Sourdough discard red velvet cupcakes!

There is something amazing that sourdough starter adds to the texture of baked goods. Cakes and cookies are soft and the crumb is light, the sour flavor is subtle if at all noticeable but the texture seriously can’t be beat. I have scoured the internet trying to find a red velvet cake recipe using sourdough starter in it and have come across so many cake and cookie recipes! but red velvet? nowhere to be found. So of course I set out to make my own. Truth is I wasn’t sure these would work out. Not because of the recipe itself but because we lost power just as the batter was ready and proofed and I had to wait another 6-7 hours to get them baked. The batter sat on my counter for a couple more hours and then went in the refrigerator when it was clear the power wasn’t returning anytime soon. When I finally baked them, I was afraid they had over-proofed, afraid they would not be sweet enough if the natural yeast feasted on the added sugars, and afraid the texture would be more bread-like instead of airy. But surprise! They baked up beautifully and rose so nice and high. The texture is perfect! I topped some with cream cheese icing, some with ermine frosting and left some naked. Because honestly they really don’t need a frosting, they are that good! Ingredients will be in grams for this because weighing the ingredients is key to success when it comes to sourdough baking. Total time from start to finish is about 3 hours (Or 9 of you do it my way and let them proof on the counter for 4 hours and then in the fridge for 3-4 more)... the batter made 17 good sized cupcakes. I’m sure you can also turn these into cake layers or a 9 x 13 baking pan size.

Ingredients for the red velvet cupcakes:

227 grams sourdough starter (discard or ripe/fed)

227 grams buttermilk

241 grams of AP Flour (unbleached)

289 grams of granulated sugar

2 large eggs

198 grams vegetable oil

14 grams cocoa powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar)

14-28 grams of liquid or gel food coloring (I used 14 grams of red gel coloring, depends on how red you want your red velvet, I went for less and they were plenty red but that also depends on your choice of coloring.)

Instructions for the red velvet cupcakes:

1. In a large bowl combine the starter, buttermilk and flour. Cover and let sit at room temp for 3 hours. (Mine sat for 4 when we lost power and another 4 in the fridge. If you choose to do it my way, bring the batter out of the fridge half an hour before baking). 2. In another bowl mix together the sugar, oil, eggs, salt, cocoa, vanilla, red food color, baking soda and vinegar.

3. Combine the red velvet cocoa sugar mixture with the starter mixture, be gentle and patient, it will take a little muscle and persistence to get it to come together. But it will! I ended up using a whisk to help blend in a few globs of starter than weren’t cooperating. 4. Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners and spray the tops of the muffin pans with cooking spray so that they don’t stick when they rise high and settle on the edge of the muffin cups.

5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and let the batter sit for about half an hour as the oven heats up.

6. Once the oven is hot, pour batter into the paper liners about 2/3-3/4 full and place muffin pans in the oven. Bake them for about 25-35 minutes. They will rise really high but may not be cooked fully in the middle. Do a toothpick test and if it comes out dry they are done. Start checking at the 25 minute mark. 7. When baked, place pans on cooling racks and cool for about 15 minutes then carefully take them out of the pans and let them cool completely on the racks. 8. Frost with your favorite frosting (I frosted some with cream cheese frosting and some with ermine frosting which I had never made before and was awesome, and also left some naked). How you frost them is up to you!

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