Heart Shaped Chocolate Cake

Instructions

Chocolate Cake Layers:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C. Line two 8-inch heart shaped cake pans with parchment rounds and grease with non-stick baking spray or homemade cake release. If you don't have heart shaped cake pans, use two, round, 8-inch cake pans and follow the instructions on how to do this at the top of this post.
2. Whisk 1 1/2 cups + 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour, 2 cups granulated sugar, 1/2 cup of cocoa powder, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, and 1/2 tsp salt together in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer.
3. Mix 2/3 cup (1 & 1/3 sticks) unsalted butter into the dry ingredients on a medium-low speed with a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or hand mixer. Continue to mix until no large chunks of butter remain, and the mixture looks like damp sand.
4. Pour in 2/3 cup or about 5 large egg whites and mix on low until just combined.
5. Mix in 1 cup of buttermilk, 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil, and 1 tsp vanilla extract on a low speed. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed with a rubber spatula, then beat on a medium speed for about a minute to make sure everything is properly mixed together. This also helps lighten the texture of the cake layers a bit.
6. Divide batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. I like to use a digital kitchen scale to weigh my pans and ensure they all have the same amount of batter. This guarantees your layers will bake to the same height.
7. Bake for 32-35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs. Let the pans cool for 10 minutes, then run a small offset spatula around the perimeter of the pan to separate the cake from the pan.
8. Place the cake layers into the freezer for 30 minutes to accelerate the cooling process. Once the layers are fully cooled, carefully flip the pans, and remove the layers.
9. These layers bake up pretty flat, so leveling them is optional! If you want to level them, use a serrated knife to level the top of each cake layer. If you make these in advance, wrap and freeze them at this point.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting:

1. While the cake layers bake and cool, make the chocolate buttercream frosting.
2. Beat 2 cups of unsalted butter on a medium speed for 30 seconds with a paddle attachment or hand mixer until smooth.
3. Add 1 Tbsp of vanilla extract and 1/2 tsp salt and mix on low until combined.
4. Gradually mix in 6 cups of powdered sugar, 1/3 cup cocoa powder, and 1/2 cup of heavy cream on a low speed. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed with a rubber spatula.
5. Once the frosting is fully mixed and smooth, mix on the lowest speed for a couple minutes to help make the frosting silky smooth. Wait to add in the melted dark chocolate until the cake is frosted.
6. If the frosting seems too thick, add in additional cream (1 Tbsp at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar (a 1/4 cup at a time). If you're unsure how thick your frosting should be, you can learn what consistency you're looking for in my frosting consistency post

Assembling this Heart Shaped Chocolate Cake:

1. Stack and frost cake layers on a greaseproof cake board. Use a dab of frosting to help stick the first cake layer to the board.
2. Spread a thick, even layer of buttercream on top of the cake layer with a large offset spatula. Flip the top cake layer upside down to make the cake easier to frost.
3. Cover the cake in a thin coat of frosting. Smooth using a bench scraper, then chill the cake in the fridge (20 minutes) or freezer (10 minutes) until the frosting is firm to the touch.
4. Add a second, thicker layer of frosting to the cake and smooth using a bench scraper. Chill the cake again in the fridge (20 minutes) or freezer (10 minutes) until the frosting is firm to the touch.

Add Chocolate into the Remaining Buttercream:

1. While the cake chills, melt 1 1/2 cups of dark chocolate in the microwave. Heat it in 15 second intervals, stirring between each interval. Once the chocolate is melted, set it aside for 5 minutes to cool off so that it doesn't melt the buttercream.
2. Pour 1/3 of the melted and cooled chocolate (roughly 1/2 cup) into the remaining buttercream along with 1 Tbsp of heavy cream. Stir until combined, then place 1/3 of the frosting into a small piping bag fit with a coupler. Seal the top with a clip or rubber band and set aside.
3. Stir 1/2 of the remaining chocolate (roughly 1/2 cup) and another 2 Tbsp of heavy cream into the remaining frosting. Scoop half of the frosting into a small piping bag fit with a coupler. Seal the top with a clip or rubber band and set aside.
4. Add the remaining melted chocolate and another 3 Tbsp of heavy cream into the remaining frosting. Scoop the frosting into a small piping bag fit with a coupler. Seal the top with a clip or rubber band and set aside.

Pipe the Details onto this Chocolate Heart Cake:

1. Secure a small French tip on the darkest bag of chocolate buttercream and pipe a shell border around the top edge and base of the cake.
2. Remove the French piping tip, rinse it out, then secure it onto the lightest bag of chocolate buttercream. Pipe a similar border above the dark chocolate buttercream border.
3. Then use a circle cookie cutter to mark semicircles around the side of the cake beneath the top buttercream border. Start at the bottom of the heart and work your way up to the top of the cake.
4. Place a very small round piping tip (like a Wilton 3) on the medium bag of chocolate buttercream and slowly pipe semicircles around the cake. Make sure your elbow or forearm is anchored to the counter to keep your hand steady. Pipe another layer of smaller semicircles above these. If any of the semicircles turn out less than perfect, don't worry! The cake will be chilled, so it should be super easy to gently scrape off the frosting and try again. I usually do that at least once on designs like this!
5. Place a small round piping tip like a Wilton 10 on the lightest brown bag of buttercream and pipe small hearts on the side of the cake where the semicircles meet.
6. Use the same tip and bag of frosting to pipe a message on top of the cake. I wrote "love you," but you can write whatever you want!
7. Place the smallest round piping tip (Wilton 3) on the darkest bag of frosting. Pipe the message again on top of the buttercream lettering, then add tiny hearts on the side of the cake and top to fill in any gaps.