Pink Velveteen Dream
I really had a Willy Wonka moment here. I named this cake Pink Velveteen, and it’s my first creation with unusual cake colours! It started out as a Red Velvet Cake, but unfortunately I didn’t have enough food colouring, so pink was the closest I got to it. The frosting was my idea, and didn’t belong to the recipe. It’s a french meringue.
I actually think that this colour makes an interesting cake. It wouldn’t be something I’d buy in a store for sure…
Red Velvet Cake is simple to make, and you can fill and frost according to your taste. I wanted to give it a “psychadelic” feel, so I opted for the meringue (which gives that cloudy, silky look). This cake is so cool, and it’s almost pure invention!
Pink Velveteen Cake
The Cake:
1/4 cup red colouring (in this case, less, about 1 tablespoon or so)
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups castor sugar
2 eggs
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup buttermilk
salt
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda
strawberry jam (for filling)
Method
Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Butter and lightly flour two 8-inch springform pans.
In a bowl, whisk the red colouring, cocoa and vanilla. Set aside.
In a separate bowl cream the butter with the sugar until smooth and light. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat well.
Add the flour into the mixture, alternating with the buttermilk in three stages. Add salt and cocoa mixture, followed by the apple cider vinegar and the baking soda.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center. Let cool 5 minutes in the pan before turning onto racks.
The Meringue Frosting:
5 egg whites, room temperature
1 cup superfine sugar
pinch of nutmeg
a few drops of red food colouring
a few drops of blue food colouring (to make purple swirl)
Method
With clean and dried beaters, whisk the egg whites until foamy. Continue beating on medium speed, adding the sugar gradually until they form stiff and glossy peaks.
Divide the meringue batter in two bowls. Add a few drops of red food colouring in each, and a bit of the blue in ONLY ONE of the bowls. Fold gently.
This is art class now: what does blue and red make? PURPLE! 
Assembly:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
Spread one of the cake layers with strawberry jam, or any other that you like best.
Place the second layer on top. With a rubber spatula, spread the pink meringue mixture all over the cake to cover. Take a bit of the purple batter, and spread only a 1/3 cup over the top of the cake. Make swirl movements with a fork.
Bake until the meringue sets, and it shows a golden tan colour. Let cool and serve!
