The time has come... cake pops!

I was told by a colleague at school that I should give up trying cake pops. "They're already popular. They'll come and go," she said. "You need to find something that nobody has heard of yet and make it big."

I listened to her for a little bit, sticking to my comfort zone of cupcakes and fondant. It was last month for my birthday though, that my mind was changed. My (soon-to-be) sister in law sent me a kit for cake pops. If you know anything about me, I LOVE kits! It included the ingredients, the foam block, sticks, and even a how-to book with tons of pictures. It was time... cake pop time.

I kept the decor simple for round one and focused on the inside. We "accidentally" bought too many girl scout cookies this year, (I can't say no to the families of first graders when they're selling things). I ran a box of the Savannah Smiles through a food processor and mixed them in with the lemon cake, and raspberry buttercream. The result, needless to say, was quite tasty.

Here's my close up account of cake pop test #1!


You'll need a few things first: Candy Melts (from Michaels/AC Moore, Etc.) and some fun embellishments, such as sprinkles or dragees.




You'll also need the craft supplies for stability: Candy Sticks and a foam block.




Here are my ingredients: One box of cake mix, prepared according to package, 1 batch of buttercream frosting (in this case, raspberry), 1 box of crushed Savannah Smiles, just for fun.




Now that you've gathered the ingredients, it's time for step 1: smush it all together! This is the fun part. Use your hands and get messy! When it's well blended, roll it up in plastic wrap and refrigerate until it's a bit firmer, about 1 hour.




Step 2: use a small scoop to roll the dough into balls. Once you've done this, refrigerate them for another 30 minutes.




Step 3: pre-poke holes in your foam so that you're not trying to jam a melty- ball of cake into it later. I alternated between 3 and 2 holes on each row to make room for all of the sticks.




Step 4: Dip the sticks into the melted candy coating and poke them into the cake. Give them time to set and harden. This will ensure that the stick will stay put when there is more weight on top.





Step 5: Dip the cake balls into the candy melt, sprinkle them while they're still wet, place them on the block to dry.




Voila! Cake Pops!