Cakepops are a fun treat that create lots of opportunity for creative expression.
IMHO, these homemade easy cake pops taste way better than any of the store-bought versions. Cake pops are essentially a lot of cake mixed up with a little frosting (if any at all), rolled into a ball or some other shape, and then dipped in chocolate. They can be a bit tricky to get right, so you want to take your time and perhaps spread the process over a few days.
Step 1:
Cake Pop Base: You want a base that will hold its shape, but be sticky enough to hold together. The type of baked good you use and the original moisture level will determine how much frosting you need if any at all. The drier the cake or muffins you use, the more frosting you will need. Be sure to check out the My Favorite Cake Pop Items list at the bottom of this post.
Here are a few fast options:
A) Cake Only:
Bake your cake as you normally would; while it is still hot, put the cake into your mixer and blend on low/medium until it is a sticky texture that will hold its form.
B) Store-Bought Cake:
Buy a cake on sale; scrape the frosting off and add the cake portion to a mixer and blend on low/medium until it is a sticky texture that will hold its form. If you need more frosting, add a little at a time.
C) Muffins:
A shortcut I love (this is also what I used in the video) is to get the giant muffins from Costco as the cake base. Throw the muffins into your mixer (or stir by hand) to break them into crumbs (you don’t want any big chunks or your cake pops might break apart later), then add a bit of frosting one tablespoon at a time until it becomes a sticky clay-like texture. You will need far less frosting than you think, so try to be restrained in how much you add at a time. I usually only need 2 tablespoons of frosting for a mixing bowl full of muffins.
Step 2:
Molding and Chilling: Now you’re ready to mold your cakes. You can hand roll them into balls or another shape, or push them into a silicone mold. Once formed, pop them into the freezer or fridge to set.
Pro Tip: Take the cakes out of the fridge/freezer at least 1 hour before dipping. If they are too cold when you dip them, the chocolate may crack.
Step 3:
Prepare Coating: Melt your dipping chocolate over a double boiler (a pot of water with a bowl resting on top that doesn’t quite touch the water). If it is too gloopy or thick, add a spoon or two of coconut oil. Once you achieve a thin glossy texture to your chocolate, take it off the heat and let it cool down to about 92-95 degrees. You don’t want it too hot or it won’t properly coat the cake and the cake is more likely to get hot and fall off the stick or lose its shape.
Step 4:
Dipping: Before you get started, make sure you have somewhere to rest your finished pops for drying – a box with holes punched in it, or styrofoam, or the cake pop holders they sell online. Now you are ready to go – dip your stick in the chocolate and then push it into your cake pop. Next, dip the cake pop into the chocolate and tap off any excess. Let it dry.
Cake Pop Ideas:
Once you get the hang of this, you can make all sorts of variations. Here are just a few examples I’ve tried out:
A) Traffic Cones
I recently made these traffic cones for a construction birthday party. For the chocolate, I did a traditional stick method and then added black and white puffy fondant stripes. For the lemon raspberry, I used a toothpick to dip them and then made a traffic cone base out of melted chocolate.
B) Lego People
Here are some lego heads I made for a birthday party. I added half of a mini marshmallow to the top to create the lego look and then drew faces on them with edible markers.
C) Transformers
For another birthday, I used fondant and some Transformer molds to create the transformer logo and Optimus Prime head to decorate these pops. I used fondant to make the transformer design and let them dry for a day before sticking to the cake pop.
D) Halloween Stickless Treats
For these I used some silicone molds to create cake pop like treats for a big treat platter. It is the same concept as a cake pop, just without the stick.
