Cookbooks
Never Say Never to Dolce
A brand-new collection of 50 approachable homemade desserts – from iconic Cannoli to Dolci al Cucchiaio and more – that proves there’s always room for a little sweetness.
Manuela’s Sweet Temptations
A collection of 50 irresistible dessert recipes, from classic Italian treats to modern favorites—including gluten-free options.
The Complete Italian Cookbook: Essential Regional Cooking of Italy
A collection of 50 irresistible dessert recipes, from classic Italian treats to modern favorites—including gluten-free options.
How to Make a Poundcake with a Chocolate Heart Inside
It looks like the usual, plain vanilla pound cake from the outside. But when you take your knife and cut that first slice …
Ta daa! A chocolate heart appears right in the middle of that slice of perfectly dense and moist pound cake.
Just like magic!
This is such a fun and cute idea to surprise your special someone, your children or friends this Valentine’s Day.
Just think how nice and romantic it would be to wake up to the enticing smell of espresso and freshly baked, vanilla-chocolate cake!
I made this sweet loaf using vanilla Greek yogurt. You are welcome to use any flavor of Greek yogurt you like, to add a little different aroma.
Or you can drizzle the top of the pound cake with melted chocolate or a splash of whipped cream.
Or serve next to your favorite jam or fresh fruit. Lots of options!
Now let’s see how this flawless looking heart made it inside my cake.
I simply made the poundcake batter, added cocoa powder to some of it (about 1 and half cups of batter), poured the chocolate batter into a 9 inch round pan and baked.
I only baked it for about 12 minutes, until set enough to cut into shape but still quite soft and not fully baked – or it would turn out too dry at the end!
Let cool for a few minutes and cut as many heart shapes as you can. You will need somewhere between 9 and 12 hearts depending on their thickness.
Pipe or spoon some of the vanilla batter along the long sides of the pound cake pan. You want to leave space in the middle of the pan for the chocolate hearts. The vanilla sides are needed to hold up the hearts in place.
Line up the hearts in the middle of the pan. You should have enough hearts to fill exactly the whole length of the pan.
Cover the top of the chocolate hearts with the remaining vanilla batter and bake! Don’t worry if the sides of the chocolate hearts are not completely covered in vanilla. The sides will fill up when it bakes.
Now, are you ready to win her heart by showing your sweetheart how much you care, and impress her with your culinary skills?!? You will see from my step-by-step recipe, that you don’t need to be an expert baker to pull this off… You are welcome 🙂
Other Valentine’s Day recipes you might like:
How to Make a Poundcake with a Chocolate Heart Inside
Servings:
8
Prep Time
20 min
Cook Time
60 min
Resting Time
Total Time
1 hr, 20 min
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup (200 gr) sugar
- 12 oz ( 340 gr) plain Greek yogurt
- 1/3 cup (80 ml) vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups (375 gr) all-purpose flour
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 cup (20 gr) unsweetened cocoa powder
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º F (175º C).
- Line with parchment paper or grease with butter and flour a 9 x 5 in (23 x 12.5 cm) loaf pan and a 9 in (23 cm) round pan.
- In a large bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar until light and foamy.
- Add the yogurt, oil and vanilla extract. Beat well.
- Sift the flour, salt and baking powder into the bowl. Beat at low speed, or mix with a whisk until just combined. Don’t over mix.
- Move about 1 and a half cups of the batter to a new bowl. Add the cocoa powder and mix until combined. Don’t over mix. Pour onto the round pan, and level with a spoon. Bake for about 12 minutes. The chocolate cake won’t be fully cooked, especially in the middle, but we want to keep it moist and soft. It will go back in the oven.
- Let the chocolate cake cool off for 5 minutes, remove from the pan and cut the the cake with a heart-shaped cookie cutter. Mine is 2.25 in (6 cm) in length, and I was able to cut 12 hearts. Make sure to get the most amount of hearts out of the cake. So plan carefully!
- Spoon or pipe some of the vanilla batter into the long sides of the pound cake pan. You want to leave space in the middle of the pan for the chocolate hearts. The vanilla sides are needed to hold up the hearts. Stack three or four hearts at a time, on top of each other, and place in the middle of the pan. You should have enough hearts to fill exactly the whole length of the pan.
- Cover the top of the hearts with the remaining vanilla batter. Don’t worry if the sides are not fully covered. They will fill up when the cake cooks in the oven.
- Bake for about 40 to 45 minutes in the middle of the oven, until golden on top and fully cooked. Test with a toothpick for readiness. Wait for the loaf to cool a couple of minutes before removing from the pan and slicing. Enjoy!
