The ingredients
are:
- 18.25 oz. (520 g.) Box Cake Mix
- 9 by 13 in. (23 by 33 cm.) Cake Pan
- Two Baking Sheets
- Wax Paper
- Large Mixing Bowl
- 16 oz. Container Ready-Made Frosting
- Large Metal Spoon
- Plastic Wrap
- 48 oz. (1.4 kg.) Candy Coating (or Candy Wafers)
- Deep, Microwave-Safe Plastic Bowl
- 48 Lollipop Sticks
- Styrofoam Block
Directions:
1.
Bake the cake as directed on the box, using the
9 by 13 in. (23 by 33 cm.) cake pan. Let cool completely.
2.
Once the cake has cooled, get organized and set
aside plenty of time (a couple of hours) to crumble, roll, and dip 4 dozen cake
pops. Line the baking sheets with wax paper.
3.
Crumble the cooled cake into the large bowl. You
should not see any big pieces of cake.
4.
Add up to three-quarters of the container of
frosting to the bowl. (You will not need the remaining frosting. Save it in the
refrigerator for a later use.) Mix it into the crumbled cake, using the back of
a large metal spoon, until thoroughly combined. If you use the entire
container, the cake balls will be too moist.
5.
The mixture should be moist enough to roll into
1 ½ in. (4 cm.) balls and still hold a round shape. After rolling the cake
balls by hand, place them on the prepared baking sheets and let them rest for
about 20 minutes before chilling.
6.
Cover with plastic wrap and chill for several
hours in the refrigerator, or place them in the freezer for about 15 minutes.
You want the balls to be firm, but not frozen.
7.
Place the candy coating in the deep
microwave-safe bowl. These bowls make it easier to cover the cake balls
completely with candy coating while holding the bowl and without burning your
fingers. The coating should be about 3 in. (7.5 cm.) deep for easy dipping. I
usually work with about 16 oz. (455 g.) of coating at a time.
8.
Melt the candy coating, following the
instructions on the package. Microwave on medium power for 30 seconds at a
time, stirring with a spoon between each interval. You can also use a double
boiler. Either way, make sure you don’t overheat the coating.
9.
Now you’re ready to dip. Take a few cake balls
out of the refrigerator or freezer to work with, keeping the rest chilled. If
they’re in the freezer, transfer the rest of the balls to the refrigerator at
this point so they stay firm but don’t freeze.
10.
One at a time, dip about ½ in. (12 mm.) of the
tip of a lollipop stick into the melted candy coating, and then insert the
lollipop stick straight into a cake ball, pushing it no more than halfway
through.
11.
Holding the lollipop stick with cake ball attached,
dip the entire cake ball into the melted candy coating until it is completely
covered, and remove it in one motion. Make sure the coating meets at the base
of the lollipop stick. This helps secure the cake ball to the stick when the
coating sets. The object is to completely cover the cake ball and remove it
without submerging it in the coating more than once. A small, deep plastic bowl
is very helpful during this step. If you do resubmerge the cake pop, the weight
of the candy coating can pull on the cake ball and cause it to get stuck in the
coating.
12.
The thinner the consistency of your coating, the
easier it will be to coat the cake pops. If you find that your coating is too
thick, add some vegetable oil or paramount crystals to help thin it and make the
coating more fluid.
13.
When you remove the cake pop from the candy
coating, some excess coating may start to drip. Hold the cake pop in one hand
and use the other to gently tap the first wrist. Rotate the lollipop stick, if
necessary, to allow the excess coating to fall off evenly, so one side doesn’t
get heavier than the other. If you didn’t completely dunk the cake pop, this
method of tapping and rotating generally takes care of that. The coating will
slowly slide down the surface of the cake ball until it reaches the lollipop
stick.
14.
If too much coating surrounds the base of the
lollipop stick, you can wipe the excess off with your finger. Simply place your
finger on the stick right under the cake ball and rotate the pop, allowing any
excess coating to fall off and back into the bowl of coating. When most of the
excess coating has fallen off and it is no longer dripping, stick the cake pop
into the Styrofoam block.
15.
Repeat with the remaining cake balls and let the
pops dry completely in the Styrofoam block.
16.
Enjoy!
Some tips in
making cake pops are:
- Make the cake the day before, and let it cool overnight.
- Experiment with different colors of candy coating and sprinkles.
- Once you are ready to crumble your cake, I would remove the “crust” of the cake so that it would be easier to form and roll the cake balls.
- When adding sprinkles, sprinkle it on right away after you have completely covered the cake pop with candy coating.
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Baking takes lots of patience and time. It is really
important that you prepare and read ahead when baking goods. Setting up your
tools, ingredients and baking supplies will save you lots of time when baking,
to reduce pointless frustration (Dudley 18). This has been my first time making
cake pops and also baking in the
kitchen, so I’m glad that I got to bake during Thanksgiving Break! I would
recommend baking to anyone who likes to have fun and to be creative. Reading,
getting and looking through this cookbook (“Cake
Pops: Holidays”) made me want to bake and create tasty treats! I hope this
experience encouraged you to become a baker and enjoy being in the kitchen!
What do you like to bake/eat at home? Cookies, pies,
cupcakes, cakes, etc.?
Citation: Dudley, Angie. Cake Pops: Holidays. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle, 2012. Print.
