Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 10 cups in a muffin pan or line with 10 paper baking cups.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Mix in the eggs, buttermilk, red food coloring and vanilla. Stir in the baking soda and vinegar. Combine the flour, cocoa powder and salt; stir into the batter just until blended. Spoon the batter into the prepared cups, dividing evenly.*
Bake in the preheated oven until the tops spring back when lightly pressed, about 15 minutes. Cool in the pan set over a wire rack. When cool, arrange the cupcakes on a serving platter and frost with desired frosting (I used my basic cream cheese frosting recipe).
Enjoy!
Notes
Tip: For cupcakes that rise right to the top with no spill-over, fill the liners 3/4 full; a large cookie scoop helps