Cake balls, cake pops, cakesicles — have you tried them? They swept the internet like a tidal wave over the last few years, thanks in part to the delightful and amazing creations of Bakerella and other creative cooks. We finally decided to try them, and while ours don't achieve the heights of more talented confectionery artists, they tasted pretty darn good!
Cake pops are basically little smushed balls of cake and frosting (kind of like when you used to smash your birthday cake all in pieces, maybe with ice cream, and eat it as goop). You bake up a cake, let it cool, tear it into fine crumbs, stir in something to hold it all together, and roll it in balls. Easy!
They're terribly cute, and they're also a great way to use up leftover cake. I had quite a bit of leftover cake and frosting from my recent foray into LEGO cake building, so cake balls seemed a natural way to use them all up.
These are incredibly delicious, over the top little morsels. The chocolate shell gives way with a little snap to a moist and soft inside, like a brownie that melts in your mouth. They're not as rich as chocolate truffles, but they are still quite sweet. Special occasion treats only, but oh how people love them!
Here's how to do it yourself, and do it from scratch, too. Most recipes call for a boxed cake mix and canned frosting, but why not go with homemade, as long as you're going to all the trouble of making cute little balls already?
Cake Ball Mix
What you need
1 batch Dark Chocolate Cake
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups confectioner's sugar
4 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon milk (or more, as necessary)
Bake the cake and let it cool completely on a rack. This is a very moist cake, which is ideal for this recipe. It's best to let it cool overnight at least. When it is completely cool, break the cake into a large bowl. Crumble it with forks or your fingers until it is in fine crumbs.
In a separate bowl, whip the cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and milk together until smooth. Pour into the cake crumbs and mix with a spoon. Then continue mixing with your fingers, kneading and mixing until fully incorporated into the cake. Check to see if it will roll into a ball. It should: this makes a very malleable, easy-to-handle cake mixture. But if it needs a little extra moisture, add milk a spoonful at a time.
When the mix is completely done, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm. You can leave the mix refrigerated for several days at this point. I left mine in the fridge for about three days before making the balls. You could probably also freeze this.
Making Cake Pops
What you need
Lollipop sticks (found at Michael's, JoAnn's, or other craft stores)
12 ounces chocolate chips
12 ounces white chocolate bark
Edible wax, optional
Colored sugars, candies, and other decorative sprinkles
How to make the balls
Prepare two large baking sheets by covering with wax paper or parchment. Take a bit of the cake mixture and roll it into a smooth ball. If you want to use the lollipop sticks, stick one into the end of each ball, pointing upward, as you put the ball back down on the sheet. [Note: I cut the long lollipop sticks in half; they seemed a little long for the size of the balls.] Repeat until you've used up all the mixture. As each sheet fills up, put it in the freezer so that the balls harden.
How to decorate the cake pops
Melt chocolate or white chocolate in a double boiler on the stove. If you want to make the coating a little more resistant to melting, add a small square of wax to the pot and let it melt too. Stir well. Dip each ball into the chocolate until covered.
Dip in sugar, coconut, sprinkles, or anything else you'd like to decorate with. Put it back on the sheet to harden.
Don't refrigerate these; it will cause the coating to weep or melt. They can be frozen, however.
With thanks to:
• The Pioneer Woman: Cake Balls Halloween Style
• Cake Pops at Bakerella
Related:
• Recipe Recommendation: Oreo Truffles
• How To Make an Oreo Cake
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Article originally posted March 11, 2009.
(Images: Faith Durand)
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yes, i did make cake balls, after seeing them on Bakerella (and mentioned here at the Kitchn)...they were a big hit!</a href>
Yeah, Bakerella and the Pioneer Women are posting something on this very topic this week...
who has "leftover cake?"
Yup, and they were fabulous! Made strawberry and a vanilla.
Fun! My friend Jill O'Connor had cheesecake pops in her last book. They were amazingly yummy!
http://danamccauley.wordpress.com/2008/04/27/daring-bakers-challenge-cheesecake-lollies/
OH! I MUST make these for the office Hens - they will hate me all the more :)
This is so timely- I literally just got back from Michaels where I bought most of my supplies to make these for a birthday party next weekend! (I can't wait for the PW/Bakerella post.)
"who has "leftover cake?""
Seriously. What leftover cake?
I love to cook, but there is a point at which something is too much work for the additional payoff. I will just eat the cake.
oh dear lord these are cute. Saved for my daughter's 2nd birthday party. I am sure they are going to be a huge hit!
i've been dying to make these with rum cake and a rum nut glaze. DYING!
but now, with st. patty's day nearing, i'm thinking guinness cake and bailey's frosting!!
if it actually happens i'll post results here: http://www.oureats.tumblr.com
I just discovered these on Bakerella's blog and my daughter fell in love with the hello Kitty version. This will definitely be an idea we use at her next birthday party.
Does anyone know how long they will keep in the freezer?
These are wonderful! I linked to these pops today for my "sweet stuff on sticks" post for my edible crafts column at craftgossip.com. (Post at ediblecrafts.craftgossip.com)
thanks for the tutorial! Meaghan
Yummmm...I loved seeing the step by step tutorial. Thank you!
These are very similar to another recipe I have that uses crushed Oreos instead of the smushed cake. And let me tell you - those are sinful. Can't wait to try it with cake!
Like the others, I have made them often since seeing them on Bakerella. Once I made these, I began thinking of other ways to create pops...its fun! And, now when I level a cake, I don't feel wasteful because I have a use for the cut-off cake.
I use a styrofoam cake dummy to stick the pops in after dipping and that helps to keep a round ball.
Here's a crazy question:
does anyone think this would fly for a wedding? If they got dressed up a little, they could be pretty fun.
I'm trying to think of some fun and creative things for my own wedding reception that's coming up in August. It's going to be more of a cocktail affair with passed heavy apps rather than a sit down banquet. I think these would be pretty fun. I just wonder if other people might think I'm crazy though.
I think that would be a great idea for wedding favors!!
I also love the idea for cake pops at a wedding! They could actually be really easy to decorate, too, since you could do them all in white. White cake, white chocolate, and white modern dots piped all over.
Would make great wedding favors, too, if you wanted a more traditional cake.
how adorable!
http://browniepops.com/ makes something similar to these and they have a "wedding" version. I'm sure you could use this recipe and make your own "wedding" pops.
YUUUUUMMMMMM!!!!!!! I might have to add some rum, though.
Very very cute! I'll try making some myself next time! :D
Loved them! And used candy canes as sticks.
http://ladybakes.blogspot.com/2009/12/christmas-bake-off-part-four.html
Merry Christmas!
Only way these could kill me any faster: DEEP-FRIED.
(quick, somebody cover Paula Deen's ears)
The cake pops I had weren't technically pops, just... cake balls, which made them even easier to shove in my mouth. My coworker made about two hundred of them, left them in a gaily decorated pan on the front desk, and nearly slew us all-- nobody could stop eating them until they were gone.
These were great at Halloween (I made ghost ones too with chocolate cake and white outsides): http://bakeat350.blogspot.com/2008/09/something-differentpumpkin-spice-cake.html
Also, for the wedding idea, I think if you did something like these in the picture, but cake instead of marshmallows obviously, to color coordinate with your wedding, they would be simple and lovely: http://www.hostessblog.com/2009/09/diy-marshmallow-treat-pops/
I guess I'm the odd man out that thinks "enough with the cake balls already". They are cute but they don't sound appetizing to me.
For Valentine's the last two years, I've made red velvet cake pop 'kisses', complete with 'eat me' tag and aluminum foil wrapper. Stole the idea from here.
cake pops are always a good idea - but for some really creative examples check out these: http://www.kathyphantastic.com/tag/cakepops
OMG! these are sooooo good! thanks faith! i made these instead of a cake for my son and people that claimed didn't like chocolate couldn't keep their hands away from them. only thing is that the chocolate seemed a bit too thick so things got a bit messy when i tried to take some chocolate out. i might try the candy melts next time. yummy!
Had a birthday this month and converted most of a 1/4 sheet grocery cake into quickbon-bons using Dolci frutta hard chocolate shell.
Had a birthday this month and converted most of a 1/4 sheet grocery cake into quick bon-bons using Dolci frutta hard chocolate shell.
Is there a vegan cake recipe that would work for these?
Yeah, who has 'leftover cakes'?
Skip that and I'll just buy the plain cakes and turn it into these wonderful cake pops. Now, that'll be something interesting to consider for our upcoming office party...
I love these, except the outer coating. You really have to go will quality ingredients for the coating/ganache whatever you want to call it...
i'm in the minority, but i think cake balls/cake pops taste like pre-chewed cake. blech.
I guess I'm in the minority, as well. I can't stand these overly sweet concoctions, but then most things from Bakerella or the equally popular CakeSpy make my teeth hurt just looking at them. To each their own!
I couldn't bring myself to crumble a from-scratch cake. Maybe that's why so many people go with a mix.
I just made a ton of great cake ball pops that look like fish bowls! Yay! However they are now all broken. :( As the cake expanded after being frozen it broke the coating. Any ideas what I did wrong?
My son, daughter-in-law and I make these too. Check out our page www.lilbitekakes.com. We've gotten pretty creative with designs if I say so myself. Plus they are just darn cute and fun! : )
OMG!! these were so amazing and the family loved them :), now do these need to be kept in the fridge after making and how long do they last for?
Thank you
If anyone likes to learn by watching a demo, here's a cake pops how-to video from my kids' parties site.
Wow!! I can't wait to make these! My graduation is coming up and these would be a perfect treat for my bbq!
What synchronicity! I just saw them for the first time at my local Starbuck's yesterday (apparently I missed the cakeball internet tsunami) and was dying to know how to make them. Thanks AT!
I had never heard of this idea until now and they sound like a lot of work but fun for kids parties or finger foods events where carrying forks and plates would be a hassel. To the lady that asked about the coating on hers... Maybe you could store them undipped in the freezer and then dip them before serving? That way at least if they swell it won't matter.
Lovely and not as big as a calorie commitment as a cupcake or piece of cake. I'm thinking perfect for office birthday parties as everyone can partake, even the WWers. Or as someone else mentioned for an occassion where you are serving finger food, the perfect finger dessert.
Laughing at all the leftover cake skeptics.
Yummy + Wonderful.. Awesome stuff
yea the pops are easy to make but whatever you do dont use the bark its is absoutly rediculus 2 use a and does not work it melts in to a liquid I will be making them again just with a completely different chocolate
made some for my son's birthday....major hit!
o.k. I, too, am in the minority. This also reminds me of pre-chewed cake -ugh. Just give me a nice slice of cake.
blech. this looks very unappetizing to me. why would you do such a thing to beautiful cake? may as well save the effort and use boxed cake mix. sorry to be snotty - but this gets a thumbs down from me.
A friend made these with donut holes recently. Faster, less frosting, and equally delicious.
This is amazing, thank you for the instructions! I remember seeing these at Starbucks and thinking that this must be fun to bake at home. Two thumbs up for taking initiative :D :D
Everybody loves cake! ^_^
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcxqdUZqt1s
My granddaughter made some that were so good... with jello and I guess cake mix... the jello sets and keep it from crumbling... I ate both she gave me for my last birthday... the reason so few? I am on a diet... and it was my only birthday cake of the year! yummy..
It is so nice to see how popular cake pops have become!
If you want the best cake pops period I would highly recommend checking out Cake Pop Creations for their Cake Pops and Creations!
Can someone please tell me how long these last at room temperature?
It all depends Kristi. The general rule of thumb is that frosted cake has a 2-10 day life span at room temperature. Because the cake is air tightly wrapped in chocolate leaning towards 10 days is not out of the question. However, I would still recommend refrigerating your pops as this will ensure at least 10 days of freshness. (Many will say do not refrigerate as this will cause cracking and sweating - I still would say its better to be safe than sorry)
How many pops does this recipe make?
Pretzel sticks make an awesome, edible handle and add a salty complement - especially good with chocolate combos.
I didn't like the idea of putting almost a one to one ratio of cake to frosting covered in chocolate in me so i just bought bake pops the kit, can anyone tell me if they have it and if they like bake pops kit thx!
I will never eat one of these since I'm gluten intolerant, but I just don't get them - mushed up cake? Yuck. I'd much rather eat the actual cake - and so much more elegant. I find dessert trends sort of perplexing.
Dont think of cake pops as mushy cake as that is probably what is throwing off your taste buds. If you ever have had good cake pop its more of any ooey gooey texture like a brownie not mushy cake. Cake pops are not for everyone but there is no doubt that is is a favorite and it is here to stay.
I tried making them with donut holes and didn't like that AT ALL. Just tastes like candy covered donut hole, ugh.
I also tried real cake pops (with the frosting mixed into the cake balls) and they were so delicious.
My favorite way to make them, though, is to make moist, whole wheat mini-muffins, smoosh them into balls, and dip those in the chocolate. My mini-muffins are very moist because I use bananas and applesauce. This is my favorite type of cake ball and much healthier (but still sweet and moist)
Honeyhaze, thats a really good idea, to make a very moist cake and roll that up instead of using frosting.
I love your idea Honeyhaze! I've been experimenting with Cake Pop Recipes on my blog and I love the idea of making them healthier and introducing some of these extra flavors. I'm desperate to try some Apple Crumble or Banoffee pops and using apple or banana to make a moist dough miht work really well!
I have made cake pops only once so far and they were a huge hit! I'm a purist and love that you encourage making the cake and the coating from scratch. I did when I made them and found the chocolate coating (bittersweet baking chips) to be a little too melty - so thanks for the recommendation to add the edible wax to help prevent this. I'm making some for a Harvest Festival in a couple of weeks and didn't want to have to buy the candy melts.
wow this really did work keep up the good work
I was shocked that eating wax is O.K.! Cool!
You can also use a pkg of Oreo type cookies. Crush them or use a food processor and mix in an 8 oz pkg of cream cheese. YUMMY!!!
OMG I tried this recipe and I love it
Just made them for the New Year's parties... little "Frosty" snowman with home made hats inspired by bakerella, along with more simple ones decorated with crusched candy canes, sparkling sugars and/or drizzled candy chocolate. They were a "hit" for all ages. Made them from scratch, the coating and decorations had enough colorant and chemical/modified products. Will definetly experiment and try new flavor combos and designs...
I'm too lazy to do the cake thing so I use plain Tim bits (doughnut holes) dipped in chocolate :P
Red Beard,
I gave out lemon, pina colada, and red velvet cake balls from The Cake Ball Company at my wedding two years ago, and they were a hit. They were meant to serve as both favors (they were already boxed) and a cake replacement for guests (we had just a small cake for the cake-cutting photo op). http://www.blissyfit.com/2010/10/cake-balls-wedding-favors/
These DO sound tasty! I got my cake pop molds from cakepopmolds.info or www <dot> cakpopmolds <dot> info
It was a fun little cooking activity for my family and they are hard to mess up! :)
The idea that these were rolled and smushed around in someone's hand until congealed into a ball makes them unappealing. Yuck.
Really Cute Visually!
But, you know... I'm thinking this is a bit much and doesn't sound very appetizing. Reconstituting baked cake that's smushed together just... I dunno. What I will try is:
* Baking the cake (oblong sheet-cake style), letting cool
* Trimming to a flat top and sides
* Using a small square or circular cookie cutter 1.5" or 3" in diameter, punch out baked cake about the same size as the balls above
* Decorate and do them lollipop style or shiskabob style with two or three on a stick in alternating flavors/decor.
Do a low sugar, low fat cake and dip in dark and low sugar chocolate, even angel food cake and make it a more pleasant treat. Whatever you do, use gloves...
Oh, by the way, be sure to check out the original to see what it's really about. http://www.thekitchn.com/cake-pops-by-bakerella-yummy-m-129992
They just use cake and icing and the decorating it awesome. I still think cookie cutting baked cake in whatever shape you like is easier and more appealing.
Can someone please tell me how many cakepops this recipe makes?
@RCpatten: Still, it's gross.
Just in case anyone else was wondering...I made 54 Cake Pops out of this exact recipe. I couldn't find any answers, so I decided to make them for my 21st on Saturday...haven't finished quite yet, but the cake mix tastes UH-MAZING can't wait until they're done!
It will be great if we can form the leftover of the cake to be some special shape ,that will be much better.But I dont know how.
Hi, i made cake pops using candy melts. They came out good but very sweet. I want less sweet with soft icing. Can i use frosting instead of candy melts for cake pops?
For decorating purposes, I find the cakepops look better if I dip the stick into the candy coating before placing it inside the cakepop ball. (That way you don't have the awkward brown showing after the cake pop is dipped, decorated and finalized.
I made this recipe as directed. I posted a complete review, with associated costs and photo, on my blog linked below.
http://countingcricketsagain.blogspot.com/2012/03/hand-rolled-cake-pops-recipe-review.html
I think there's too much icing on these little pops - but without the icing, they're just not as ute.
I love cake pops - but I make them from scratch with choc brownie or white choc and raspberry brownie filling - so good. Check out the recipe and video decorating instructions over at howtocookthat.net
Well.. My sun loves cake pops, but even more he loves cake balls - i gave some cake balls recipes here. if u like it please let me know for cake balls recipes exchange!
Sorry! One wore word about cake pops - u can use cocount to make it too unusual!
if u happen to be living in a tiny apartment without storage--or funds--to go buying fancy gadgets, you can always use a microwave to melt chocolate, but DON'T freeze the cake pops if you do...
I don't like the method I see used the most on the internet (mixing ground up cake with frosting and then coating with more frosting). It's too sweet. I made a bunch of these for christmas gift baskets though I left out the sticks as it became too much of a hassle for 30 people and a 3 hour transit. I made half out of chocolate cake mix, and half out of my homemade brownie mix. I poured the batter into a Bake Pop moulded pan that was made especially for this use. The cake batter was alright but hard to frost, but the brownies were the HIT of the entire process. They came out delicious, slightly crunchy on the outside but oooh so soft and chewy in the middle. I topped each with frosting, either vanilla or chocolate, and then added toppings such as coconut, sprinkles, crushed nuts, raspberry drizzle, and crushed oreos. They were so good I will definitely be making the brownie pops again.
I recently had mini whoopie pies at an event---bite sized. Yumm!
I have a few questions. Will regular plainold chocolate work to dip with? I'm currently overseas and havent seen a bag of chocolate chips the entire time. Also, How many cake pops does this recipe yield? Pretty please and thank you if someone replies
Wow! This is delightfully looked delicious! I can't wait to try making this on my niece birthday, thanks for sharing this recipe.
My friend is a wonderful pastry chef and she is doing my wedding cake this September. I asked her to do cake pops for favors as well - can't wait to see what everything thinks!
She just started a blog and did Apple Cake Pops - check it out!
http://katie-pop.com/
I've been making these little thing for years (ahem, about 40 years), so I guess I missed a trick by not sharing my delightful little bites with the rest of the world! I also used to make them with jam tarts which were beginning to go slightly stale. You've never seen anything gobbed up so quick once they had a makeover. Never having had much money all those years ago this was a good way of making something new from something almost old.
anyone know of a good vegan substitute for cream cheese? preferably not tofu based?
I made these for my daughter's birthday this weekend and used this exact recipe and they were delicious!!! Everyone loved them and we only had two left at the end of the party. The texture of the cake turns out to be like a fudgey brownie, which is a great contrast to the hard chocolate shell. I will admit I have issues with weird textures so I was a little nervous about the cake being crumbled and then put back together with the cream cheese, confectioners sugar mixture, but it was amazingly yummy! I used Wilton's Candy Dips for the coating in light cocoa and white and they were perfect. I bought the tubs that came with the candies in them and melted it in the microwave, super easy. Because of how moist the cake is, I found that it works best to freeze the cake pops until they are truly hard and nice and cold, that way the weight and warmth of the coating will not cause the pops to come off the sticks. Also, the cold pops cause the coating to harden quickly so you have to decorate fast, but that also means no drips! I also loved that I could start this in the middle of the week and take several days to finish it, I typically dread making cupcakes or a cake because it turns into a marathon of mixing, baking and decorating that is tedious and exhausting. This allowed me to spend about an hour each day and I finished the day before the party and didn't have to stress or rush the day of the party! I will definitely make these again!! Oh and this recipe made 48 2 inch balls!