Chocolate Heart-Shaped Torte

Serves 6

One 6-inch round or loaf pound cake, refrigerate or thaw if frozen
        (pound cake recipe is included below)
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate pieces
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup water
4 egg yolks, beaten
2 tablespoons sifted confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Icing
In a saucepan, heat chocolate, butter and water. Stir until well blended and then cool slightly. Add beaten egg yolks, sugar and vanilla. Whisk until smooth. Chill (not refrigerated) until spreading consistency (about 30-45 minutes). Once cooled, spread a couple of tablespoons of icing on bottom layer of sliced pound cake, gently add next layer and work your way up. The thinner the layers the better.

Layering and Shaping Cake
Be sure the pound cake is cold-not just cool - COLD! I used a Betty Crocker Pound Cake box mix and baked it in a 6-inch springform pan and it worked great for this. Baked cake should be refrigerated for at least a couple of hours before shaping and layering it. If you want to make a heart shaped cake, cut a v out of top part, round top two edges and cut lower sides to form the point. The scraps make yummy snacks until time to eat the finished product. Using a long sharp knife, cut 4 to 6 thin layers. You can also take a strong string or thread, stretch tightly and pull evenly through the cake to make thin layers. The thinner the better. Try to keep the layers even, but it will be ok if they aren't perfect. You can see (in the photo to the left) mine weren't anywhere near perfect. Leave cut layers piled on top of each other until time to frost, starting with bottom layer, frosting, adding next one, etc. Once the layers are iced, you'll never know it wasn't baked in a heart-shaped pan.

The Sara Lee frozen loaf pound cake is great to use for this if you aren't wanting to create a heart shape. 
 
Pound Cake
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon soda
1/2 cup sour cream

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flavorings, then add flour which has been sifted with salt alternately with sour cream. Reserve 2 tablespoons sour cream and blend in soda. Add to batter. Stir to blend. Pour into a greased and floured 6-inch springform pan or loaf pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes. Bake until center is firm. Don't over bake. 

German Chocolate and Red Velvet Cakes also make terrific Valentine cakes. Two or three layers is enough with either of these. They aren't quite heavy enough to make thin layers. Put a bit more frosting on each layer and you'll have extra impressive looking and very yummy sweet treats for your sweetheart or family. Hope your Valentine's week is lovely. 
 
This recipe is shared February 10-14, 2014 
on NewsTALK 94.3 FM, AM 570 WKYX, AM 1560 WPAD,
AM 1450 WDXR, and AM 1320 WNGO.
Ro's recipes are sponsored by Banks Market
on Lone Oak Road in Paducah, KY.
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