Peppermint is a holiday favorite because it adds such a festive look and flavor to our favorite holiday treats. No Christmas dessert table would be complete without a delicious peppermint desert. That’s why I have developed the most whimsical red velvet cake with peppermint buttercream frosting. Not only is this cake absolutely gorgeous, but your friends and family will also absolutely love this holiday rendition of a classic red velvet cake.
The Frosting
The frosting is probably my favorite part of the entire dessert, it is so delicious that you are going to want to make sure you don’t finish it all before you decorate the cake! It is a minty and delightful peppermint buttercream frosting that will tie in the perfect amount of peppermint taste to remind you of your favorite Christmas treats- red and white candy canes!
Vintage Cake Baking Tips!
Grandma knows best when it comes to baking cakes. Here are some of my favorite tips from my 1950s cookbooks! Mimi’s tips included!!!
- Be exact when measuring your ingredients. Baking is a science remember!
- Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature before starting.
- Shiny metal pans are best for cake baking because they reflect heat away from the cake and produce a tender crust!
- Never fill a cake pan more than half way full.
- Grease the pan thoroughly. With shortening. Just kidding, but seriously every old cookbook uses this. Now there’s an amazing spray with oil and flour that William and Sonoma sells!
- Place oven rack directly in the middle and the cake also directly in the middle of the oven.
Prepare and Garnish!
Now the fun really begins! Take one of the 9-inch red velvet cakes and put it on a nice serving dish. Next, you will want to coat it with a nice thick later of the peppermint buttercream frosting. Once you have frost the first cake, take another 9-inch red velvet cake piece and place it on top of the other. Then, you are going to want to add another generous later of peppermint buttercream and top it with the last 9-inch red velvet cake piece. Top with the rest of the peppermint buttercream and garnish with crushed peppermint candies!
Red Velvet Cake with Peppermint Buttercream Frosting
This festive triple layer red velvet cake is complemented with peppermint buttercream frosting and garnished with crushed candies! Your guests will love it!
- Prep Time15 min
- Cook Time20 min
- Total Time35 min
- Ready in45
- Yield10
For the Cake
- 1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
- 1.5 cups sugar
- 2 eggs
- 3 tablespoons cocoa
- 1 bottle of red food coloring
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 1/4 cup cake flour
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
For the Frosting
- 2 sticks butter softened
- 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- Pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup crushed peppermints for the topping
Preparing the spices
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter, sugar, eggs, and flavoring.
Make a paste out of the cocoa and food coloring. Add to the mixture
Alternate the buttermilk and flour a little at a time mixing well.
In a small separate bowl, mix the vinegar and baking soda. Add that to the batter.
Grease three 9 inch pans and evenly distribute the batter. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely before frosting the cake.
For the frosting, in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer, cream all the ingredients except for the peppermint. In a plastic bag, crush the peppermints and reserve them for the topping.
