It typically consists of a chocolate or a vanilla cake made with buttermilk topped with cream cheese frosting. Delicious right? The thing that makes Red Velvet Cake red, however, always makes me cringe.
I read the recipe for Red Velvet Cake this past weekend on the back of a package of southern grocery store brand flour. That's how popular it is! It is right on the back of your flour package!
3 ounces of red food coloring. 3 Ounces!! I also bought a bottle of real vanilla extract the same day as the flour so I had that to compare it to. My entire bottle of vanilla extract was 2 ounces. You put 3 ounces of red dye into the cake!
My taste testers know that I have a serious aversion to anything unaturally dyed red. This is due to the fact that many red food dyes are made using components called chocineal, carmine, or carmine powder. These food dye components are made from bugs. Look it up if you don't believe me. Enough said.
So as you are making your Valentines Day romantic/special dinner for you valentine(s) please remember this disturbing fact about the famous Red Velvet Cake. 3 ounces. Red dye.
In case you are still in the mood for this beautifully red cake be sure to look for red food coloring that only contains red dye #40. Bug free. I promise. It's made from coal tar and gives my sister hives. Just sayin.
4 comments:
HAH! That's hilarious.
What about natural food coloring, made from beet extract?
The old recipes do use beet juice! Apparently at some point everyone switched to the new fangled fancy red dye... Better living through chemistry!!
So gross to think what the artificial stuff is made of. I try really hard not to use food coloring, but think I just met my lifetime's quota with Julian's most recent birthday cake.
I find it crazy to put a whole bottle of food coloring in anything. This might be because I have a dye allergy, or just because it seems super unnecessary. I made a beautiful raspberry mousse for Valentine's Day. It was beautifully pink all on its own.
-Kate's Sister Kerry
Post a Comment