Red velvet cake, sweet or dessert from the United States: what it is and how it is eaten

Red velvet cake is a layered dessert known for its red color and creamy icing, popular in the United States and Canada. It is made with flour, cocoa powder, buttermilk or vinegar, butter, eggs, and usually red food coloring, then finished with cream cheese or ermine frosting. Traditionally served as a dessert, it has become a classic cake for celebrations.

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Red velvet cake is known for its red color and creamy white icing.
It became famous at New York's Waldorf-Astoria hotel in the 1920s.
Both the Waldorf-Astoria and Eaton's in Canada claim to have created it.
Modern recipes use red food coloring for the cake's signature hue.
It is often served at weddings and festive occasions.

What is Red velvet cake?

Red velvet cake is a soft, layered cake with a striking red color, most often topped with a creamy white icing. Its main ingredients include flour, cocoa powder, buttermilk or vinegar, butter, eggs, and sugar, with red food coloring added for its signature hue. The cake has a fine, tender crumb and a subtle chocolate flavor. It is usually finished with cream cheese or ermine icing, which is a cooked flour-based frosting. The contrast between the red layers and white icing makes it visually distinctive.

Where does Red velvet cake come from?

The exact beginnings of red velvet cake are unclear. It became popular in the Southern United States in the early 20th century, though both New York City's Waldorf-Astoria hotel and Eaton's department store in Toronto have claimed to have created it. Earlier 'velvet' cakes, named for their fine texture, date back to the 19th century and sometimes took on a reddish tint from ingredients like brown sugar or the reaction of cocoa with buttermilk. The modern red color became prominent in the 1930s when food dye companies promoted recipes using their products. The cake's popularity faded in the 1970s after concerns over food dyes but returned in the late 20th century.

How is Red velvet cake made?

To make red velvet cake, butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla are creamed together. Cocoa powder and red food coloring are mixed separately, then added to the batter. Buttermilk or vinegar is used to give the cake a slight tang and help the color develop. The remaining dry ingredients are blended in, and the batter is poured into pans and baked. Once cooled, the cake is layered and covered with either cream cheese frosting or ermine icing. Some versions use beetroot for color and moisture.

Photo of an Adams Red Velvet Cake tear off recipe card. Photo: Adams Extract, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

How and when is Red velvet cake eaten?

Red velvet cake is typically served as a dessert, often at celebrations such as weddings, holidays, and special events. It is enjoyed chilled or at room temperature, sliced into layers to show off the red and white contrast. The cake is sometimes shaped or decorated for festive occasions, such as being made into themed cakes for Christmas, Valentine's Day, or Juneteenth. It is usually eaten on its own, though some versions appear as cupcakes or in other dessert forms.

Kinds of Red velvet cake

Variations include cakes made with beetroot, which adds color and moisture, and sometimes lemon juice or goat cheese in the icing. Other forms include bundt cakes, doberge cakes, ice cream cakes, and cheesecakes. The red velvet flavor has also inspired cookies, brownies, cinnamon rolls, lattes, teas, waffles, and even packaged snacks and drinks. The cake's flavor and scent have been used in products beyond baking, such as candles and air fresheners.

What Red velvet cake means

Red velvet cake is widely recognized in American and Canadian food culture. Its popularity surged after being featured in the film Steel Magnolias and has since become a common sight in bakeries and at celebrations. The cake is often associated with festive events tied to the color red, such as Christmas, Valentine's Day, and Juneteenth. Despite being linked to the American South, its exact cultural roots are debated, and it is now considered a national favorite.

When Red velvet cake is on the table

Christmas Day Juneteenth

Questions people ask about Red velvet cake

What is red velvet cake made of?

Red velvet cake is made from flour, cocoa powder, butter, buttermilk or vinegar, eggs, sugar, baking powder, salt, vanilla extract, and usually red food coloring. It is typically finished with cream cheese or ermine icing.

Where does red velvet cake come from?

The cake's exact origin is unknown, but it became popular in the Southern United States in the early 20th century. Both the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York and Eaton's in Toronto have claimed to invent it.

Why is red velvet cake red?

The red color comes from red food coloring added to the batter in most modern recipes. Historically, a reddish hue could result from the reaction between cocoa powder and acidic ingredients like buttermilk or vinegar.

What kind of icing is used on red velvet cake?

Red velvet cake is usually topped with cream cheese frosting, though some traditional recipes use ermine icing, which is a cooked flour-based frosting.

When is red velvet cake typically eaten?

It is most often served as a dessert at celebrations, including weddings, Christmas, Valentine's Day, and Juneteenth, but is also enjoyed as an everyday treat.

Good reading and sources

Where this page comes from

The facts on this page come from the Wikipedia article "Red velvet cake", written by its contributors and used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence, and from its Wikidata record (CC0). Thali rewrote the text in its own words, with AI assistance, and compares every page with the article to make sure no passage is copied. It may be reused under the same CC BY-SA 4.0 licence with a link back.

It may contain mistakes, and it is not dietary or allergy advice: recipes differ from cook to cook. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-03.

Red velvet cake