Pink Velvet Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

This pink velvet cake recipe is incredibly moist, with the most delicious tang. It's just as delicious as it is beautiful. Whether you plan to celebrate Valentine's day with your significant other, friends, or galentines, this pink velvet cake is the perfect way to show them you care. It's made with tender pink velvet cake layers (which is really white velvet cake with colouring) and frosted with cream cheese buttercream. If that combination doesn't say "Happy Valentine's Day", I don't know what does.

Pink Velvet Cake Layers:
3 cups all-purpose flour, unbleached (390 g)
3 cups granulated sugar (600 g)
2 tsp. baking powder (13 g)
1 tsp. baking soda (6 g)
1 tsp. sea salt (5 g)
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature (226 g)
5 large eggs, room temperature
1½ cups buttermilk, room temperature (360 g)
⅛ cup vegetable oil (28 g)
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract (9 g)
2 tsp. vinegar (9 g)
pink gel food colouring

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting:
2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature (434 g)
7 cups confectioners' sugar (907 g; or a 2 lb bag)
½ tsp. sea salt (3 g)
2 Tbsp heavy cream or whipping cream (30 g)
1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract (12 g)

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4). Line four 7" pans or three 8" round pans with parchment rounds, and lightly spray with non-stick cooking spray.

Pink Velvet Cake Layers:
Mix together all dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt) in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment until fully combined.

Mix chunks of room-temperature butter slowly into the dry mix, on a low speed. Continue to mix until no large chunks of butter remain, and the mixture looks crumbly.

On a low speed, mix in eggs one at a time. Beat on low until just incorporated. Mix in the buttermilk in two installments, on a low speed. Add in vinegar, vanilla and oil, and mix at a low speed until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, then beat on medium speed for about 30 seconds.

Divide the batter in half, and use pink gel food colouring to colour one half a light shade of pink, and the other half bright pink.

Evenly divide the batter between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 35-37 minutes (or until a skewer comes out clean).

Allow to cool for 10 minutes, then run an offset spatula around the pan to separate the cake from the pan. Place cake layers into the freezer for 45 minutes, to accelerate the cooling process.

Once the layers have fully cooled, I like to trim the caramelized bits from the sides of the layers using a serrated knife. While these layers bake pretty flat, sometimes I'll also trim the top of the layers too, to get my layers perfectly level.

Vanilla Frosting:
Beat the butter on a medium speed for 30 seconds with a paddle attachment, until smooth. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time. Alternate with small splashes of cream.

Once fully mixed, add in the vanilla and salt, and beat on low until the ingredients are fully incorporated, and the desired consistency is reached.

If the frosting is too thick, add in additional cream (1 tsp. at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar (quarter of a cup at a time).