Bake Your Own Cake Pops - Tutorial & Tips

If you like sweets and haven't tried Cake Pops yet - I have to say I strongly recommend it since they are the most delicious treats ever! They're actually pretty easy to make just a little time consuming so they're great for when you're in a baking mood or for a special occasion! I don't know about you but I find baking super relaxing so I try to get in the kitchen and bake something yummy every week or two! I made two batches of cake pops for Easter - Yellow Cake & Pink Chocolate (like the birthday cake at Starbucks) and Strawberry Cake & White Chocolate.

I got the Bakerella Cake Pop Kit for Xmas which is a super handy kit that include a little booklet with instructions and a variety of cake pops to try and supplies like sticks, a stand, cute tags, and ribbons for your pops! The kit was great but after trying cake pops the first time around I thought I'd give some extra tips that I hadn't seen in other tutorials. The photos above do not include every step but I'll outline those below: 

Supplies needed: 

Box Mix Cake 
1 Tub of Frosting
2 Bags of Wilton Cake Melts 
5 or 6 inch Candy Sticks 

Basic Instructions for Cake Pops: 

1. Bake your box mix cake just like you normally would and let it cool completely. 
2. After cooling, divide your cake into sections and put it in a bowl. 
3. Crumble your cake until it is completely fine in texture with no large pieces left. 
4. Mix 3/4 of a container of frosting with a spoon into your crumbled cake until it is completely mixed - it will resemble cookie dough when you are finished 
5. Roll your cake into balls with your hands and place on a cookie sheet covered with wax paper - put them in the freezer for about 15 or 20 minutes, you want them firm but not frozen
6. Melt your melting chocolate in a small deep bowl, place a small amount of chocolate on the end of your stick and then stick it in your cake pop 
7. Dip your cake pop in your melting chocolate or hold it over your bowl and pour the chocolate onto it with a spoon, allow the extra chocolate to drip off 
8. Place your cake pop in your stand for hardening 
9. Store your cake pops in the fridge for best results - they last 5 to 7 days in the fridge! 

Tips: 

- Use a pastry cutter to 'crumble' your cake, I found it quicker and easier than using my hands and of course a lot less messy.


- Use a cookie scoop to help make your balls more uniform in size and for easy scooping of course!

- Lightly dust your hands with flour when your rolling the balls - you'll probably have to re-dust every 3 or 4 balls, this helps keep the dough from getting to warm and sticking your hands when your rolling

- DO NOT forget to put a small amount of frosting on the end of your stick before you put it in your cake ball, if you don't after placing it in the melting chocolate your stick might slide right through your cake ball, then you'll have to eat like 4 or 5 duds while your making them! 

- After removing from the freezer, relocate your cake balls to the fridge while your working on them and take 5 or 6 out at a time, it takes a few minutes to apply the melting chocolate so this keeps them firm.


- Melt almost a whole bag of melting chocolate in a small deep container to 'frost' your cake pops, keep stirring as you are working with your chocolate if it sits for to long it will start to harden and you'll have to pop it back in the microwave 


- Use a bit of vegetable oil in your melting chocolate (maybe a teaspoon or two) this will make your melting chocolate shiner and smoother in texture. 


- Try to dip your cake pop completely in melting chocolate in one motion, it does become more difficult to put the cake pop back in the chocolate, if you don't get it completely covered on the first try use a spoon to drizzle the remaining chocolate. For extra sweetness, you CAN dip your pop back in the melting chocolate after it has hardened all the way so you could double layer two flavors or just have an extra thick shell on your pop.


- You will have excess chocolate on your pop after you dip, slowly turn your cake pop and the excess chocolate will fall off. You can also hold your pop over the bowl and gently tap your wrist with your other hand. I also found it effective to slow twist your cake pop right and left - horray for centrifugal force! 


- Having a stand for your cake pops is a necessity! If you don't have one from a kit, make one by reusing a granola bar box or another snack food box and poking a few small holes in the top only and taping closed your previously opened end. 

- DO use the longer candy sticks like the 6 inch ones, it seems a bit ridiculous but for some reason I just had a way easier time working with the long sticks than the shorter 4 inch sticks - the longer ones tend to be a few millimeters thinner (and maybe lighter?) and I think this makes a big difference with the ease in dipping your cake pops! 


- Store your cake pops in the fridge as mentioned above - they taste the best when chilled and last for 5 to 7 days - horray for cake pops all week long! 


- Mix and match to make any flavors that you like but go for cake with more oil in the batter - the strawberry cake I used was a bit drier than the yellow and the yellow proved much easier to work with! Like wise with the melting chocolate, try different colors - even though most of the colored chocolates are white chocolate they each have a bit different texture! 


- DO make cake pops at home! Homemade cake pops are fresher and more delicious!