Mom's Birthday Mocha Biscoff Cake

I made this back in August for my mom's birthday. It was a half-day long endeavor, but I was happy with the end result! It's a little hard after refrigerating it, probably because of all the butter (hahaha...) but once you let it thaw it tastes great! I used Sprinkebake's recipe, posted below. Next time I'll probably cut down some on the sugar.

RECIPE credits to 
http://www.sprinklebakes.com/2013/02/espresso-biscoff-heart-cake.html 
modified slightly, I used butter instead of shortening
Espresso cake
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup hot water
2 tablespoons espresso powder
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup low-fat buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment circles. Grease paper, set aside.
2. Sift flour, baking soda and salt onto a large piece of parchment or wax paper.  Set aside. Combine water and espresso powder. Let cool slightly.
3. Whisk together the granulated sugar and brown sugar in a small bowl. Place 1/4 cup of this mixture along with the white vegetable shortening in the bowl of a stand mixer.  Mix until well incorporated. Add the rest of the sugar 1/4 cup at a time, beating well with each addition. Add the espresso mixture; blend well. Add eggs one at a time, and then the vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour.  Divide batter between the two pans and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cakes cool for 5 minutes in the pans then turn out onto wire racks for further cooling.  Peel off wax paper and discard.
4. For the heart template: Trace the bottom of a cake pan on wax paper, cut out the 9" circle. Fold it in half and cut into a heart shape.  Lay the paper heart on the cake and trim it down if it doesn't comfortably fit inside the cake's circumference.  Stack cooled cakes and place template on top; make strait cuts around the template with a serrated knife using a sawing motion until the heart shape is achieved. 
5. Reserve cake scraps for breakfast, if desired. 

Biscoff filling
1 cup Biscoff spread or other cookie butter spread (I found mine at Trader Joe's!) 
2 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 tbsp. heavy cream or milk

1. Place all ingredients except heavy cream or milk into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.  Beat until well incorporated.  If mixture is dry add milk or heavy cream 1 tbsp at a time until a smooth consistency is achieved.  Mixture should be thick but spreadable.

Mocha-Biscoff buttercream
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups confectioners sugar
1/4 cup Biscoff spread or other cookie butter spread
1/2 tbsp. espresso powder
2 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

1. Combine softened butter, Biscoff and confectioners sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat until well combined. Add espresso powder and cocoa powder.  Mix again; scrape down sides of bowl and beat at high speed until light and fluffy.  
2. Transfer half of the frosting to a piping bag fitted with a plain 1/2-inch tip. Pipe lines diagonally lines across the top of the cake (see picture for heart cake instructions) allowing the icing to overhang the edges. Smooth piped edges down onto the edge of the cake with a metal spatula. Frost sides of cake with remaining frosting.