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Red Velvet Cake with Chocolate Mousse Frosting

Forget the cream cheese frosting. This red velvet cake gets the chocolate lover's treatment: two moist, deep red layers wrapped in a dark chocolate mousse so rich it verges on dessert-as-dinner. The mousse skips the fuss of traditional buttercream but delivers way more payoff. One bite and you'll wonder why anyone still bothers with cream cheese on red velvet.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Refrigeration 7 hours
Servings 10

Equipment

  • 2 9" cake tins

Ingredients

For the Cake

  • ½ cups plus 1 Tbsp [360 g] buttermilk at room temperature
  • 3 large eggs at room temperature
  • 1¼ cups plus 2 Tbsp [280 g] neutral oil
  • 1 tbsp. vanilla extract or paste
  • ¾ cup plus 2 Tbsp [200 g] vanilla yogurt at room temperature
  • 1 cup [200 g] granulated sugar
  • 1½ cups plus 2 Tbsp [320 g] dark brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp. instant coffee powder
  • 3¼ cups [380 g] all-purpose flour
  • 3 tbsp. cornstarch
  • ½ cup [50 g] Dutch-process cocoa powder
  • 1½ tsp baking soda
  • 1½ tsp kosher salt
  • 1½ tsp white vinegar
  • 4 to 8 tbsp. [85 to 114 g] red food coloring
  • ¼ cup [60 g] boiling water

For the Mousse

  • 1 1/4 cups plus 2½Tbsp [240 g] finely chopped dark chocolate
  • 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp [260 g] whole mil, room temperature
  • 4 large egg yolks
  • 1 cup plus 2 tbsp. dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup plus 1Tbsp [50 g] black cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp. kosher salt
  • 2⅔ cups heavy cream

Instructions

For The Cake

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F [180°C]. Grease and line two 9 in [23 cm] round cake pans with parchment paper.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, eggs, oil, vanilla, and yogurt until smooth. Gradually add the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and instant coffee, whisking until fully dissolved.
  • Sift the flour, cornstarch, Dutch-process cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt over the mixture. Whisk until combined, making sure no dry pockets remain. Add the vinegar and red food coloring, stirring until the batter is evenly mixed and smooth. Gradually stream in the boiling water, whisking constantly to fully incorporate.
  • Divide the batter evenly between the prepared baking pans and use an offset spatula to smooth the tops. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with only a few moist crumbs. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack. Let the cakes cool in the pans to room temperature before running a butter knife inside the rim of the pans and inverting the cakes onto the rack. Just before assembly, use a serrated knife to trim any doming for even layers.

For the Mousse

  • In a medium heatproof bowl, place the dark chocolate. Set a fine-mesh sieve over the bowl.
  • In a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm the whole milk until lightly simmering but not boiling.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, brown sugar, black cocoa powder, and salt until a thick paste forms. Gradually add the warm milk to the egg mixture, whisking constantly to prevent the eggs from scrambling.
  • Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and pour the mixture through thefine-mesh sieve into the bowl with the dark chocolate. Let sit for 4 to 6minutes to melt the chocolate, then mix until smooth. Allow the mixture to coo lto room temperature.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the heavy cream on low speed, gradually increasing to medium-high. Continue whipping until soft peaks form, 3 to 5 minutes. Be careful not to overwhip.
  • Gently fold half of the whipped cream into the chocolat emixture until fully incorporated, being careful not to deflate the mousse. Fold in the remaining whipped cream until no streaks remain. Set aside at room temperature until ready to assemble and decorate the cake.

Assemble the Cake

  • Place the first cake layer on a cake board or serving plate, securing it with a small dab of the dark chocolate mousse directly on the board.
    Spread about 1 cup [227 g] of the mousse over the top, using an offset spatula to flatten it evenly.
  • Place the second cake layer on top, aligning it carefully, and use the remaining mousse to frost the top and sides of the cake as desired.
  • Refrigerate the cake overnight to allow the flavours to develop and come together.