As I reflect on how America has influenced my cooking, I’m taken back almost 20 years ago when I started my journey to citizenship. Prior to this, most of my cooking was influenced by Filipino, Asian, Italian, West Coast American cuisines.

 As I have traveled more around the East Coast and have settled in the South, what I realize is that American cuisine is a melting pot of flavors and dishes. It is bursting of flavors naturally coming from the freshest ingredients at its peak.

• American Ingredients that come to mind immediately are apples, grits, turkey, pumpkin and crawfish.

• Seasonings. My first thought is salt. There are so many different kinds of salt available across America. There is Kosher, Sea Salt, Hawaiian Pink Salt, Black Salt. Other seasonings are Cajun, Cinnamon-Sugar, Celery Salt, Old Bay, Ranch, Maple, BBQ and Montreal Steak.

• My favorite American Dishes are Shrimp Boil, Chicken and Dumplings, Chicken Pot Pie, Roast Turkey and Stuffing, Fried Green Tomatoes, Cheese Grits, Biscuits and Gravy, Cheese Grits, Corn Bread, Apple Pie and Red Velvet Cake.

Every day, American cuisine and flavors continues to evolve from the progressive combination of influences around the world. 

Happy 4th y’all! I hope you enjoy this Red Velvet Cake recipe.

RED VELVET

Yield: 1 cake (20-22 slices) 

INGREDIENTS:

3 ¾ cups                    All-purpose Flour
1 Tablespoon            Cocoa Powder
1 ½ teaspoon             Baking Soda
½ teaspoon                Kosher Salt
6 oz. wt.                      Butter, unsalted
2 ¼ Cups                    Granulated Sugar
¾ Cup                         80/20 Oil
3 Each                        Large Eggs, room temp
1 ½ teaspoon             Pure Vanilla Extract
1 ½ teaspoon             Red Wine Vinegar
2 Tablespoons          Red Food Coloring
1 ½ Cups                    Buttermilk, room temp
¼ Cup             Sour Cream

 CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:

12 oz. wt.                    Butter, unsalted
1 ½ lbs.                       Cream Cheese
1 Tablespoon            Vanilla Extract
6 Cups                        Confectioner’s Sugar
2 Tablespoons          Raspberry Puree (only for top/side frosting)

1.    Preheat oven to 300 degrees. 
2.    Line the bottom with parchment paper and spray the spring form pan with food release spray.
3.    In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
4.    In a stand-up mixer, cream the butter, oil and sugar for 10 minutes, medium speed.
5.    Add the eggs, one at a time and beat until incorporated.
6.    Beat in the vanilla, vinegar and food coloring.
7.    Combine buttermilk and sour cream together.
8.    Add the flour mixture to the batter in 3 batches, alternating with the buttermilk/sour cream mixture, mixing well after each addition.
9.    Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake for 2 hours at 300 degrees or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out with only a few moist crumbs.
10.  Slice cake into 4 even layers.
11.  Let cool completely before frosting. 
12.  For the Cream Cheese Frosting, in a stand-up Mixer, cream butter well. Add the cream cheese and beat until blended. Sift confectioner’s sugar into the creamed and butter mixture and mix smooth. Add Vanilla and mix until combined.
13. Once the cake is cold, slice the cake EVENLY using the cake leveler and build the cake in order.  Layer of cake, cover with frosting (top only not sides), layer of cake, frosting (top only not sides), layer of cake, frosting (top of cake only not sides) layer of cake.
14.. When covering the final layer of cake, you will use an off-set cake spatula, evening out the frosting all over the top and sides of the cake.  Use the frosting mixed with a ounce of raspberry puree.
15. Place in the freezer for 20 minutes before cutting to let the icing set.
16. Using a hot water, clean towel, clean Chef’s knife and blow torch—dip knife in hot water, dry and heat the knife in the blow torch and cut the cake into 10 slices. Each slice must be cut with a clean, hot knife. Store, label, refrigerate.

NOTE: This cake should be served at room temperature.