Baking: A popping 4th of July Dessert



As the 4th of July approaches we all have to prepare for yet another family feast.  That's right, fun works in conjunction with food consumption.  So without further delay.......ladies and gentlemen step right up to fill your tummies and enjoy America's favorite pastime...and that would be eating.







Chocolate Cake Pops with Festive Sprinkles

And after we have enjoyed, those delicious BBQ ribs, hamburgers, hotdogs, slaw, grilled corn, tater salad (ha ha we call THAT a salad) and have washed it all down with an iced lemonade we will likely be seeking more...and this folks is where dessert blasts its way into our tummies and possibly the surrounding areas.... :/

Lets not kid ourselves, about 99.9% of the worlds population, people of all ages, size, creed and color enjoy the oh so sinful eats we call dessert.....and the other .01% claim they don't 'do' sweets....but secretly you know they are closet sugar addicts =)

 

So my suggestion for this 4th of July is none other than the ever so popular CAKE POPS!!!! Well we have to pop something since in most areas fireworks are no longer legal....ok back to the issue at hand.

 

Cake pops happen to be one of the easiest and yet very appealing mini deserts anyone can make....I promise you they are.

 

 

 

So here is a list of your basic ingredients:

 

1 15.25oz Cake Mix (now this can be anything from Duncan Hines, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury or even your own)

1 16oz Ready made frosting container

1 lb chocolate morsels (or chunks, what ever rocks your boat

 

Sprinkles, colored sugar or other edible decorations



Cake pops ready for dipping- I used Yellow cake mix with Dark Chocolate Fudge Frosting

 

 

 

...and a list of supplies:

Cake pan

Wooden spoon

Cookie scoop (not required but comes in handy)

Cookie Sheet

Paper lollipop sticks

Wax Paper

Small cup/glass

Metal Fork

 

Directions:

1- Bake your cake per directions and let it cool at room temperature for an hour or about 30 minutes in the refrigerator.  Once cooled crumble the entire thing, so basically no matter how lopsided your cake is IT DOESN'T MATTER...because it will be little crumbs =D

2- Take the frosting and divide into 2 parts and then divide one of those parts again...so basically you will have ONE 1/2 and TWO 1/4's, makes sense???  Now take the 1/2 and mix it in the cake crumbs using the wooden spoon.  Once it's mixed in thoroughly try to make a ball, if it falls apart mix in another 1/4 and repeat process.  It is likely that you will only need 3/4's of the container...DON'T add more seriously, trust me you wont need it. 

3- Now take your cookie scoop and scoop up the mixture.  Mold it into a ball using your hand and then place the ball on the wax paper lined cookie sheet.  Continue until all the mixture is gone.  This will yield about 30 cake balls. 

4- Now take about 1/2 cup of chocolate morsels and melt in the microwave per the packs directions, it's usually about 30 seconds for that amount.  With the fork swish chocolate around and make sure its melted enough to dip the stick in.  So now dip the paper sticks about 1/4" and insert immediately into each cake ball about 1/2 way though. Use the above picture as visual of what it should look like.  In case you are wondering why this is necessary and are thinking of skipping the step to save time, really DON'T question it and just DO IT!!! It helps the stick hold onto to the cake so it doesn't fall off when you are ready to dip the darn thing.

 5- Refrigerate the balls for about 4 hours.  If you want to make this a little faster then you can also place them in the freezer for about 15 minutes..DO NOT FREEZE the cake....no bueno, yukkie, caca....just don't do it.

6- Now fill the same glass or cup you preciously used with more chocolate (about 3/4's of the way) and heat in microwave using 30 second intervals.  So 30 seconds, remove, swish with fork and repeat until the chocolate is nice and smooth. 

 

 

Here you can see the size of the cup I used in comparison to the cake pop.  The similarities in size make it easy to cover the cake pop.  Repeat this process melting more chocolate as required.

 

 

 

7-  Dip each cake pop into melted chocolate until covered and remove quickly.  Twirl over cup/glass so the excess chocolate can fall inside container.  Decorate with sprinkles or other candies if you want.  Repeat until every cake pop is covered, set them aside to allow chocolate to set. 

 

Note 1: There are several ways you can have the chocolate set.  One you can hold it until it's set, but who has the time.  Two you can stick them into Styrofoam or Three place them on a wax paper lined cookie sheet top down...the last one will give the cake pop a flat top and well that particular 80's hair style has not made its comeback but still it's up to you ;)

Note 2: Your sweet tooth hurts just a tad??? You can mix in 1 part cream cheese to your 2 parts frosting to make it a little less sweet.

Once the chocolate is set you can munch on these tiny desserts and enjoy!  You can make these the night before, but HIDE THEM because I warn you the kids (and significant others) can sniff these a mile away....One great things about these is that the sky is the limit! You can use any cake flavor and any frosting flavor....white chocolate would have probably looked nicer for the 4th of July but I LLLLOOOVVVEEEE dark chocolate so I used that...you can use milk, dark, white chocolate, butterscotch morsels, candy melts...anything goes with this versatile mini yummy =D

 

Bake, Create, Enjoy and have a fun filled Holiday!!!!

This is the easiest way of allowing chocolate to set



Flat top but still yummy

#baking #holidaydesserts #cakepops #fundesserts

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