City School Red Devil's Food Cake

If you went to public school in the mid-20th century, you probably remember this cake. City school red devil’s food cake is a single-layer chocolate sheet cake with a tender, velvety crumb thanks to cake flour and buttermilk, and a deep reddish-brown color from cocoa mixed with red food coloring.

Hot coffee (or hot water) blooms the cocoa powder before it goes into the batter, which intensifies the chocolate flavor dramatically. If you’ve ever wondered why some chocolate cakes taste flat while others taste deeply chocolatey with the same amount of cocoa, this step is usually the difference.

Buttermilk reacting with baking soda gives the cake its lift and that characteristic tender, slightly tangy crumb. The acid in the buttermilk also enhances the red food coloring, pushing the cake toward that signature devil’s food hue.

Kitchen Tips

• Use cake flour, not all-purpose. Cake flour has less protein, which means less gluten development and a softer, finer crumb.
• Alternate the dry ingredients and buttermilk when adding to the creamed mixture. This prevents the batter from breaking and keeps it smooth.
• Test with a toothpick at 35 minutes. Every oven runs a little different, and overbaking dries out this cake fast.
• The food coloring is optional but traditional. Without it, you’ll get a dark chocolate cake rather than the signature reddish-brown.

Variations

• Layer cake: Divide the batter between two greased 9-inch round pans and reduce bake time to about 25 minutes.
• Cream cheese frosting: Top with a tangy cream cheese frosting for a red velvet-inspired finish.