How to Make a Heart Shaped Cake

We’re showing you How to Make a Heart Shaped Cake when you don’t even own a heart shaped cake pan! 

This is a delicious homemade red velvet cake (though you can make chocolate cake or vanilla cake or any other favorite flavor or boxed mix). And you will only need two pans that you probably already have in your kitchen to make this cake- an 8-inch square and an 8-inch round.

RecipeBoy shared this idea way back in 2014 when he was just 13 years old. There are a couple of original photos of him included in this post. We’ve re-shot the photos in 2022 and are sharing them today.

How to make a Heart Shaped Cake:

The full, printable recipe is at the end of this post. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and spray a square and a round pan with nonstick spray.

Follow the instructions for making the red velvet cake batter, and divide the batter between the two pans. You want the batter to be even between the two pans so the cakes will rise up to the same height. Bake for about 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Let the cakes cool for a few minutes, and then turn them out onto a rack to cool completely.

Cut the round cake in half. You can use a tape measure to cut it exactly even.

Then take the two half circle cakes and connect them to the square. 

Make a batch of our really delicious vanilla buttercream frosting.

First frost the cake lightly to create a crumb coat. Refrigerate until that first coat is set.

Then frost again more generously to cover the cake completely. Use a piping bag with leftover frosting to decoratively pipe the edge of the heart. Add a few decorative sprinkles, if you’d like.

The heart shape is really pretty, and it’s a great dessert for Valentine’s Day. Want to impress someone? Most people will think that this cake came straight out of a bakery. The cake happens to be super delicious too. Enjoy!

Here are a few more cake recipes you might like to try:

• Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Marshmallow Frosting
• Texas Sheet Cake
• Vanilla Strawberry Cake
• Funfetti Cheesecake Cake
• Pumpkin Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

How to Make a Heart Shaped Cake

RecipeBoy.com

Here's a super easy way to make a heart shaped cake.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 mins

Cook Time 30 mins

Total Time 1 hr

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 1 heart shaped cake

Ingredients

  

RED VELVET CAKE:

• 2½ cups all purpose flour
• 1½ cups granulated white sugar
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1½ teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1½ cups canola or vegetable oil
• 1 cup buttermilk
• ¼ cup red food coloring (two 1-ounce bottles)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons white vinegar

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:

• 2½ cups powdered sugar
• Two 8-ounce packages cream cheese, at room temperature
• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Instructions

 

BAKE THE CAKE:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8-inch square and an 8-inch round pan with nonstick baking spray.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
• Add eggs, oil, buttermilk, food coloring, vanilla and vinegar to the flour mixture. Use an electric mixer to beat for 1 minutes, scrape sides and bottom of bowl with a rubber spatula. Continue to beat on high speed for 2 minutes.
• Divide the batter evenly between the two pans. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached. Let cool for 10 minutes, then turn out onto racks to cool completely.
• Find a cutting board or large platter that will fit the large heart cake. Place the square cake on point (one corner pointing down). Cut the round cake in half and place on the upper sides of the square to form a heart shape.

FROST THE CAKE:

• In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to combine the powdered sugar, cream cheese, butter and vanilla until smooth and creamy.
• Frost the cake once lightly to create a crumb coat. Refrigerate until set. Then frost again more generously to cover the cake completely. Use a piping bag with leftover frosting to decoratively pipe the edge of the heart and (if enough) along the bottom edge.

Video

Keyword cake, heart, valentine's day cake