Just when the weather starts getting cold enough to bake, it's usually the time our kids start having classroom parties. Right now it's Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations. The most requested dessert for these parties are cake pops. Yes, they can be messy, but that's part of the fun!
What you'll need:
- Cookie sheet
- Lollipop sticks
- A baked and cooled cake
- A container of frosting
- Candy Melts
- Cake Pop Decorating and Drying Stand
- Cake Pop Display Stands
I love made-from-scratch cakes, but for this I use box cake mix. First, bake the cake as directed on the box. Once it's done, let it cool enough to be able to handle because you're going to dig in with your hands and crumble the whole thing in a large bowl.
Once it's crumbled and there are no large pieces, you add frosting a little at a time, starting with about 1/2 cup of frosting and mix with a spoon (otherwise the frosting will stick to your hands and will end up being the best edible hand treatment ever).
When the frosting and cake crumbles look pretty integrated, test out its "roll'ability" by taking some of the mix, about 1-2 tbsp (depending what size cake pops you want), and start rolling it into a ball. If it starts to fall apart, add more frosting. If you're able to form a nice round ball that keeps its shape, you're good to go! Roll out as many as you can. Place them on a cookie sheet and chill in the freezer for about 5 min. Take them out and they're ready for you to insert the sticks.
Now this is where I got in trouble the very first time I made these. I stuck my lollipop sticks right into the cake ball, which was a big no-no. Those sad pops just slid right down the sticks because there was nothing there to help keep them up. Here's what to do! Melt your candy melts as directed on package and dip the stick in the melted candy about 1/2 inch deep and THEN insert it into the cake ball. This creates a little seal to prevent the pops from sliding down. Freeze them for about 5 min. Take them out and dip each pop. You may have to reheat your dip to get it to the right consistency again.
You will need to place the pops somewhere to decorate them and allow them to dry after you dip them. I have tried cups - no good. The ops smacked into each other. I tried a styrofoam block - no good. You could only poke so many holes into styrofoam before it becomes completely useless. This handy, cake pop decorating and drying stand was perfect! It's reusable and makes decorating and drying the cake pops so much easier. I love it! Did I mention DIY cake pops are messy? Your board will end up drippy like this:
But it's OK because you are going to want to display your finished cake pops on these super cute cake pop stands! They come unfinished so you can paint them however you'd like! These are Christmas-themed, but there are other shapes available at JTWoodworks.
I've come a long way, but it will take more time and patience before I have Bakerella-type cake pop skills (she's awesome!). Regardless of what your pops look like (see my pic below), I promise your family will love and devour them! Plus, you will have fun painting and personalizing each cake pop stand with friends and family!
*Tip: If your dip is not melting properly, check out this tutorial on melting Candy Melts by the very talented Rosanna Pansino from Nerdy Nummies