I customer ask me for a Red velvet cake. I tried the Sarah's Red Velvet Cake Tweat that I found here. I halfed the recipe and was supose to use 1/2 once red food colouring and I decided to go with 1 tbsp. I also did not have buttermilk and used milk that was soured with vinegar.

I want to know if a red velvet cake has a bitter taste in flavour when going down. Or is it because I used the milk soured with vinegar?

Would the recipe be ok then if I just reduce the colouring. Or probably I should have been using a no taste colouring?

Thanks CC

There was a thread a while ago about this. I think it was during the summer, after I made a Red Velvet Cake for the Fourth of July. I think the large amount of food coloring causes the bitterness, but some people are not sensitive to it. Some people think it tastes fine, but some of us think it's awful.

How much vinegar did you use to sour the milk? That could be the problem. I almost always use that method since I don't normally keep buttermilk in the house. I can't stand red food coloring in icing - the taste is terrible, but it doesn't seem to bother me in the red velvet cake. You can reduce the amount of red coloring, but if you reduce it too much I think they just look brown once baked.

I also use the sour milk method on that recipe and have never had a bitter taste. Maybe it has something to do with cutting the recipe in half. I know a lot of scratch recipes can't be doubled so maybe they can't be halfed either.

I made a red velvet last Friday for a wedding consultation I had on Saturday. I used the general store red food coloring (the ones in the small tear drop shaped squeeze bottles). The recipe called for 2 tblsp. and I think it ended up being an entire bottle.

Also, I use vinegar/milk to make buttermilk, but in baking I NEVER substitute. It almost always is a recipe for disaster. Buttermilk is thicker, creamier than just using vinegar to sour the milk.

Try again! I'm sure it will be awesome next time! I froze the remainder red velvet after the wedding consultation, made petit fours last night and they are sooooooo moist and ymmy!!

Try using Ameicolor Red gel. It doesn't leave a bitter taste. I made a red velvet cake about a month using Americolor and it worked really well without the bitter taste that most red food colors do, especially the liquid version found in grocery stores.

I sell ALOT of red velvet and even sell it by the slice in my ice cream shop! I sold over 100 single pieces of it in less than 2 weeks....here is what I do and it is NEVER bitter!!!
I use the Waldorf Astoria red velvet cake recipe and the only substitute I make is on the food coloring.....instead of plain old food coloring, I use my KopyKake flow paste gels - 1 and 1/2 tsp of red and 1/2 tsp of burgandy. This turns out a beautiful color instead of the traditional blood red cake and there is no bitterness at all!!! Also, don't substitute for buttermilk - the sour milk just isn't the same!! Lastly, make sure you mix the baking soda and vinegar in a small bowl and then blend into the cake.
GOOD LUCK - hope this helps!!

I always use lemon juice - not vinegar when making "buttermilk". It provides the acid necessary, but not the sour taste that vinegar does. I use it in both the buttermilk and the soda mixture. Also, I agree with adding the vinegar (lemon juice) /soda in small bowl and then incorporate with the batter.

Will try again and let you all know how it turned out