet cake. Enjoy! The instructions are listed below.

Ingredients for the cake:

• 2 ¼ cups flour
• ¼ cup corn starch
• 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• ½ cup unsalted butter (melted)
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp white wine vinegar
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp red food coloring

Ingredients for the icing:

• ½ cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup cream cheese
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Steps for the cake: 

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 320 degrees. 

Step 2

Prepare baking pans by greasing them. For thicker cakes, use eight inch pans. For thinner, use nine inch. Pro Tip: Use unsalted butter for the best results when greasing your pans. It tastes better than non-stick cooking spray.

Step 3

Sift the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. 

Step 4

Mix together the wet ingredients in a separate bowl.

Step 5

Add the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix. Make sure not to overmix this or the cake will turn out dry.

Step 6

Distribute the batter between the pans. 

Step 7

Bake the cakes for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Step 8

Let cakes cool for 10 minutes.

Step 9

Remove cakes from pans and allow them to cool completely on a wire rack for about 20 minutes before adding the icing. 

Steps for the icing:

Step 1

Mix together the butter and the cream cheese. To make this process easier, cut the butter into small pieces before adding. 

Step 2

Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. 

Step 3

Now you can frost and decorate the cake!