WHAT'S in your Valentine's MENU?

Hidden Love Cake..

Slice into this delicious loaf cake and reveal the secret heart design running through the middle - a
really romantic bake!

Prep. Time: 10 mins.
Cook Time: 2 hrs. 20 mins.
Servings: 1 cake loaf


Ingredients:
For the cake

2 x 175g unsalted butter, softened
2 x 175g golden caster sugar
6 large eggs
2 x 140g self-raising flour, sifted
2 x 1/2 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp cocoa powder
2 x 85g ground almond
2 x 100 ml milk
3 tsp vanilla extract
28 ml bottle red food colourings or 1/2 tsp red food colouring gel

For the icing:

    100 ml double cream
    200 g dark chocolate, finely chopped
    50 g unsalted butter
    pink sprinkles (optional)

Directions:

Step 1:
Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Grease a 900g loaf tin and line with a long strip of baking parchment. Cream 175g butter and 175g sugar until light and fluffy. Beat 3 of the eggs and pour in, a little at a time, mixing after each addition. Sift together 140 g flour, 1⁄2 tsp baking powder and the cocoa, then fold into the butter mixture along with the almonds. Combine 100ml milk, 11⁄2 tsp vanilla and all the food coloring and add to the batter, then mix until evenly coloured.

Step 2:
Pour into the prepared loaf tin and bake for 1 hr 10 mins until a skewer comes out clean. Cool for 10 mins in the tin, then transfer to a wire rack. When cool, cut the cake into 4cm slices. Using a 5cm cutter, stamp out the hearts (save any remaining cake for another treat).

Repeat step 1 to make a second cake mixture -- you won't have cocoa or food colour in this batch. Pour 3⁄4 of the mixture into the prepared loaf tin. Push the bottoms of the hearts into the batter in a tightly packed row. Spoon over the remaining cake mixture, covering as much of the hearts as possible. bake for 1 hr or until a skewer comes out clean. Cool for 10 mins in the tin, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the icing, gently heat all the ingredients over a low heat until combined. Leave to cool, then chill until needed. Spread over the cooled cake and decorate with the sprinkles, if using. Will keep for 3 days stored in a cake tin.