Getting those cake pops right

 

I NEED to practice to get something just right.  At least, that’s my excuse for making cake pops over and over again until I perfect them.  A lot of imperfection means many many cake pops that I need to eat!  I first made them last winter, and again this Christmas.  I volunteered to make snacks for the kids’ classes just so I had a chance to make more delicious treats.  I got the recipe HERE from Bakerella, who makes the most amazing treats.  This time around I decided to go with the cupcake pops.  You can see the basic recipe there, but here’s what I found I need to do the job right.

You need your coffee (goes well with the chocolate cake pops, especially), your phone, and your favorite Korean drama all at the counter to really get down to work. 

Oh, you also need cake (I did one strawberry and one chocolate).  Baked and ready to crumble.  I used a recipe I found for cream cheese frosting, but DON’T use the entire batch on one cake or you’ll end up with mushy cake balls.  Mix the crumbled cake and fresh frosting to make a nice play-doh consistency.  On waxed paper, roll out half dollar sized balls and stick them in the fridge or freezer (or outside around here) to cool.  Because I am making the Cupcake Pops this time, I had to get out my little flower-shaped cookie cutter.  I originally got the set for cutting things in our Bento boxes.  The flower shape forms the bottom half of the cupcake.

         

Stick them back in the fridge again while you get your chocolate ready in the double boiler.  If you don’t have a double boiler, try a larger glass or metal bowl perched over your pot of hot water.  I’m terrible with the microwave, so I’ve never tried to melt my chocolate in there, but I’ve heard that works, too.

I used chocolate bark for the bottom half.  Dip the bottom in the melty chocolate and shake off any excess, let them cool bottoms up.  Dip the candy stick and insert them before the chocolate hardens.  Once again, throw them in the fridge while you melt your chocolate or bark for the top half.

I used white chocolate chips for the top, and a few drops of food coloring to make it fun.  Be careful with the liquid food coloring, it doesn’t like to play well with chocolate.  You’re better off with the gel, but I got it to work. 

Dip the top half to meet the chocolate, then immediately top with sprinkles or candy before it hardens.  I used a foam packing block to stick the finished pops in until they were cooled.

Once they were hardened, I put them in a bucket for the kids to take to school.  Fortunately in a small town like this one, we’re still allowed to bring home-made treats.  They were a big hit!!  I also kept a bunch for me, you know, the imperfect ones…. just in case I needed a fix.