Easy Red Velvet Berry Cake (With Step-by-Step Pictures)

This Berry Cake has an incredible combination of red velvet cake with naked layers and delicious layers of creamy, smooth frosting and fresh berries.

It’s super soft, moist, and is made using a natural red beet juice dye instead of the typical store-bought red food coloring.

It’s a beautiful cake with a classic look that’s perfect for just about any occasion! Make it for parties, anniversaries, or the holidays and everyone around you will fall in love with it!

The berries are what make the cake, and the elegant look of the cake is sure to catch everyone’s attention.

I can guarantee that you will absolutely love this cake. As many taste testers as I have, this cake flies off the table literally in minutes. Seriously, I’m not even exaggerating!

Want to learn how to make this beautiful Red Velvet Berry Cake? Then keep on reading!

• All-purpose flour: All you need is some all-purpose flour to make this delicious Berry Cake. In case you were wondering why we add flour to cake mixes, it’s so that the cake has the right structure since the starch in flour helps do that.
• Cocoa powder: We love chocolate in our family, therefore this cake has been loaded up with an additional dash of cocoa powder. Reduce the amount of cocoa powder by half for a more reddish color, but keep the red beet juice as per the recipe.
• Baking soda: Baking soda reacts quickly with acidic substances and provides instant leavening when the cake is being baked. It’s an important ingredient that will help make your cake light by leavening it to the right level.
• Baking powder: Baking powder keeps reacting with the heat to give a leavening boost while the cake is in the oven. By using a combination of both baking powder and soda, it gives this cake recipe the perfect level of leavening.
• Sea salt: We’ll be adding a little sea salt to the recipe to help enhance the flavors and bring them out to just the right level.
• Eggs: You’ll be needing 6 large eggs at room temperature for this recipe. I used home-raised chicken eggs while making this cake at home. Eggs are an important ingredient in this recipe as they help with the structure of this cake as well, and give it the perfect level of firmness and airiness.
• Sugar: To sweeten this cake to just the right level, we’ll be using some regular granulated sugar in this recipe.
• Vanilla extract: We’ll use one teaspoon vanilla extract to balance the flavors of all the other ingredients being used.

For the Berry Cake Frosting:

• Cream cheese: We’ll be using softened cream cheese in this recipe for the perfect level of creaminess and balance of flavor.
• Sugar: For the right level of sweetness, we’ll add some regular granulated sugar to the frosting.
• Vanilla extract: You’ll need some vanilla extract to bring out the flavors of the rest of the ingredients and give it a subtle vanilla flavor.
• Greek yogurt: This will add a creamy texture to your frosting and add a lightly acidic flavor to it that will bring out the taste of the berries.
• Heavy whipping cream: We’ll be using some cold heavy whipping cream to add silkiness to the frosting and also make sure it’s at the right consistency. When heavy whipping cream is chilled, the fat fuses better, resulting in the right texture and thickness when whipped.

Fruits for Berry Cake:

You can use a variety of different berries for this cake, or you can even pick any one that’s your favorite. Berry cakes, however, are usually made using more than one variety. Here are some options and the ones I’ll be using:

• Strawberries
• Raspberries
• Blueberries
• Blackberries

How to Make Berry Cake (Step-by-Step)

Making this delicious Berry Cake is incredibly easy. Here’s how to make it step by step:

How to Make Red Velvet Berry Cake Batter

Let's make the Berry Cake batter first. Combine all dry ingredients, that is flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cocoa powder, and sift into a large bowl. Set it aside until ready for use. 

Next, preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Beat together eggs and sugar for 10 minutes on high speed or until the mixture is thick and fluffy. Then reduce speed to low and stir in vanilla extract. You can also add vanilla right before mixing in the flour.

Now add the flour mixture in three additions. Using a hand whisker gently fold from the bottom up just until combined.

Next, add beet juice red dye in 3 additions, and using a silicone spatula fold gently into the batter. Try to make sure to not deflate the air bubbles as much as possible.

Baking Red Velvet Berry Cake

Finally, divide and pour the batter evenly into 3 – 8” round cake pans greased with butter or cooking spray. In case you’re using baking pans without removable sides you will need to line them with parchment paper on the bottom of the pan only). 

Bake all 3 pans at the same time for 15 minutes at 350 F (180 C). Remove from the oven, and cool for 5 minutes before removing cake sponges from the cake pans. Cool sponges completely before frosting.

How to Make Cake Frosting

Now let's make the cake frosting! Add softened cream cheese and sugar to a bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Beat them together for a couple of minutes on high speed until sugar dissolves.

Next, reduce the mixing speed then add vanilla and Greek yogurt. Mix well again. Scrape the sides of the mixer bowl to remove cream cheese lumps. 

Finally, add all cold liquid heavy cream then start beating on low speed and gradually increase the mixing speed as the cream becomes thicker up to a medium high speed.

Once more, scrape the sides of the mixer bowl to make sure all the ingredients get incorporated and beat again for 30 seconds or so.

Make sure to not overwhip the cream. It should be thick so it can be piped easily but if you keep beating it too much, heavy cream can start turning into butter which will ruin the consistency of your frosting.

How to Assemble the Cake

Now let’s put it all together! Rinse and paper dry berries. Place a cake sponge onto a cake platter of your choice.

Next, pipe cream out on top of the sponge starting on the edge of the cake and working your way towards the middle. Push berries inside the cream. You may use as many berries as you like.

If you don’t want to pipe the cream, you can also layer it using an offset spatula, but I personally love how elegant piped cream looks.

Now place another sponge cake on top of cream and berries and repeat the same steps. The top layer needs to be a little more presentable. Layout berries nicely on top of the cream instead of pushing them in. Place half-cut strawberries with stems for a beautiful touch of green.

Your beautiful Berry Cake is ready to be served!

Tips for Making the Best Berry Cake Every Single Time

Here are some useful tips that will give you incredible results every single time you make this Berry Cake:

• For the perfect cake layers, spend a few extra minutes leveling them with a serrated knife. This will allow you to have a take that stands perfectly straight and also allows the flavors in the cake to infuse properly into the layers.
• To layer your frosting onto the cake with ease, cool your cake layers before frosting them. Not only will it help make sure your cake is more stable as you layer it, but it will also make sure the frosting stays at the right consistency when you’re piping it on.
• Try different flavors of frosting to change up the flavor of your cake, by adding different extracts, like almond extract, or other ingredients such as lemon zest or a few drops of lemon juice to it.
• Get the right consistency in your frosting by chilling your heavy whipping cream before using it in the recipe. The fat in heavy whipping cream fuses better when chilled, resulting in the ideal texture and thickness when whipped.
• Make sure not to overwhip your frosting as the heavy cream will turn into butter if you keep whipping it after it has stiff peaks.

How Long Can You Store This Berry Cake in the Fridge?

Cake with cream cheese frosting and fresh fruit should always be refrigerated. This cake can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, after that the fruit may start to spoil.

When storing it, you can place plastic wrap on the sliced part of the cake to prevent it from drying out. You can also slice the cake and wrap each slice in plastic wrap before putting it in an airtight container and popping it in the fridge.

Can You Freeze a Berry Cake?

I would not recommend freezing this cake with fresh berries since berries will release water during the thawing process resulting in a soggy cake.

Enjoy with a cup of hot tea or coffee.

Recipe Card

Easy Red Velvet Berry Cake (With Step-by-Step Pictures)

Valya's Taste of Home

This Berry Cake has a red velvet base and is layered with delicious frosting and berries for a classic look. It's an easy recipe with step-by-step pictures.

4.86 from 7 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 55 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

4 hours hrs

Total Time 5 hours hrs 10 minutes mins

Course Cakes

Cuisine American

Servings 12

Ingredients

  

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Cake Batter Ingredients

• ▢ 1 ¾ cup – organic all-purpose flour
• ▢ 2 tbsp. – cocoa powder
• ▢ 2 tsp. – baking powder
• ▢ 1 tsp. – baking soda
• ▢ 6 large – eggs
• ▢ 1 cup – organic sugar (or white granulated)
• ▢ 1 tsp. – pure vanilla extract
• ▢ ⅓ cup – beet juice red dye

Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients

• ▢ 8 oz. – softened cream cheese
• ▢ ½ cup - organic sugar (or white granulated)
• ▢ 1 tsp. – pure vanilla extract
• ▢ ½ cup – Greek yogurt
• ▢ 2.5 cups – heavy whipping cream (40 %)

Fruits

• ▢ Strawberries
• ▢ Blackberries
• ▢ Blueberries
• ▢ Raspberries

Read More

Instructions

 

How to Make Red Velvet Berry Cake Batter

• ▢
  Let's make the Berry Cake batter first. Combine all dry ingredients, that is flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cocoa powder, and sift into a large bowl. Set it aside until ready for use.
• ▢
  Next, preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Beat together eggs and sugar for 10 minutes on high speed or until the mixture is thick and fluffy. Then reduce speed to low and stir in vanilla extract. You can also add vanilla right before mixing in the flour.
• ▢
  Now add the flour mixture in three additions. Using a hand whisker gently fold from the bottom up just until combined.
• ▢
  Next, add beet juice red dye in 3 additions, and using a silicone spatula fold gently into the batter. Try to make sure to not deflate the air bubbles as much as possible.

Baking Red Velvet Berry Cake

• ▢
  Finally, divide and pour the batter evenly into 3 – 8” round cake pans greased with butter or cooking spray. In case you’re using baking pans without removable sides you will need to line them with parchment paper on the bottom of the pan only).
• ▢
  Bake all 3 pans at the same time for 15 minutes at 350 F (180 C). Remove from the oven, and cool for 5 minutes before removing cake sponges from the cake pans. Cool sponges completely before frosting.

How to Make Cake Frosting

• ▢
  Now let's make the cake frosting! Add softened cream cheese and sugar to a bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Beat them together for a couple of minutes on high speed until sugar dissolves.
• ▢
  Next, reduce the mixing speed then add vanilla and Greek yogurt. Mix well again. Scrape the sides of the mixer bowl to remove cream cheese lumps.
• ▢
  Finally, add all cold liquid heavy cream then start beating on low speed and gradually increase the mixing speed as the cream becomes thicker up to a medium high speed.
• ▢
  Once more, scrape the sides of the mixer bowl to make sure all the ingredients get incorporated and beat again for 30 seconds or so.
• ▢
  Make sure to not overwhip the cream. It should be thick so it can be piped easily but if you keep beating it too much, heavy cream can start turning into butter which will ruin the consistency of your frosting.

How to Assemble the Cake

• ▢
  Now let’s put it all together! Rinse and paper dry berries. Place a cake sponge onto a cake platter of your choice.
• ▢
  Next, pipe cream out on top of the sponge starting on the edge of the cake and working your way towards the middle. Push berries inside the cream. You may use as many berries as you like.
• ▢
  If you don’t want to pipe the cream, you can also layer it using an offset spatula, but I personally love how elegant piped cream looks.
• ▢
  Now place another sponge cake on top of cream and berries and repeat the same steps. The top layer needs to be a little more presentable. Layout berries nicely on top of the cream instead of pushing them in. Place half-cut strawberries with stems for a beautiful touch of green.
• ▢
  Your beautiful Berry Cake is ready to be served!

Tried this recipe?Share your photo on Instagram @valyastasteofhome or tag #valyastasteofhome!

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