Red Devil’s Food Cake
📜 Collection: UK2 | ✍️ Attribution: Unknown | 📂 Category: Desserts A classic Red Devil’s Food Cake featuring a rich, moist crumb and deep chocolate flavor. This vintage recipe utilizes buttermilk and boiling water for a uniquely tender texture.
| Prep Time | Cook Time | Inactive / Chill Time | Yield / Servings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 mins | 30 mins | 10 mins | 2 8-inch layers |
🔪 Key Equipment
- Two 8-inch or 9-inch round cake pans
- Large mixing bowl
- Electric mixer
- Separate mixing bowl
- Wire cooling rack
Ingredients
| Measurements | Ingredients | Prep / Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ¾ cup | Butter | softened |
| 2 cups | Sugar | none |
| 2 | Eggs | unbeaten |
| 1 tsp | Vanilla | none |
| 2½ cups | Flour | all-purpose |
| ½ cup | Cocoa | powder |
| 2 tsp | Baking Soda | none |
| 1 tsp | Salt | none |
| 1 cup | Sour Milk | buttermilk |
| 1 cup | Boiling Water | none |
Instructions
Step 1: Prep and Mix Base
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 8-inch or 9-inch round cake pans.
- In a large bowl, cream the ¾ cup butter, softened and 2 cups sugar together with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
- Add the 2 eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Step 2: Combine Wet and Dry
- In a separate bowl, sift together the 2½ cups flour, 2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, and ½ cup cocoa.
- Stir the 1 tsp vanilla into the 1 cup sour milk (buttermilk).
- Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture in three parts, alternating with the milk mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.
Step 3: Bake and Cool
- Pour the 1 cup boiling water in all at once and stir quickly until the batter is well combined. The batter will be very thin.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pans.
- Bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the edges pull slightly away from the pan.
- Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
💡 Make-Ahead & Storage: Baked cake layers can be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 2 days, or frozen for up to 3 months before frosting.
Original Recipe Scan
