Valentine's Day Cakelettes Recipe

Bake the cake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. You'll know it's done when the center springs back lightly to the touch, or a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Let the cake cool on a rack for 10 minutes in the pan. Then, carefully release the cake onto the rack and peel off the parchment. *Do not invert the cake* — the side that was the bottom will become the top. Let it cool completely.

Once cool, use a heart-shaped cookie cutter (about 2-inches at its widest point) to cut out individual cake portions.

Arrange the cut cake hearts on a rack placed over a large cookie sheet or jelly roll pan. This setup will catch any excess ganache.

To prepare the ganache, gently heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan until it just begins to simmer.

Let the ganache mixture sit undisturbed for 2 minutes. Then, using a wire whisk, beat it until it's completely smooth and glossy.

Using a small ladle or a very large spoon, carefully coat each cake heart with the ganache. Any ganache that drips into the pan below can be scraped up, gently reheated if needed, and used for additional glazing.

Allow the ganache to set completely. This will take approximately 4 hours, so factor that into your timing.

Once the ganache is firm, melt the white chocolate and shortening together, stirring until the mixture is completely smooth. Transfer the melted white chocolate to a plastic sandwich bag (snip a tiny corner) or a squeeze bottle. Pipe thin lines diagonally across each heart.