Cake Pops - Round Two

I'm finally back to blogging again after a nice little cold I caught on my flight to Georgia. I'm still not 100%, but thankfully I've been going non-stop the past few weeks and have plenty of content to share with you!

At my office we take turns making birthday cakes and it just so happens that the majority of birthdays are in the fall, so we are in full cake mode lately! One co-worker asked if I would make another batch of cake pops for his birthday since they were a great way to control portions and, let's face it, who doesn't like the novelty of cake on a stick!?

So, I decided to give the cake pops another try. This time I did my research and talked with other people who had made them before. Here is the Bakerella (queen of cake pops) video I watched to prep my second try:

She makes it look SOO easy! I even went to Michael's and splurged on the colored candy melts and meringue powder (in case I decided to cover them in royal icing) and even the gel coloring. Here is what I did:

1. First I made a 9x13 Devil's Food Cake. After it cooled, I crumbled it into a large mixing bowl.

 2. Next, I stirred in one carton of fudge icing until it was thoroughly incorporated. I then took the dough mixture and rolled it into balls about 3/4 to 1 inch thick.

  

3. I put the cake balls into the freezer for about 15 minutes to set up and slightly harden. In the meantime, I began melting down my candy melts in the microwave, starting with 20 second intervals. 

 

 4. Once the cake balls were chilled, I dipped each lollipop stick into the melted chocolate candy melts and inserted them into the dough about half way. I again chilled the completed pops to let the icing set and help keep the sticks in place.

5. Despite what these pictures may tell, the process was extremely long and tedious. Rather than the simple dip and remove process that Bakerella showed, I ended up with thick, gloopy chocolate that had to be spooned and/or piped on. I was on the verge of meltdown for most of the night, but I am so glad they turned out great in the end. We'll just blame the Southern humidity for the chocolate!

Thankfully I was happy with the result, but I know they still have a long way to come. I tried to distract from their imperfections by adding nuts and squiggly decor. So here they are . . .

And no great late night recipe attempt is complete without the giant mess that is left behind. 

I'll have to keep working at it; it sounds like I might be recruited to make some Auburn-themed ones before the season is over. 

Thanks for reading! More exciting projects to come . . .