A high altitude red velvet sheet cake that’s soft, fluffy and moist, layered with tangy cream cheese buttercream, then decorated with powdered sugar snowflakes for Christmas. This pretty, festive cake is perfect for the holidays when you need to make dessert for a large family gathering or Christmas party.
You might also love this red velvet bundt cake, no churn red velvet ice cream, and red velvet whoopie pies.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Perfect for the Holidays. I love making red velvet cake for Christmas. And this red velvet sheet cake is a simple cake that’s still so festive with the pretty red cake and powdered sugar snowflake design.
Stays Moist for Days. This is a very moist, fluffy cake that stays fresh tasting for days after baking.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
Cake
- Cake Flour. You could use all-purpose flour, if you like, but I love the lightness of cake flour in this cake.
- Granulated Sugar. Adds sweetness and moisture.
- Cocoa Powder. Gives the cake a very subtle, mild chocolate flavor, and deepens the red color.
- Salt. I use coarse Kosher salt in all my baking. The salt balances the sweetness.
- Baking Soda. Leavens the cake, reacting with the acid in the vinegar and buttermilk, causing the cake to rise.
- Eggs. Add structure and richness.
- Vegetable Oil. Moisture.
- Buttermilk. Flavor, moisture and acidity.
- Vinegar. Use white distilled vinegar. The extra acid gives the leavening a little boost for a good rise in this cake.
- Vanilla Extract. Flavor.
- Red Gel Food Coloring. To make the cake red, of course. Without the food coloring, the cake will be a light tan color. I use Americolor Super Red gel food coloring.
Buttercream
- Butter + Cream Cheese + Shortening. Cream cheese frosting has a reputation of being softer and less stable than buttercream. But if you use a combination of butter, cream cheese and vegetable shortening, you’ll get a more stable frosting, as well as a pretty white color. If you don’t want to use the shortening, simply increase the butter and cream cheese by the same amount to use half of each.
- Powdered Sugar. Sweetens and thickens the frosting.
- Meringue Powder. Adds stability.
- Salt. Balances the sweetness.
- Vanilla. I like to use vanilla bean paste to add a strong vanilla flavor and pretty black specks throughout the frosting.
Other
- Powdered Sugar. To ensure the powdered sugar stencils on top stay put, without melting into the cake, use non-melting powdered sugar. If using regular powdered sugar, just decorate right before serving.
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line a 13×18 inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, and lightly spray the paper with non-stick baking spray.
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, buttermilk, vinegar, vanilla and a few drops of red gel food coloring.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and whisk briefly, just until combined and smooth; don’t over-mix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and use an offset spatula to spread it evenly into the pan. Bake for about 22-25 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean and the tops springs back when gently touched.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack, and cool completely.
Buttercream
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip the butter, cream cheese and shortening for several minutes until smooth.
- Add the powdered sugar and meringue powder by spoonfuls, mixing on low to combine. Add the salt, vanilla and milk (if needed to slightly thin the buttercream), and whip on medium speed for 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally, until very light and fluffy.
Assembly
- Trim the edges of the cooled cake, if needed. Then cut the cake in half (cutting through the paper, too), so that you have two 9×13 inch rectangles.
- Turn one of the cakes over onto a serving platter or baking sheet, and peel off the paper. Frost with an even layer of the buttercream.
- Carefully place the other cake layer on top, and peel off the paper. Use snowflake stencils and non-melting powdered sugar to decorate the top of the cake.
Recipe Variations
Double Buttercream, No Stencils
Double the buttercream recipe, and instead of decorating the top of the cake with powdered sugar, simply frost with a second layer of buttercream.
One Layer 9×13 Cake
For a one layer red velvet sheet cake without the stenciled snowflake design, bake all of the batter in a 9×13 baking pan, for about 25-30 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Frost the top of the cake with the buttercream.
Layer Cake
See my red velvet layer cake recipe.
Bundt Cake
See my red velvet bundt cake recipe.
Cupcakes
See my red velvet cupcakes recipe.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common questions with cake making, so that you can be successful in your own baking! I also suggest reading these comprehensive posts on making Perfect American Buttercream, How to Stack, Fill, Crumb Coat and Frost Layer Cakes and How to Use Piping Bags.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does cream cheese frosting need to be refrigerated?
This is really up to your own discretion. There’s quite a lot of sugar in the frosting, which helps to prevent spoilage of dairy products. Personally, I’ll let a cake with cream cheese frosting sit at room temperature all day (in an airtight container), and then refrigerate it overnight. The next day, I’ll take it back out again to let it warm up, since most cakes are best eaten at room temperature instead of cold.
What kind of food coloring do you use?
I use Americolor Super Red Gel Food Coloring. You don’t need more than a teaspoon or so for a strong red color in this red velvet bundt cake.
Where did you get your snowflake stencils?
I used these snowflake stencils to decorate my red velvet sheet cake.
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High Altitude Red Velvet Sheet Cake
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment
- 13×18 Rimmed Baking Sheet
Ingredients
Cake
- 3 cups cake flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
- ¼ cup Dutch processed cocoa powder (Rodelle)
- 1 tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 ⅔ cups whole buttermilk
- 1 tbsp white distilled vinegar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- red gel food coloring
Buttercream
- ½ cup (4 oz) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 4 oz (1/2 block) cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- ¼ cup vegetable shortening
- 3 – 3 ¼ cups powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp meringue powder, optional
- ⅛ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 1 tbsp milk or cream, only if needed
Other
- non-melting powdered sugar, for snowflake stencils
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line a 13×18 inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, and lightly spray the paper with non-stick baking spray.
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, buttermilk, vinegar, vanilla and a few drops of red gel food coloring.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and whisk briefly, just until combined and smooth; don’t over-mix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and use an offset spatula to spread it evenly into the pan. Bake for about 22-25 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean and the tops springs back when gently touched.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack, and cool completely.
Buttercream
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip the butter, cream cheese and shortening for several minutes until smooth.
- Add the powdered sugar and meringue powder by spoonfuls, mixing on low to combine. Add the salt, vanilla and milk (if needed to slightly thin the buttercream), and whip on medium speed for 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl occasionally, until very light and fluffy.
Assembly
- Trim the edges of the cooled cake, if needed. Then cut the cake in half (cutting through the paper, too), so that you have two 9×13 inch rectangles.
- Turn one of the cakes over onto a serving platter or baking sheet, and peel off the paper. Frost with an even layer of the buttercream.
- Carefully place the other cake layer on top, and peel off the paper. Use snowflake stencils and non-melting powdered sugar to decorate the top of the cake.
I like cream cheese frosting but always wish it were fluffier and sturdier. I just tried this cream cheese frosting and it’s perfect! It will be my go-to now
I’m so glad! I have some more tips for making cream cheese frosting in this post: https://curlygirlkitchen.com/perfect-american-buttercream-frosting/
Hi Heather! Do you think this recipe would work as the base for red velvet tres leches cake? If not, what modifications would you recommend to make sure it is sturdy enough?
Thank you!
I’ve never tried that with red velvet cake, but it might work. Let me know how it goes!