Valentine cakes (Alla hjärtans bakelser) (2024)

These delightful little cakes consist of heart-shaped sponges, filled with raspberry jam along with some vanilla flavoured whipped cream, and wrapped in pink marzipan. They are perfect for Alla Hjärtans Dag (Valentine's Day) or any other day when heart-shaped pink cakes seem appropriate!

Valentine’s Day was only adopted in Sweden in the 1960s when flower sellers realised that they were missing out because Swedes were not celebrating it. However they are a canny bunch because they decided that they would be able to sell more flowers if they encouraged people to think of everyone close to their hearts on Valentine’s Day, not just their lover. Hence they decided to name February 14th as Alla Hjärtans Dag (literally, All Hearts’ Day).

Of course, baking something special for friends or family is a much nicer way of showing your love than buying a bunch of flowers, so a plate of alla hjärtans bakelser is bound to be appreciated. Naturally, you can keep one for your lover if you want!

The recipe below is a simplified version of a prinsesstårtarecipe, Sweden's most famous cake. Rather than being decorated with marzipan roses, easy-to-make marzipan hearts are used instead.

Do try the recipe - the cakes look so cute and they taste absolutely Swedelicious!John Duxbury

Summary

Tips

• Do NOT use heart-shaped cutters because the cake is too spongey. Instead, use a sharp knife to cut round a heart-shaped template, trying to avoid squashing the cake as you do so.

• If you have one, use a muffin tray with heart-shaped cups for a more professional appearance.

• If you prefer, use 300 grams (11 oz) of the mixture in a 18 cm (7 inch) baking tin to produce four Valentine Day cakes and use the rest of the mixture to make someprinsessbakelser (individual princess cakes), as shown above.
• If you have any cooked vanilla cream leftover from baking someprinsessbakelser, then use it in place of the whipped cream in step 7.

Ingredients

Fatless sponge cake

Filling and decoration

Method

1. Heat an oven to 200°C (400°F, gas 6, fan 180°C) and thoroughly grease and flour a 23 cm (9 inch) baking tin and line the base with greaseproof paper, also greased.

2.Beat the eggs and sugar until light and frothy, about 10 minutes using an electric beater. You can test that it’s done by lifting the beater out of your bowl – it should leave a trail in the mixture below. Don’t shorten this step because the bubbles will give you a nice light sponge.

3. Sift the flours and baking powder into a separate bowl. Gently fold the flour into your egg/sugar mixture, stir in the lemon zest and the hot water. Pour into the prepared tin and bake for about 18 minutes, until it feels firm and springy in the centre and the sponge has begun to shrink slightly away from the side of the tin.

4. Leave to cool in the tin for about 3 minutes, then sprinkle a sheet of greaseproof paper with a little caster sugar, turn the cake out on to it and then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

5. Using a sharp knife with a suitable template, cut out six heart-shaped cakes.

6.Whip the cream and vanilla sugar together until stiff.

7.Cut a cake in half and spread a little whipped cream around the edge of the cut surface and place some raspberry jam in the middle. (The cream round the edge of the cut surface is to stop the jam leaking and staining the marzipan cover.)Place the top back on the cake. Repeat for the remaining cakes.

8. Cover the sides of the cakes with a thin layer of whipped cream and pile a couple of tablespoons of whipped cream on the tops, shaping into domes. (The cream on the sides is only to help the marzipan stick to the cakes.) Chill the cakes whilst you prepare the marzipan, or overnight if you prefer.

9.Colour three-quarters of the marzipan a light pink shade, kneading it in until evenly coloured. (Take care when using the pink colouring—you only need a tiny amount.)

10.Take 30 grams (1 oz) of coloured marzipan and roll it out to create a circle big enough to cover a cake. (The marzipan needs to be rolled so that it is thin enough to be stretchy, but not so thin that it tears when fitting it over the cakes.) Smooth the top with the flat side of a knife. Repeat for the remaining cakes.

11.Roll out half the remaining uncoloured marzipan and cut out six heart shapes. Lightly brush one side with water and place, brushed-side down, on each cake.

12.Colour the remaining marzipan until it is a deep shade of pink, roll it out, cut out six small heart shapes, lightly brush one side with water and place, brushed-side down, on the top of the white hearts. Give all the cakes a light dusting of icing sugar. Store in a cool place or a fridge until ready to serve. Best eaten within 24 hours, but they will keep for a couple of days in a fridge.

Downloads

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