Vanilla and red velvet layered together in a loving loaf of pound cake. (If you don't like the taste of red velvet cake, you can do an extra batch of vanilla and color it with food coloring or add in another extract flavor. I might do a cherry version next.)

Red Velvet Pound Cake Mix
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs
2 cups unbleached white flour
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1 ounce red food coloring
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp white vinegar

Vanilla Pound Cake Mix
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1 TB vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached white flour
1/2 tsp salt

9x5 (6 cup) loaf pan
extra butter/flour or cooking spray for preparing the pan
heart shaped cookie cutter

Step 1: Red Velvet Ingredients

1.Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and flour a 6 cup 9x5 loaf pan.

2.Cream the butter and sugar together. Whip the eggs in one at a time.

3. Add the sour cream, buttermilk, vinegar, and food coloring and mix well.

4. Add the flour, salt, and cocoa to the wet mixture and stir until blended. Transfer to the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out nearly clean. You don't need to bake this to complete doneness yet!

5. Allow the pan to cool enough to place in the refrigerator and chill for an hour.

Step 2: Vanilla Cake Ingredients

1.Whisk the flour and salt together in a large bowl.

2.In a separate bowl, beat butter and sugar until fluffy just like the previous cake. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla.

Step 3: Cutting the Heart of the Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the chilled red velvet cake from the fridge and carefully remove from the pan. Wash and prepare the same pan or prepare a separate 9x5 loaf pan.

2. Pour a very small amount of the vanilla cake batter into the bottom of the pan, just enough to coat the bottom.

3.Cut the chilled red velvet cake into 1/2 inch thick slices and use a cookie cutter to cut out heart shapes from the slices. Place the cutout pieces upside down so they don't tip over. The more evenly you cut the slices, the better the heart effect will look through out the cake.

4. Pour the remaining vanilla cake batter, leaving a little room on top. You may have some batter left over, so you can bake a few small muffins if you like , slice them and combine them with the scraps of the red velvet cutouts to make a simple trifle with some vanilla or chocolate pudding. Add some whipped cream if you want as well!

5. Bake for 30 minutes to 1 hour, checking frequently for doneness (a clean toothpick) around the edges. Cool and carefully remove from the pan.