I don’t want to sound like a cake snob…but this is a GORGEOUS Cake. With the chocolate red velvet cake layers sandwiched over the top and under the white cheesecake layer, it really is an “over the top” cake. I was so pleased when I cut into the cake for the first time.
The layers were so straight and beautiful! What an attractive cake. And. It. Is. So. Delicious!
This is such a special cake that you’ll want to make sure you have the right amount of time set aside for you to make and assemble it. Don’t be afraid to break it up into more than one day of mixing, baking, assembling and decorating. In fact, the no-bake cheesecake layer needs to be chilled in the refrigerator overnight.
I broke up the different steps so that I would not be rushed trying to make it all in one day. I planned to make it over 3 days and I’m so glad that I did. I wanted to spend the time to get each layer and every single step correct, and I wanted to feel good about each layer I made.
First, I made the red velvet cake layers, froze them and went about the rest of my errands for the day. Next, I made that easy no-bake cheesecake layer. No worries about baking with a water bath. It’s about as easy as a cheesecake can be. But, be sure to chill it in the refrigerator overnight so it sets well for stacking.
Then I mixed up the frosting (It’s to die for, by the way!) with heavy cream and butter and sealed it in the refrigerator with plastic wrap or in an airtight container until I was ready to frost.
Of course, you can make the 3 different cake layers and frosting in one day (not the no-bake cheesecake layer), but, I figured, why break my back when I can spread the work out a little and get other things done, too, in between. This way, it felt like a fun sweet project.
With the frosting made, I took the red velvet cakes and no-bake vanilla cheesecake out of the freezer and placed them in the refrigerator. By 1pm I took them out of the refrigerator to get them close to room temp.
I checked them all over to make sure the layers were all of the same diameter, trimming a little from around the red velvet (RV) layers. Then I trimmed off the domes of the RV layers. Note that I found them easier to trim when they are a little cool.
I layered them with frosting between all layers, chilled them, and then gave the entire cake a crumb coat on top and all over the sides.
After refrigerating the entire cake for an hour, the frosting had chilled enough that I could wrap it completely in plastic wrap so as not to attract any smells in the refrigerator…until I was ready for the final layer of frosting. (I like to add the final frosting over a chilled cake. I have even frozen the crumb coated cake for up to a week before adding the final frosting layer. Just make sure it’s tightly covered with plastic wrap and foil.)
Lastly, I frosted the entire cake and pipe the decorations on top, with chocolate piping and chocolate covered coffee bean accents.
You might ask, “Why did you take on such a big job of making this cheesecake stuffed cake?” Well, I have to admit that I had a slice of red velvet cake stuffed with a layer of vanilla cheesecake at a local restaurant. It was definitely very pretty, but the velvet cake layers were so dry and the cheesecake had too much of a sour flavor for me. I took most of it home to analyze.
I like a cake to be beautiful but I want it tasty, too. So, the next morning I sat down and ate it very slowly with a cup of coffee to figure out what I liked and how I could improve it for my own palate. The baked cheesecake layer was so heavy and tangy. And the cake layers were very dry. So, I pulled out one of my no-bake cheesecake recipes which has a much lighter texture but is sturdy enough to support a top layer of regular cake. The frosting was missing flavor, so I started to pull together some ideas for my frosting that would work well with the red velvet. So, here’s my version of the Red Velvet Cheesecake Stuffed Cake. I hope you enjoy it because my family and extended family loves it.
This beautiful Red Velvet Cheesecake Stuffed Cake deliciously serves 12-16 people depending on how big the slices are. Be conservative on the sizes of the slices since it is three layers high.
Prepare two 9” cake baking pans:
-Lightly smear butter all over the bottoms and sides of the 9” cake baking pans.
-Cut a circle of parchment paper to fit in the bottom of each cake pan.
-After placing the parchment paper in the pans, lightly butter the parchment paper.
Prepare the 9” springform pan for the no-bake cheesecake layer:
-Lightly butter the bottom and sides of the springform pan.
-If you like, place a circular piece of parchment paper to fit in the bottom of the springform pan. Lightly butter the top of the paper. It can make it easier to lift the cheesecake off the bottom pan after releasing the sides.
Gather up the Red Velvet Cake Ingredients:
2 ½ C Flour
1 ½ C Sugar
3 T Cocoa Powder, not sweetened
1 ½ t Baking soda
¾ t Salt
1 T Coffee powder or espresso powder
2 Eggs
1 ½ C Vegetable oil
1 C Buttercup
1 T Red gel food coloring
2 t Vanilla extract
Gather up the no-bake Cheesecake layer Ingredients:
For the Crust:
2 C Graham cracker crumbs (about 14-16 full sheets)
1/3 C Brown sugar
½ C Butter, melted
For the cheesecake filling:
24 oz Cream cheese, soft
1 ¼ C Heavy cream
2 T Sugar
2 T Powdered sugar
¼ C Sour cream
1 t Vanilla extract
Gather the Vanilla Frosting Ingredients:
¼ C Butter, soft
¼ C Shortening, white
1 T Vanilla extract
½-3/4 C Heavy cream
2 T Milk, if needed
Pinch of salt
8 C Powdered sugar, sifted
3 T Cocoa powder, for the chocolate portion of the frosting
Make and bake your Red Velvet cake layers
-With your electric stand mixer, stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and coffee powder until completely combined.
-Add the eggs, vegetable oil, buttermilk, red gel food coloring and vanilla extract. Carefully beat on low until combined. Then beat for 2 minutes on medium high.
-Pour the batter equally into two prepared cake baking pans.
-Bake at 350F degrees for 30-35 minutes. I test the baked cake layers at the 30-minute mark with a toothpick. When you stick the toothpick into the center of the cake and it comes out clean, the cake is done. If not, bake a little longer.
-Cool completely on a rack. When still warm, run a knife around the edge to separate the cake from the pan sides.
-I like to freeze the two cake layers until I’m ready to assemble with the cheesecake in the middle. Cover each cooled pan with plastic wrap and then wrap with foil. I keep it frozen for up to a week before assembling the entire cake.
Make and freeze your cheesecake layer:
For the Crust:
-Place the graham crackers, broken, into the food processor and grind to a fine crumb. -Measure out 2 cups.
-Melt the butter and set aside.
-In a medium bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs and sugar.
-Add the melted butter and stir together with a spatula.
-Press the crumb mixture into the springform pan, making sure to bring the crumbs up the sides. I use the bottom of a strong glass to press the crumb mixture in the bottom and against the sides. The crumb crust should be very firm.
-Freeze the crust for 30 minutes while you’re making the cheesecake filling.
For the cheesecake filling:
NOTE: It is very important to scrape down the sides of the bowl numerous times during the mixing of the cheesecake filling. This keeps the ingredients mixed thoroughly and prevents lumps.
-With an electric stand mixer and the whisk attachment, beat the heavy cream to the stiff peak stage, about 4-6 minutes. Pour the whipped cream into a smaller bowl and set aside in the refrigerator to keep it chilled.
-In the electric stand mixer, beat the soft cream cheese and sugar together until smooth.
-Add the powdered sugar, sour cream and vanilla extract and beat to combine.
-Pour the chilled whipped cream into the cheesecake mixture and gently fold in with a large spatula until combined. Be gentle so as not to deflate the whipped cream.
-Pour the entire mixture into the frozen crust which is still in the springform pan. Smooth out the top of the cheesecake.
-Cover the top of the springform pan with plastic wrap, then a layer of foil.
-Chill the entire cheesecake in the refrigerator overnight, or at least for 8 hours. The longer, the better.
-Keep chilled in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days until you assemble the cake. I even freeze it for up to a week in an airtight container.
Mix and Make the Vanilla and Chocolate Frostings:
-In an electric stand mixer, using the whisk attachment, beat the butter and shortening until creamy.
-Add the vanilla extract and half of the heavy cream and beat just to combine.
-Add the powdered sugar, two cups at a time and slowly beat to combine.
-Alternate the powdered sugar, two cups at a time, and more heavy cream and beat until you get to a nice spreading and piping consistency. I usually spend about 6-8 minutes total beating it. I like it on the stiff side so that it sets up nicely when piping.
-Cover and set the frosting aside in the refrigerator until you are ready to assemble your cake.
Mix and make your red chocolate frosting:
-Take about a quarter of the white frosting and put it in a smaller bowl.
-Sift in 2-3 tablespoons of cocoa powder and slowly stir to combine completely.
-Add a few drops of red food coloring and stir in completely.
-Add a couple more drops and stir sparingly so there are a few streaks.
-If you feel the chocolate frosting is too thick after adding the cocoa powder, add a half to one teaspoon of milk or heavy cream and stir thoroughly.
-There should be enough frosting to cover the top of the cake and to pipe a few swirls on top.
-Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside in the refrigerator until you are ready to assemble the cake. Let it warm up a little before you spread it on the cake’s top.
Assembling your Red Velvet Cheesecake Stuffed Cake:
-Before assembling your cake, make sure all the layers are level. If the red velvet cake layers are domed after baking, be sure to cut off the domes. It’s easy to do with a long sharp, serrated knife. Position your knife, horizontally, at the outside point where the dome begins to round itself on the top of the cake layer. Slice straight across on the horizontal. Look at the top at eyelevel and trip off any edges you may have missed. It’s important to have all the layers level to have a straight cake in order to keep any layers from sliding out of place.
-NOTE: Make sure you have a cleared spot in your refrigerator or freezer if you plan to use one or the other to keep your cake chilled. Clean it out ahead of time so you’re not caught at the last-minute making space for your beautiful cake.
-Due to the final weight of this cake, I use a ¼” round wooden cake base, wrapped in foil.
-I set the foil wrapped base on a turntable so that I can twirl it slowly to examine all the edges and make sure all is straight, etc. It also helps with moving the cake while I’m frosting the sides.
-Place a dollop or frosting in the middle of the foil wrapped base and center one layer of red velvet cake on top. This will help keep the cake stable while you’re spreading the frosting.
-Frost the first red velvet cake layer with white frosting, making sure to bring the frosting all the way out to the edges.
-Then, move the cheesecake layer on top of the first layer. I used a couple large spatulas to carefully move the cheesecake, in one piece, over to the red velvet layer. If you like, cut the cheesecake in half and move one half at a time.
-Spread a layer of frosting on top of the cheesecake, making sure you bring the frosting all way out to the edges.
-Set the second layer of red velvet cake on top of the cheesecake layer.
-Twirl the cake slowly on the stand and take a look all the way around the stacked cake to make sure all the layers are straight and the edges are even.
-Chill the cake for about an hour.
-Then give the cake a thin crumb coat of frosting. You don’t need to worry about cake peeking through the frosting. Just make sure you have a thin layer to make it easier to add the final layer of frosting.
-Chill the cake for an hour.
-Cover the entire cake with plastic wrap and freeze it overnight.
-On the next day, take your frosting out of the refrigerator and the cake out of the freezer to bring them close to room temp.
-Start frosting your cake with white frosting, giving it a thick layer all over the sides and top. I use a medium or large offset spatula to frost the top and sides, twirling it to make the strokes even or interesting.
-Frost the top of the cake with the red streaky chocolate frosting, taking care to have a crisp edge all around the cake top.
-Set up the rest of the red chocolate frosting into a piping bag with a large swirl tip. Set aside.
-Set up another piping bag with white frosting with which you can use a couple smaller piping tips. Set aside.
-With the red chocolate frosting, pipe 4-7 larger swirls fairly evenly spaced around the top outer edges.
-With the white frosting, pipe and fill the space in between with smaller swirls, randomly placed. Make sure you cover any ragged outer edges of the red chocolate frosting around the top edges…to give your cake a more finished look. Changing the white piping tip to another shape or a little different size adds more texture to the decorations. Have fun with it!
-Refrigerate the cake before cutting it. Use a long, sharp knife with tiny serrations for cleaner cuts. And, wipe the knife thoroughly clean after each cut so you’re not transferring the red chocolate frosting onto the white frosting.
Storage:
-Store your Red Velvet Cheesecake Stuffed Cake in the refrigerator for 3-5 days in an airtight container. Since there is cream cheese in it, you don’t want to let it set out at room temperature for too long. I don’t leave it out more than an hour.
-You can also freeze this delicious cake for up to 3-4 weeks in an airtight container. Thaw it in the refrigerator overnight.
-I like to cut the cake into liberal slices, then wrap each in plastic wrap, then stack them in an airtight container. Thaw the individual slices, still wrapped, in the refrigerator for an hour or so before serving.
This is an extremely gratifying three tiered cake to make. And I hope that you enjoy making this one. I certainly have. It’s thoroughly beautiful and rewarding to make this delicious combination of vanilla cheesecake and red velvet cake.
Whoever you share this beautiful Red Velvet Cheesecake Stuffed Cake with, it is sooo DELICIOUS! “Bake your own Memories!”
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