'Cause I
will use it! Justin is on nights right now in the ER. I get bored in the evenings at home alone, plus I don't have to work today....so I was super bored last night. I was lurking around on
www.bakerella.com and decided I needed to perfect my cake pop skills. I mean, Justin will need a treat to take to work tomorrow night, right? Yeah, definitely, I should bake something... :) It's not hard to convince me to bake!!! There were 3 cake mixes in my pantry (a very dangerous thing) along with a can of icing left over from making cake balls a few weeks ago. I also had a random bag of yellow candy melts and an assortment of pretty sprinkles. AAAAnnnd, I just
happened to have some lollipop sticks and treat bags handy. Whadayaknow...all the ingredients for cake pops!
My first attempt at cake pops was disastrous! Think globs of cake falling off sticks into melted chocolate...not pretty! But I have been determined to figure this out and make some adorable cake pops that even Bakerella would be proud of!!
This time, I got it right! I think the secret is the consistency of the cake ball...I had too much icing last time.
Cake Pops!!
These little cuties are pretty labor-intensive...but I think they are worth it! The middle tastes like cake batter, but it is fully-cooked cake with the icing already mixed in. The candy shell is just colored white chocolate ("Candy Melts"). Yum, yum, and yum! They are cute on the stick or off. Next time I will attempt the
Cupcake pops! So very adorable!!
So, you wanna know how to make 'em?
Here you go:
You will need:
1 prepared cake mix, any flavor you like. (bake in any pan you like, it doesn't matter because it will get crumbled)
1 can store bought icing (this time, the cream cheese variety worked well...)
Preferably, a stand mixer
a small cookie scoop
your clean hands
a parchment-lined cookie sheet
your fridge
lollipop sticks (or not)
Candy Melts in your favorite color
Sprinkles
a few styrofoam blocks
plastic treat bags and ribbon (again, or not if you don't do the stick thing)
Cut your cooled cake into chunks and try to remove all the brown edges and any crust on the top. Place cake in your mixer's bowl. Use the paddle attachment on medium speed to crumble the cake as finely as you can. Once crumbled, add some icing (a little at a time) until you get a consistency like cookie dough. It will pull away from the bowl and the crumbs will not be visible. You should have a uniform mixture.
Use the cookie scoop to evenly portion your balls. Roll dough into balls in your hands and place them on your prepared cookie sheet. Chill them in the fridge for 15 min or so. (if they are too cold the chocolate will crack)
Melt 4-5 candy melts in a little bowl. Take your balls out of the fridge. Dip the end of a lollipop stick in the chocolate (1/2 in. deep) and stick it into a ball, no more than halfway. Put the pop back on the cookie sheet. Repeat with all the balls and chill them again for a few minutes to set the chocolate. Meanwhile, melt the rest of your candy melts in a deep bowl (you will need enough depth to stick the pops straight down in the chocolate.)
Dip each pop straight down and pull straight out. Use an offset spatula to tap the stick. (this helps the excess fall off smoothly) Decorate however you like with sprinkles, etc before the chocolate sets. Stick the pop in a styrofoam block to dry. Wrap each one in a bag and tie with a bow. If you don't do sticks, they look cute sitting in a mini cupcake wrapper. Whew! that was fun!
I was up until 2 AM with these, but it was fun to finally get them right! And, Justin enjoyed them when he got home!
