1-Cream butter and sugar: Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then mix in egg and vanilla.

2-Add dry ingredients: Gradually add flour and salt, mixing until a soft dough forms.

3-Separate the dough: Set aside about 1¾ cups plain dough at room temperature; keep it soft.

4-Color remaining dough: Tint the rest with pink or red food coloring, shape into a disk, wrap, and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

5-Roll and cut hearts: Roll pink dough ¼-inch thick, cut with a 2-inch heart cutter, rerolling scraps.

6-Stack and compress: Stack hearts and press gently to form a solid pink column.

7-Wrap with plain dough: Roll plain dough into strips, press around the stacked hearts to cover completely, then smooth the log and wrap tightly.

8-Chill the log: Refrigerate the wrapped log at least 4 hours or overnight until very firm.

9-Slice and bake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Slice log into ⅓-inch rounds, optionally roll edges in sprinkles, and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

10-Bake: Bake 10–11 minutes until edges are lightly golden, cool briefly on the sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.