Mile High Red Velvet Pound Cake

This Mile High Red Velvet Pound Cake is the perfect dessert for a party, the Christmas season or even for love day!

This recipe has been a long time coming! I haven't made a Red Velvet Pound Cake in so long, so I'd say a new recipe was in order. This cake is so very moist! I really enjoyed using the red gel food coloring with this recipe.

The color was so much more vibrant than when using liquid food coloring. With using the gel food coloring there was no dye flavor which is refreshing because I'm not a big fan of using food coloring in my desserts, but what's a red velvet without the red color right.

More Pound Cake recipes ---> Mile High Sweet Potato Pound Cake with a Bourbon Caramel Glaze, Christmas Pound Cakes, Mile High Sweet Potato Pound Cake, Mile High Caramel Pound Cake, Mile High Buttermilk Pound Cake, Mile High 7 Up Pound Cake, Mile High Cream Cheese Pound Cake, Mile High Sour Cream Pound Cake

Pound Cake Ingredients:

• All Purpose Flour
• Granulated Sugar
• Unsalted Butter - room temperature
• Large Eggs - room temperature
• Buttermilk - room temperature
• Cocoa powder
• Baking Powder
• Salt
• Vinegar
• Vanilla extract
• Red Gel food coloring

Cream Cheese Glaze Ingredients:

• Cream Cheese - room temperature
• Powdered Sugar
• Milk
• Vanilla
• Chopped pecans - optional

(Note: The full ingredient list is provided in the recipe card below.)

Steps to make the Pound Cake:

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Using a hand or stand mixer, begin creaming the butter and slowly add the sugar to the butter. Mix until light and fluffy (approximately 5 minutes).

Mix in the vanilla extract. Then add the eggs one at a time mixing well after each addition. Add the cocoa powder to the batter and mix until combined. Next, add the food coloring and mix until combined.

Combine the flour, salt, and baking powder. Add the flour mixture to the bowl, alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

Lastly, add the vinegar to the batter and mix until combined. Spray your 18-cup bundt pan with baking spray and then pour the batter into the pan spreading evenly.

Bake the cake for approximately one and a half to two hours. (Insert a wooden toothpick into the center of the cake. The cake is done when the toothpick comes out clean.)

Allow the cake to cool for approximately 20 minutes before removing it from the pan to complete the cooling process. Allow it to cool completely before the glaze.

To make the glaze:

Using a hand or stand mixer, blend the cream cheese, vanilla, and powdered sugar together until a smooth texture is formed. Start slowly and increase the speed as the ingredients begin to combine.

Slowly add in the milk until your desired texture is formed. More milk may be added to reach your desired consistency. Add the glaze to your cake as desired. If using pecans, add them on top of the cake. Allow the glaze to set then serve.

Helpful Guides for Beginners:

If you're new to baking I got you covered! Here are some helpful guides to help you along the way!

• How to make a moist Pound Cake
• Pound Cake Essential Tools
• Mistakes to avoid when baking a pound cake
• How to prepare Pound Cake ingredients
• How to Make a Pound Cake for Beginners
• Holiday baking and planning guide

Helpful Baking Tools

• Mile High Bundt Pan
• Stand Mixer
• Hand Mixer
• Basting Brush
• Sifter
• Silicone Spatula
• Oven Thermometer
• Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl
• Baker's Joy
• Cake Keeper
• Measuring Cups
• Measuring Spoons

Pound Cake Tips + Tricks

Whether you are a beginner or have been in the baking game for a while, I hope these tips are helpful in making sure that your pound cake comes out great!

⇢ Always use room temperature ingredients – Standard pound cake ingredients include butter and eggs which should always be at room temperature to ensure that they properly blend into the batter and do not cause any clumping. Other common ingredients such as milk, cream cheese, etc should also be at room temperature. Make sure to allow enough time before baking to remove the ingredients from the refrigerator and sit them on the counter to allow them to come to room temperature. 

⇢ Properly measure your ingredients – Always measure each ingredient before adding it to the cake to make sure that you have the accurate amount of each ingredient for the recipe. Baking requires exact measurements for the cake to come out correctly. 

⇢ Properly cream the butter and sugar together– Once blended the texture should be light and fluffy. Blend the ingredients together at a moderate speed for at least two to three minutes.

⇢ Add the eggs one at a time– Eggs must be added one at a time blending well after each addition. Once you’ve added an egg to the batter and no longer see any yellow, then you can add another egg to the batter.

⇢  Don’t overmix your batter–  Aside from creaming the butter and sugar together, once done adding an ingredient, immediately start adding the next ingredient. If you are not quite ready, stop the mixer until you're ready to add the next ingredient. After you have added the last ingredient, just mix until blended. If the batter still requires mixing, for example, if there is any unmixed batter on the side of the bowl, finish the mixing process using a spoon. 

⇢ Spray the hell out of your bundt pan - My favorite method is using a baking spray such as Baker’s Joy which includes the flour and oil all in one can. It's always a no-fail method for me and the cake comes right out of the pan. You can also grease the pan with oil (solid or liquid) then dust the pan evenly with flour if you prefer that method.

Frequently Asked Questions: