Peppermint Red Velvet Cake

by Sarah

in cholesterol free, Dairy-Free, Desserts, Egg-Free, Nut free, vegan

This moist red velvet cake is covered with a peppermint frosting, adorned with snowmen and glittering trees in a winter playground.

Peppermint Red Velvet CakeI love all things Christmas related, and Christmas cakes are my favorite kind of cake to make. Every winter I eagerly await when my local Paris Baguette bakery puts out their Christmas cake display. I go there almost every week to see which cakes are on display (and watch them decorate at the viewing window – they are so fast and skilled!). This week the Christmas cakes were officially out!

Peppermint Red Velvet CakeKicking off the start of winter cakes along with Paris Baguette, is this peppermint red velvet cake! This is Savoring Spork’s birthday cake. The cake is a moist red velvet cake infused with generous doses of almond, vanilla, and chocolate extract to create a flavor packed red velvet. The peppermint frosting is a minty balance to the red velvet underneath. This is one of the moistest red velvet cakes I have had yet.

The cake is decorated with Peeps snowmen. Did you know Peeps made snowmen? I have eaten the brightly colored Peeps marshmallow birds, but this is the first time I saw snowmen. The minute I saw them I knew I had to make something incorporating them! I purchased my snowmen marshmallows from Target, but they are probably available at many grocery stores.

Peppermint Red Velvet CakeThe trees in the back are made out of gum paste, coated in glittery green sugar. Some of you may wonder what is gum paste? Gum paste is basically sugar putty you can roll out really easy and make shapes. Some people are really gung ho about making their own, but you can buy pre-made packages of white gum paste at your local crafts store, Wal Mart, or on Amazon. It’s very cheap, like eight dollars a bag, and a little goes a long way with gum paste! To make the trees, pinch out ball about a quarter sized ball and tint it it green by dipping a toothpick in green gel food color and then putting the food color in the gum paste ball and kneading in your hand to evenly distribute the color.  Then roll it out on a board lightly dusted with powdered sugar, using a rolling pin, and take a tree cookie cutter to make the trees!

Peppermin t Red Velvet CakeGum paste drys super fast, so make sure to save any you don’t use by wrapping it in saran wrap and placing it in an airtight bag. Let the trees dry completely an hour (the gum paste turns really hard so the trees can stand up). Then brush some gum paste glue (pinch of a pinky tip size of gum paste and dissolve in 2 tablespoons water about 30 minutes beforehand) and sprinkle glitter green sugar all across. Let dry again and you have beautiful trees!

Peppermint Red Velvet CakeTo make the birthday sign, I drew the banner on a folded piece of printer paper (to make it thicker), and taped a toothpicks to the back. Since toothpicks are quite long, you can go ahead and snap a toothpick in two and tape the two halves to the back of the sign.

peppermint red velvet cake sliceThe color of this cake is a deep red. It’s not the super bright red that some red velvet cakes are, but I kind of like that because it looks less artificial. You can play around with different brands and volumes of food coloring if you want to get it really red. The general rule is that it will get darker after you bake (before I baked the batter was a vibrant red), so when in doubt – add more color for a brighter red final cake. In fact if you get the small sized liquid food color bottles, might as well dump the whole thing in (seriously).

For more information on frosting and decorating the cake, you can refer to my cake and cupcake tutorials page, and the cake supplies page for information about tools used for cake decorating. The specific sprinkles I used on this cake were: Silver Stars, Shimmering Sugar, Silver Sprinkles, Glitter Green Sprinkles. But any glittery sprinkles would work well for making the snow sparkle.

Peppermint Red Velvet Cake

Peppermint Red Velvet Cake

Savoring Spoon
Moist red velvet cake wrapped in minty fresh coat!
5 from 2 votes
Prep Time 2 hours
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 35 minutes
Course Dessert
Servings 22

Ingredients
  

Dry

  • 3 3/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 3 cups granulated sugar
  • 6 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Wet

  • 3 cups soy milk
  • 3 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
  • 1 cup canola oil
  • 1 teaspoon of gel food coloring dissolved in 2 tablespoons of water or alternatively 2 tablespoons liquid food coloring
  • 4 tablespoons vanilla extract
  • 3/4 teaspoons almond extract
  • 3 teaspoons chocolate extract*

Frosting

  • 1 1/3 cup non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening room temperature
  • 2/3 cup vegan margarine room temperature
  • 6 cups sifted confectioner's sugar
  • 4 tablespoons soy milk
  • 4 teaspoons peppermint extract

Decorations

  • 1 tablespoon gum paste tinted green
  • 1 tablespoon glittering green sugar sprinkles for trees
  • 3 crushed candy canes
  • assorted glittery sprinkles optional, to make snow glitter
  • 2 snowmen marshmallows

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350.
  • Grease three 9 inch baking pans by melting about 3 tablespoons of vegan margarine (or butter if not vegan!) in the microwave and brushing it on the pans. Line pan bottoms with parchment paper (I use pre-cut parchment rounds).
  • Whisk the soy milk and vinegar quickly, and set aside for 15 minutes to let it curdle. Meanwhile mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl.
  • Add oil, food coloring, extracts to the soy milk and vinegar mixture. Whisk to combine, and fold wet ingredients into dry. Mix till well combined. A few small lumps is good.
  • Pour batter into the greased and lined cake pans. About 3 cups of batter per pan.
  • Bake at 350 for 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted to the center comes out clean.
  • Let cool in pan for 20 minutes. Then flip cake out onto cooling racks to cool completely.
  • Meanwhile make frosting. Cream shortening and margarine until creamy and well combined.
  • Sift in powdered sugar. Then add peppermint extract and mix. Add 1 tablespoon of soy milk at a time till achieved desired consistency.

Decorating Tips

  • Once cake is completely cool, level the cake, then frost a crumb coat. Let crumb coated cake set in fridge fro 15 minutes to seal in crumbs.
  • Remove from fridge and finish frosting the cake, pressing down and up on the top of the cake to create the "snow" You'll want a thicker layer of frosting on the top for the fluffiest looking snow.
  • Add crushed peppermint candy canes and snowmen on top.
  • Place glitter trees in the back. See blog post for how to make the trees. Use a wad of frosting behind trees to stabilize them.
  • Sprinkle cake top with sparkling sugar or edible silver stars to make the snow glittery. Sift powdered sugar over top of frosted cake to "make it snow" Enjoy!

Notes

*chocolate extract is hard to find but worth getting because it takes the cake from very good to yum yum yes please three more slices! I recommend going to a specialty store like Sur la Table or Williams and Sonoma to find the chocolate extract. I got mine at Sur la Table. As with extracts in general, buy the nicest extract you feel comfortable paying for, the taste of extracts really come through in vegan cakes.
The cake recipe is adapted from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World cookbook's crimson velveteen cupcakes. The frosting recipe and decorations are Savoring Spoon originals.

Like Cakes? Here are a few more!

Maple Walnut Cake with Chocolate Ganache

Maple walnut cake with chocolate ganache, cake sliceGreen tea cupcakes with caramel sauce

green tea caramel cupcake | www.savoringspoon.com

 

Leave a Comment

{ 29 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Erin December 19, 2021 at 10:19 am

Hi, thanks for sharing your creation! Your cake looks so light and fluffy. How do you scoop/measure out your flour so I can get the right consistency. My last few attempts at an eggless red velvet cake have been a bit dense and gummy. Thanks

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2 Lauren December 9, 2018 at 12:00 am

Hi!
I live in Australia so measurements don’t tend to be accurate when I use cups here. Do you happen to have the grams/mls (or ounces etc) measurements for this recipe? Thanks!

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3 Sarah December 18, 2018 at 2:33 pm

Hi Lauren,

you can use this converter to convert cups to grams: https://www.thecalculatorsite.com/cooking/cups-grams.php based on the item (weight)

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4 Cailee December 15, 2014 at 1:04 pm

WOW!! This looks amazing!! I seriously love that you mixed red velvet with peppermint!! What a fun, festive idea!! Also, I agree… the darker color does look “less artificial!” Good call! …and I LOVE the little Peeps Snowman on top with the sprinkling of candy cane!! So cute!

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5 Sarah December 15, 2014 at 1:48 pm

Hi Cailee! So happy you like it!

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6 Mira December 14, 2014 at 4:51 pm

This is a gorgeous Christmas/Birthday cake and I love the way it looks and all the flavors! It is decorated perfectly, so much inspiration for me! After the cake I made last week I’ve been obsessed with cakes. Need to make this one or at least something similar. Pinned!

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7 Sarah December 15, 2014 at 11:02 am

Glad you like it Mira! I’m obsessed with cakes too – once you make one you can’t stop 🙂

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8 Connie @ Sprig and Flours December 14, 2014 at 12:22 pm

What a cute holiday/birthday cake! Peppermint and red velvet sound like a delicious combination. I’m adding this to my “holiday t0-bake” list (:

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9 Sarah December 15, 2014 at 11:02 am

Aww Thanks! I’m glad you like it Connie!

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10 Maryanne @ the little epicurean December 11, 2014 at 5:45 pm

Peppermint and red velvet? That sounds like a great combo! I love the photo with the “snow” falling on the snowmen 🙂

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11 Sarah December 11, 2014 at 10:18 pm

Thanks Maryanne!

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12 Amy (Savory Moments) December 11, 2014 at 4:01 pm

What an adorable and festive cake! Love the peppermint frosting.

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13 Sarah December 11, 2014 at 4:27 pm

Thanks Amy!

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14 Amanda December 11, 2014 at 11:19 am

So cute and creative! I love the glittery trees 🙂

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15 Sarah December 11, 2014 at 12:03 pm

Thanks Amanda!

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16 Alessandra // the foodie teen December 11, 2014 at 8:44 am

So adorable! I love it! And those peeps just take the cuteness way over the top!

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17 Sarah December 11, 2014 at 9:22 am

Thanks Alessandra!

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18 Marta December 10, 2014 at 9:27 pm

OMG Sarah this looks amazing! This is the most impressive thing (I think) you’ve made yet! Such a beautiful and delicious-looking cake.

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19 Sarah December 10, 2014 at 10:25 pm

Thanks Marta! I really liked this cake too – the marshmallow snowmen were really fun!

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20 Manali @ CookWithManali December 10, 2014 at 5:30 pm

Oh so cute! Love this combination of red velvet and peppermint, bet it tasted fantastic! Gorgeous cake Sarah, like always 🙂

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21 Sarah December 10, 2014 at 5:51 pm

Thanks Manali!

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22 Nagi@RecipeTinEats December 10, 2014 at 3:38 pm

Sarah, I’m a little blown away here. Are you telling me this is vegan? This incredible cake is entirely dairy free? It can’t be. You are pure genius Sarah! This is truly stunning and the fact that i’s vegan blows me away.

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23 Sarah December 10, 2014 at 4:34 pm

Thanks Nagi! It’s vegan! It’s of the yummiest vegan cakes I made so far (I think it’s the extracts, they made the flavor really pop)! I’m glad you like it too! I’m still eating the dome tops I sliced off while cutting the cake 😉

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24 Nora @ Savory Nothings December 10, 2014 at 2:38 pm

Oh my gosh, how cute is this cake? Love it Sarah!

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25 Sarah December 10, 2014 at 4:29 pm

Thanks Nora! 🙂

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26 Oriana Romero December 10, 2014 at 6:21 am

I love Red Velvet cake!! The peppermint frosting sounds like the perfect fit for it. I need to make this soon!!

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27 Sarah December 10, 2014 at 9:01 am

Thanks Oriana! I love eating red velvet cake too – this cake was very moist, I think you’ll like it!

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28 Joanne December 10, 2014 at 4:32 am

I love that you paired peppermint with red velvet! Two of my favorites in one. How have I never thought to do that?!

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29 Sarah December 10, 2014 at 9:00 am

Thanks Joanne! I’m glad you like it! The flavors go well together!

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