Red Betty Boop Heart Cake (Printable Version)

Soft red layers with tangy cream cheese frosting topped with a playful dark chocolate silhouette for striking visual contrast.

# What You'll Need:

→ For the Cake

01 - 2 ½ cups cake flour, sifted
02 - 2 tablespoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder
03 - 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
04 - ½ teaspoon baking soda
05 - ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
06 - 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
07 - 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
08 - 4 large eggs, room temperature
09 - 1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
10 - 2 tablespoons red gel food coloring
11 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
12 - 2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar

→ For the Cream Cheese Frosting

13 - 1 cup cream cheese, room temperature
14 - ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
15 - 4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
16 - 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
17 - Pinch of salt

→ For the Betty Boop Silhouette Decoration

18 - 6 ounces dark chocolate or candy melts, melted
19 - Parchment paper
20 - Betty Boop heart-shaped stencil

# Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two 9-inch heart-shaped cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together cake flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt. Set aside.
03 - In a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter on medium speed for 1 minute until creamy. Gradually add sugar and continue beating for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.
04 - Add eggs one at a time, beating on low speed after each addition just until blended. Scrape down bowl sides as needed.
05 - Stir in red gel food coloring, vanilla extract, and white vinegar until batter is evenly colored.
06 - With mixer on low, add one-third of dry ingredients, then half of buttermilk, mixing just until incorporated. Repeat with another third of dry ingredients, remaining buttermilk, and finish with final third of dry ingredients. Do not overmix.
07 - In a small cup, combine 1 teaspoon vinegar with baking soda, then gently fold into batter. The mixture will foam slightly, creating a light crumb.
08 - Divide batter evenly between prepared pans, smoothing tops with offset spatula. Bake on center rack for 25-30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
09 - Let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes. Run thin knife around edges, then invert onto wire racks and remove parchment. Cool completely before frosting.
10 - In clean mixer bowl, beat cream cheese and butter on medium speed for 2 minutes until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar and salt, then vanilla extract, beating on low until combined and fluffy. Transfer to piping bag or keep covered in fridge until ready.
11 - Level cake domes with serrated knife if desired. Place one heart cake layer on cake board or plate. Pipe or spread even layer of frosting (approximately ¾ cup) over top. Top with second cake layer, press gently, and refrigerate for 15 minutes to set crumb coat.
12 - Apply thin crumb coat of frosting over entire cake. Chill for another 10 minutes, then add final smooth layer of frosting. Use offset spatula to create swirls or leave smooth as desired.
13 - Place printed stencil under sheet of parchment. Pipe or brush melted dark chocolate over outline on parchment. Allow chocolate silhouette to fully set at room temperature or in refrigerator for 10 minutes.
14 - Carefully peel chocolate silhouette from parchment and lift onto center of cake. Press gently so it adheres to frosting.
15 - Decorate cake edges with additional frosting rosettes, edible glitter, or red sugar pearls. Chill cake for 30 minutes before serving to let frosting set. Slice with warm, clean knife for neat hearts.

# Additional Tips::

01 -
  • The contrast between the moist red cake and that snap of dark chocolate decoration creates this incredible textural experience that makes everyone pause mid-bite.
  • The buttermilk in the batter gives this subtle tang that balances the sweetness perfectly, something I discovered completely by accident when I ran out of regular milk one desperate baking afternoon.
02 -
  • If your cream cheese frosting becomes too soft while working, pop it in the refrigerator for 10 minutes rather than adding more sugar, a mistake that once left me with tooth-achingly sweet frosting.
  • Creating the chocolate silhouette directly on parchment paper rather than wax paper makes it infinitely easier to remove without breaking, a lesson I learned after three shattered Betty Boops.
03 -
  • Trace the Betty Boop silhouette with a toothpick first before applying chocolate, creating subtle guide lines that help you maintain those iconic curves and proportions.
  • Instead of struggling with food coloring ratios, a tablespoon of beetroot powder mixed with the traditional red coloring gives the cake a deeper, more natural burgundy undertone while adding no discernible flavor.
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