The Film That Revived The Popularity Of The Red Velvet Cake

With the soft and luxurious cream cheese icing and that gorgeous, bold red color you see as you slide out that first slice, red velvet cake always feels rather decadent. There's no firm evidence as to who first gifted the world with this magical dessert or when it was created, but it appears that it evolved over time.

Cake was developed around the 13th century with coarse flour and was quite rough in texture. Jump ahead 400 years, and cooks started looking for ways to make cakes softer and more moist. It was in the glorious days of the 1800s Victorian era when the culinary demands of society's elite saw cooks using cocoa in their cakes, which broke down the coarse flour and resulted in velvet cakes. The red coloring then came about as the cocoa interacted chemically with baking soda or buttermilk.

Over the years, the popularity of red velvet cake declined, with critics viewing it negatively it and many renowned cooks not including it in their cookbooks. But then, a movie hit the box office in 1989 –- "Steel Magnolias" –- which became immensely popular worldwide and featured a red velvet cake in the shape of an armadillo as the groom's cake. Red velvet became a star again, and bakers, cooks, and chefs started seeing it with renewed eyes and new creative variations.

Different individuals and establishments claim their part in the making of red velvet cake. The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel served it to patrons and celebrities in the 1930s, and Adams Extracts claimed its part in red velvet cake's DNA by selling the red food dye that enriched the coloring in the '40s. "Steel Magnolias" took it away in the late '80s, and even the popular TV show "Sex And The City" drove awareness –- and dare we say, obsession –- in the late '90s.

Coloring went from the natural chemical reactions of cocoa and buttermilk to using beetroot and beetroot extract (which make the cake super soft and moist). Interestingly, the beet inclusion came about in World War II, with heavy rationing driving bakers to look for ways to make their cakes look more appealing and attract customers. Artificial colorings then took over due to their convenience and the vibrant red coloring that they provide.

Wherever it started, red velvet cake has fallen and risen, with the concept now being adopted across the most unbelievable food types and dishes. We're seeing the likes of American Cupcake bar and bakery serving red velvet fried chicken and waffles in San Francisco, Dunkin' Donuts and Starbucks whipping up red velvet lattes worldwide, and other establishments and cooks taking red velvet into lamb lollipops, seafood, salads, curries, and vegan snacks.