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Here’s how to make a vintage heart cake, without a heart-shaped pan!

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I’m Obsessed With This Design

I have to be honest; I never saw this coming! These vintage heart cakes are ALL the rage right now! I’ve been decorating cakes long enough to remember these piping techniques as some of the very first things I learned. So when this trend came bouncing back I actually had to re-learn how to pipe these and didn’t even own a heart-shaped pan! So I created these templates and use them for all of my heart cakes.

I’ve made many of these cakes for my clients for every type of event you can think of! Weddings, birthdays, gender reveals, Valentine’s Day, and even Mother’s Day!

This has become one of my absolute favorite go-to designs and I’m excited to share my tips with you! Enjoy!

For the cake:

For this cake, I made a Funfetti cake (made with a doctored cake mix) that is truly so delicious! Many bakers choose doctored cake mix, in bakeries and home-bakes for the flawless results this recipe gives them every time. It starts with a box mix, and then we add a few ingredients to it for the best taste and texture. Doctored cake mixes are celebrated and used by bakers all around, so if you’re a beginner baker; this option is perfect for you! (All ingredients, quantities, and instructions are in the printable recipe at the bottom of this page!)

I used this adorable Pillsbury Funfetti version which is only available in stores from January-February, BUT you can still find it on Amazon, or you can use any cake box mix you’d like!

Blush Pink Vintage Heart Cake

For the buttercream!

I used my classic Vanilla Buttercream for this cake! Vanilla buttercream is super easy to make. (All ingredients, quantities, and instructions are in the printable recipe at the bottom of this page!)

Let’s Get to the Fun Part!

For the filling!

I used homemade raspberry jam to fill this cake. You can also use store-bought jam or any other filling you’d like! My favorite go-to recipe for a raspberry jam filling is this one from Sally’s Baking Addiction.

The bow candle though!

Okay, but we need a moment for this adorable gold birthday candle and bow because bows are everywhere right now and my girly little self is not mad about it! I use these candles on a lot of cakes and for this one, I wanted to add a little extra-ness to it so I used chiffon ribbon to tie the bow myself! 😍

Bake, cool, and level your cakes

Cakes shrink as they bake so I would suggest using cake pans at least one inch bigger than your heart size. I am making a 5″ heart so I used 6″ cake pans, and made three layers.

My favorite tool for leveling cakes is this one by Agbay, but Wilton also makes a great beginner cake leveler. You can also just use a good ole’ fashion serrated knife to level your cakes! 🙂

Cut out your cakes using the template.

Cut out your heart template and use as a guide to cut your cakes. We have included a free template in three different sizes.

I would suggest making sure your cakes are very cold at this stage to reduce any risk of breakage!

Fill and stack your cake.

Start by adding a dab of icing to your cake board under your cake to hold it in place.

I am piping a border around the outside of my layer to contain the fruit filling and prevent the cake from sliding around.

If you’re just using a buttercream filling, you don’t have to pipe a border between your layers.

    Flip the top layer upside down and begin crumb-coating your cake.

    A “crumb-coat” is the first layer of icing we apply to hold the cake together and prevent crumbs in our final, smooth, layer of icing. This stage of icing doesn’t have to be super neat and can be done in un-colored icing, as no one will see it.

    Start by adding a large blob of icing on top of your cake, and then using an offset spatula, carefully spread icing around the the sides of the cake.

      Smooth out your crumb coat, and refrigerate.

      Smooth out your crumb coat as much as you can. For cakes that aren’t round, I usually start with a metal cake scraper and then finish off with a flexible scraper like the one pictured below. These scrapers from Innovative Sugarworks are my favorite! They make it super easy to get between the grooves of the cake shape.

      After you’re finished smoothing, you’ll want to refrigerate the cake for about 20-30 minutes before moving on to the next stage.

        The Final Coat & SMOOTH, SMOOTH, SMOOTH!

        • Quick Tip: The secret to a good dusty pink color, is adding a tiny bit of black.

        Start by adding a tiny bit of red to your icing until you get pink. Next use a toothpick and add in the TINIEST bit of black to achieve a dusty pink color. Be careful adding the black. You can take your icing from pink, to purple, or grey very quickly if you put too much.

        Start by adding icing to the top of the cake and then all around the sides. Next, smooth out the icing. This step takes a bit of work to get it smooth. I usually start with the metal scraper and finish with the flexible scraper.

        I like to build up an icing edge around the top of the cake. In the next step, I’ll show you how I use this to create sharp, crisp edges.

        Once you’re done with the final coat. You’ll want to refrigerate the cake for at least 30 minutes to let it set. You’ll know it’s ready when you touch the cake, it feels firm, and no icing comes off on your finger!

          Cut off the edges.

          Using a sharp knife, carefuly cutt off the edges on the top of the cake. This will give you that sharp edge.

          Time to Decorate!

          Pipe a larger shell border around the bottom, and top of the cake using a larger star tip.

          To pipe a shell border, hold the piping bag so that the tip is slightly above the surface. Squeeze the bag and let the icing fan out. This will naturally force the piping tip and bag upward. Gradually release the pressure as you lower the piping top and pull the bag toward you. Stop squeezing and then pull the tip along the surface to make a point. Start your next shell at the very tail of each shell to form a border.

          • Quick Tip: The key to a good border is using consistent pressure the whole way around. I would suggest practicing on a cutting board before trying on your cake.

            Let’s Get Ready to RUFFLE!!

            There was just no resisting that pun!

            OKAY, so the piping tip I used for the ruffles makes it SUPER easy to pipe a gorgeous ruffle. I would suggest making sure your buttercream doesn’t have any clumps before using this specific tip, or else it will clog the piping tip and your ruffles won’t pipe correctly. I learned this the hard way. 🙂

            Before piping, I usually go around the cake with a toothpick and mark where I want each ruffle to start and end.

            To pipe the ruffle, start with your piping tip touching the cake, and slowly wiggle the piping bag back and forth creating a half circle and touching back at the top to end. I would also suggest practicing this on a plate or cutting board beforehand. You can always scrape off and reuse any icing you practice with!

            The Details

            Next, using a smaller star piping tip, create a smaller shell border around the bottom and top edge of the cake using the same piping method we did for the larger shell border.

            We Extra

            This next part is entirely optional but I’m a little extra with my cakes so I decided to add some extra decorative piping gold sprinkles around the cake.

            You can do this by using the small shell piping tip. Start by creating one shell in the middle and pulling the piping tip away. Then create one shell to the left, and finally one to the right. This method may take a bit of practice as well.

            Here’s a video of the process:

            Blush Pink Vintage Heart Cake

            Vintage Heart Cake

            Soft Funfetti cake layers, filled with homemade raspberry jam, topped with classic vanilla buttercream, pipe to perfection!
            Print Recipe Pin Recipe

            Ingredients
              

            FUNFETTI CAKE

            • 1 cup full fat milk room temperature
            • 4 large egg whites room temperature
            • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
            • 1 tbsp vanilla
            • 1 box Funfetti Cake Mix I used Pillsbury

            VANILLA BUTTERCREAM

            • 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter room temperature
            • 3 1/2 cups powder sugar I prefer Domino brand for decorating
            • 1/4 cup heavy cream
            • 1 tsp meringue powder *optional – adds stability for decorating
            • 1/4 tsp table salt
            • 1 tbsp clear vanilla extract using clear extract keeps your buttercream from being discolored

            Instructions
             

            FOR THE FUNFETTI CAKE

            • Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prep your cake pans with cake release spray. Set aside.
            • In a large bowl, whisk together all ingredients except for cake mix. Sift in the cake mix and mix together until combined. Spread into the prepared baking pans and bake for 15-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely before removing from pans.

            FOR THE BUTTERCREAM

            • In the bowl of a stand mixer, whip up the butter until it's light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
            • In a separate small bowl, add heavy cream, salt, vanilla, and meringue powder and whisk together.
            • Once the butter is whipped, add in all powdered sugar. With the mixer on low, slowly drizzle in the heavy cream mixture. Keep mixer set on low until powdered sugar is incorporated. Once incorporated, slowly increase the mixer speed to medium and let buttercream whip for about 4-5 minutes.

            Notes

            • I would suggest doubling this buttercream recipe. Decorating cakes with buttercream uses a lot more buttercream than you might expect! I always make a double batch of buttercream. 
            • If you have leftover buttercream you can use it to practice or store it for later! In an airtight container, you can store it in the fridge for up to two weeks, and in the freezer for up to three months! 

            Here’s a list of all the products I used to make this cake!