Yum Yum: Making Cupcake Pops

So, you all know I’m knocking on death’s door with this bronchitis. I am been so under the weather that PoppaNut and I haven’t been able to do much of anything (unless you count my snoring and drooling as a hobby). So, I reached out to my very talented sister for today’s post.

My sister is really incredible. She has five kids, ages 16 to 2, and she managed to care for all of them while putting herself through school. I know I often say how busy I am, but I literally have no idea how she makes it through her week. I would need one massive app to keep me together!

And on top of that, she is a kindergarten teacher! So, on top of spending her time with her kids, she helps teach kids all day long as well. And teachers have limited resources! You wouldn’t believe all the things she has to buy herself just because she is so passionate about helping her students.

And all of that … among a lot of other things … is why I’m so proud to have her as my sister. She always tells me the truth, she steers me in the right direction when I need guidance and she is a true friend to me!

Well, somehow my dear sister found four spare hours in a day … I have no idea how this is possible. I have a hubby and two dogs and I can’t find time to go to the bathroom alone! But this superwoman somehow made it possible so she could make Cake Pops with her daughter for several classrooms at school. Yeah, I need to give back more to charity because I’m feeling very guilty at the moment.

I wanted to share the recipe and a fun photo! WARNING: My sister says this takes a LOT of time and patience. If you don’t have that, I would suggest forwarding the recipe to someone who does and then sampling what they make. The recipe originally came from Family Circle, and my sister told me to tell everyone about this website as well: www.bakerella.com. Enjoy!

Basic Cake Pops

1 box cake mix
13x9x2″ cake pan
Large mixing bowl
1 container (16 oz ) prepared frosting
Large metal spoon
Wax paper
2 baking sheets
Plastic wrap
Black edible ink pen

1. Bake cake as directed on box, using the cake pan. It is best to bake the cake the day prior to decorating the cake pops.

2. Once cake is cooled, get organized with all supplies, and set aside an hour to crumble, roll, and dip 4 dozen cake pops. (It took me approximately 3-4 hours all together.)

3. Crumble cooled cake into a large mixing bowl. Cut it into four equal parts. Remove one section and break it in half, rubbing the two pieces together over a large bowl making sure to crumble it completely. You can also use a fork to break it up. Repeat with each section of the cake. There should be no large pieces of the cake left.

4. Add 3/4 (I added a little less than that) of the container of frosting to the crumbled cake. Use the back of a metal spoon to blend. You do not need the remaining frosting.

5. The mixture should be moist enough to roll into 1 1/2″balls and still hold a round shape. After rolling by hand, place them on a wax paper-covered baking sheet.

6. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for several hours in the fridge, or place in the freezer for 15 minutes. You want them to get firm, but not frozen.

Pirate Cake Pops

48 uncoated Basic Cake Pops
48oz (3 pounds) white candy coating
2 deep, microwave safe plastic bowls
48 paper lollipop sticks
Styrofoam block
24 ounces red candy coating
About 15 white confetti sprinkles per cake pop
Toothpicks
48 red M&M’s minis
48 red jumbo heart sprinkles
Black edible-ink pen

1. Have the cake balls chilled.

2. Melt the white candy coating in a microwave safe plastic bowl, following the instructions on the package. The coating should be about 3″ deep for easier dipping. (Work with about 16oz of candy at a time.)

3. When you are ready to dip, remove a few cake balls at a time from the fridge, keeping the rest chilled.

4. One at a time, dip about 1/2″ of the tip of a lollipop stick into the melted candy coating, and insert the stick straight into a cake ball, pushing it no more than halfway through. Dip the cake pop into the melting coating, and tap off any excess coating: Hold the pop over the bowl in one hand, and tap your wrist gently with your other hand. (If you use the hand holding the cake pop to shake off the excess coating, the force of the movement will be too strong and could cause the cake pop to fall off the lollipop stick. Tapping the wrist holding the cake pop absorbs some of the impact.) The excess coating will fall off, but you will need to rotate the lollipop stick so the coating doesn’t build up on one side, making it too heavy on that side. If too much coating starts to build up at the base of the stick, simply use your finger to wipe it off, spinning the lollipop stick at the same time. This can happen if the coating is too thin or too hot. It’s not as hard as it sounds; it just takes a little practice.

5. Let dry completely in a Styrofoam block. (Pre-puncture holes in the block prior to getting started).

6. For the bandannas, melt the red candy coating in the second microwave safe bowl and dip the top half of each cake pop into it, holding the pop at a diagonal angle. Before the red candy coating sets, place miniature white confetti sprinkles randomly on the top. You can also attach after the coating dries by using a toothpick to dot on coating and then attaching the sprinkles.

7. Let dry completely in the Styrofoam block.

8. To finish the bandannas, use a toothpick to dab a little red candy coating to one side of the pop, and attach a red M&Ms mini. Hold it in place until the candy coating sets like glue. Use the same technique to attach a jumbo heart sprinkle, with the pointed end toward the cake pop, for the final touch, and let dry.

9. For the faces, use a black edible ink pen to draw on eyes, patches, and mouths. Let dry completely. (I tried to use the edible ink pen, but it was a fine tip and would not write on the candy coating, so I had to use melted chocolate chips and draw each face on using a toothpick.)

And that’s life in a nutshell … or perhaps a cake pop this time.

MommaNut

Tags: baking as a family, cake pop recipes, cake pops, family recipes, pirate cake pops