Does it make sense for a cake icing recipe to call for vinegar but not baking soda?
See the making of icing in this video.
"cream cheese" frosting ingredients:
1/2 C coconut oil (solid but soft at room temperature)
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 C powdered sugar
1 tbsp + 1 tsp unsweetened soy milk
Using a hand mixer beat the coconut oil, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, vanilla extract and 1 cup of powdered sugar to start. Once it's mostly combined add in another cup of powdered sugar and beat together. Then add in soy milk and beat until smooth and fluffy. Then ice the cake!
I'm worried that there's some kind of mistake and this will impact the flavour for no reason. Should I leave out the vinegar? Add baking soda? Leave the recipe as is?
Best Answer
It's fine as written.
Combining vinegar with baking soda (or any acid with any base) is usually done in baking to produce gas, which can lighten the finished product. This is an icing, which is applied after the baking process; it's not set to capture air bubbles, so any effect would be largely temporary and more easily produced through beating.
The vinegar here is intended to mimic the tangy flavor of real cream cheese. The lemon juice has the same effect, but apple cider vinegar adds a different mix of acids, better matching the flavor of the real thing.
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Why do some cake recipes call for vinegar?
Vinegar is a surprisingly common ingredient in baked goods, considering that it has such a sharp flavor. But as an acid, vinegar is often included in cake and cookie batters to react with baking soda and start the chemical reaction needed to produce carbon dioxide and give those batters a lift as they bake.What does apple cider vinegar do in icing?
For some reason, apple cider vinegar alone in frosting gives it a cream cheese flavor. Tip: If you want to make super easy cream cheese frosting without vegan cream cheese, you can simply use my vegan buttercream recipe and use apple cider vinegar in place of the plant-based milk.Does vinegar affect the taste of the cake?
Can I skip adding vinegar in a cake recipe? Skipping vinegar to your recipe might not be that good of an idea. While yes, the flavour profile of your cake will surely be the same even if you skipped it. But the texture, lightness, and tenderness of your cake will not be present.Why does red velvet cake need vinegar?
What does red velvet cake taste like? Red velvet cake has an acidic taste that comes from the use of buttermilk and vinegar as well as the cream cheese in the frosting. The acidity is balanced out by the sweetness of the cake itself.3 Ingredients Vanilla Frosting | Condensed Milk Frosting | Frosting for Cakes And Cupcakes
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Answer 2
Vinegar also changes the consistency of a substrate. For example, it makes toffee malleable, or can be used in a pastry to make it stretchy. It potentially affects the texture of the icing too.
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Images: Nicole Michalou, Mikhail Nilov, Nicole Michalou, Nicole Michalou