These chocolatey and soft Red Velvet Cupcakes for Two are perfect for you and your bestie. With a dollop of creamy and tangy Cream Cheese Frosting, you’ll be friends for life!
I’m back with another Cupcakes for Two recipe. This time, it’s for Red Velvet Cupcakes! I really enjoy perfecting Cupcakes for Two recipes because we all have days when all we need is a cupcake to feel better :) This time around, it only took me 4 tries (it’s taken me up to 6 tries with my previous cupcakes) and if you follow me on Snapchat (thepkpway), you saw the result of each batch. Make sure to follow so you don’t miss future behind-the-scenes activity.
Let me tell you that these Red Velvet Cupcakes for Two are everything you’d want from Red Velvet Cupcakes. They have a wonderful butter and chocolate flavor, are soft and moist, and a deep red color. Not to mention, they’re topped off with a smooth, creamy, and tangy Cream Cheese Frosting that you’d want to lick off the spatula!
Red Velvet gets its red color from the combination of natural cocoa powder and vinegar. When the two combine, a deep red hue develops. It’s very important to use natural cocoa powder and NOT Dutch-processed cocoa. Dutch-processed cocoa has been treated with an alkalizing agent, effectively neutralizing it. Combining Dutch-processed cocoa with vinegar will not yield the proper color. Aside from the color, natural cocoa powder needs to be used because of it’s acidic nature. The acidic cocoa will react with the alkaline leavener (baking soda) in the recipe to add lift and rise. So, once again, use natural cocoa powder.
Even though the red color from the cocoa powder and vinegar could stand on its own, I wanted the red color to be just a little more prominent. So, I added some liquid red food coloring. This is completely optional, of course. I’ve come across recipes that use much more color than what I use, so it’s totally up to you.
Red Velvet Cupcakes for Two
Yields 2 standard cupcakes
Printer friendly version
Red Velvet Cupcakes
Ingredients
3 tablespoons bread flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
⅛ teaspoon baking powder
1 egg white
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon vinegar
1 teaspoon liquid red food coloring*
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons natural (not Dutch-processed) unsweetened cocoa powder
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line 2 cups of a muffin pan.
- In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and powder. Set aside.
- In a small bowl whisk together the egg white, vanilla, vinegar, and color. Set aside.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter in a microwave for 20 – 30 seconds. Add the sugar and sift in the cocoa powder. Stir until smooth.
- To the butter mixture, alternate the flour and liquid mixture.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared muffin cups (no more than ¾ full). Bake for 18 – 20 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
4 ounces (½ brick) cream cheese, room temperature**
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cup confectioners sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon cream or milk
Directions
- Using a stand mixer or a hand mixer, beat together the cream cheese and butter until smooth.
- Add the vanilla and beat until combined. Slowly add the sugar and beat until smooth. Add the cream or milk a little at a time until desired consistency.
Notes
*Add more or less depending on color preference.
**Only use brick-style cream cheese
Storage
Store in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
These look delicious (SO much better than Sprinkles!), and I have to say I’m impressed with your perseverance…4-6 different versions is some serious dedication!
Oh wow! Sprinkles??? What a compliment…not sure that’s true ;) BUT I’ll take it! :D Thank you! These small batch desserts are really finicky and sensitive :D However, the end result makes it all worth it!
I could eat these in a heartbeat, they look fantastic.
Thank you for your sweet comment, Matt! Yes, they’re cupcakes for two, but really I can eat them all by myself ;)
Could I use cake flour or all purpose flour instead of bread flour?
I haven’t tested the recipe with either, but in an emergency I would use cake flour instead.
How can I convert this to a 12 cupcake recipe! Just multiply by 6?
I haven’t tried scaling the recipe up by 6, but you could just make it 6 times :)