Cake pops are delicious, easy to eat since they are bite-size treats, perfect for sharing and parties. The chewiness of the cake and the sweetness of the frosting make cake pops one of the most desirable treats in our household.
If you are looking for a new and exciting way to enjoy cake or have some cake leftovers try making it into pops or bites like these. Cake pops are an easy dessert that can be enjoyed on the go or at home with friends! This recipe is very simple and does or does not require any baking experience if you happen to have a cake already.
Well, we have had a lot of birthdays to celebrate lately, one each month February, March and April. We are almost all ( 3 out of 4) spring chicks over here.
We have made a whole mess of treats including this banana loaf (made it as cupcakes), these cookies, and this healthier zucchini and ginger loaf made into muffins. We had to vary things a little. Staying at home, lockdown, holidays
We certainly tried to make some healthier treats. It’s been way too long since I've made so many treats but my daughter is now hands-on and helps a lot in the kitchen so it was fun. She especially loves baking which is great because that is not my favourite but I do enjoy baking with her. Mother and daughter time.
The birthday girl loves those cake pops or cake bites like I like them so we ended up making them twice.
She even made some treats bags with brownies, these cake pops, this peach and almond cake as cupcakes and these thumb cute little pecan delights. She has arranged them really nicely with colourful ribbons and gave them to her friends who were so sweet to pop by and drop some little pressies for her.
Since we were in a lock-down and could not have anyone around, this was such a creative idea ( birthday cake pops delivery or pick up lol) and has made my teen daughter really happy. And not only her but her mum too! We certainly did make the most of our birthdays, we really did!
Who invented cake pops?
Cake pops were invented on 1st February 2008 (which remains the National cake pop day) in Georgia by an amateur baker Angie Dudley and her blog was known as Bakerella. What a great idea for a truly delectable dessert!
Kids LOVE cake pops!
Kids DO love cake pops and for good reason. They can be a fun way to make a dessert, but they're also not too different from the treats that we all grew up with. Cake pops are just like any other cake pop which is a ball of any favorite cake (or brownie) covered in frosting or chocolate ganache. Delicious hey, with or without a stick!
The only difference is that instead of using a lollipop stick to hold it together, these cakes can be held together by a toothpick or wooden skewer. But, who really cares?
I have decided to take pictures of those delicious cake pops without the lollipop stick as they look so nice as cake bites or cake balls too. Kids always love those with a stick, it makes them more fun to eat.
These little balls of sweetness taste great no matter what you call them! So versatile in terms of cake choice.
We particularly love them made with coconut cake which we will reveal the recipe soon. Oh, to die for!
How are cake pops made?
Cake pops are made by coating balls of cake dough in melted candy or chocolate, then dipping them into sprinkles or other toppings. You may or may not chose to pop a stick in or leave them without - they are great either way.
This post will teach you how to make your own cake pops at home and I have made this cake pops recipe easy!
Occasions to make cake pops
Make those bites for any special occasion:
- birthday party treats
- baby shower
- bridal shower cake pops (a truly wonderful idea!)
- fun treats for a picnic
CAN I MAKE CAKE POPS WITH CAKE MIX?
Oh yes, absolutely! You may use cake mix for this recipe such as red velvet cake mix (prefer a homemade one obviously), chocolate cake mix or any ones you prefer. The only difference is that they won't be 100% homemade. There’s no such a thing as box cake mix or canned frosting that will result in a totally special and individual cake pop experience. Nothing will actually TASTE as GOOD as the homemade version. The love, the care, the passion, that goes into creating each adorable bite is so unique. Take my word for it.
How to make cake pops?
The process is pretty easy and straight forward and here are the general steps just to have an idea before you give these cake pops a go.
We decided to leave and forget about the box cake mix and that canned frosting, for now, we are making them from scratch, right?
We will need a little time to prep everything but it will be absolutely worthwhile!
Yes, make the cake the night before, it will be even better.
So, here is the whole process:
1. Make a nice homemade cake- for quickness use store-bought but it will not be quite the same and won't come anywhere close to homemade
2. Make your own homemade frosting;
3. Crumble the cake into that homemade frosting (fun!);
4. Mix well together;
5. Roll the pops into nice perfect balls;
6. Dip into chocolate coating;
7. Sprinkle with some nice sprinkles;
8. EAT! (this is definitely the most Mmmmmm fun part!
Cake Ingredients:
- Flour ( I have used a mix of wholemeal and white spelt flour)
- Butter ( I used organic )
- Cane sugar
- Eggs
- Baking powder
- Desiccated coconut
- Coconut milk/cream
- Baking powder
- Salt
Frosting Ingredients:
- unsalted butter - softened to room temperature
- sugar - use a healthier alternative as a cane sugar
- heavy cream or full-fat milk
- vanilla powder or vanilla extract
Coating alternatives:
You may also use candy melts or candy coating or almond bark. If using almond bark or pure white chocolate, remember to chop it up before melting.
Melt it down with 1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil to thin the coating out slightly to make it easier to coat the cake pops. Keep the coating over warm water until ready to use.
We did make the lollipops but I have left some without the sticks for pictures (just my preference). I also like to bite twice from each cake pop to enjoy it a little more. They are so heavenly.
Gorgeous Homemade Cake Pops Recipe
Equipment
- cake tin
- glass bowl
- spatula
- Freestanding mixer
- pan
- small bowl
Ingredients
For The Coconut Cake
- 175 g spelt flour (6.17 oz)
- 150 g butter (5.3 oz) softened (at room temperature)
- 50 g desiccated coconut (1.8 oz) unsweetened
- 120 g cane sugar (4.23 oz) or regular sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 med eggs 3 small beaten lightly
- 2/3 tsp soda bicarbonate
- 2/3 tsp baking powder
- 2 tablespoon coconut milk or any milk or single cream
- 1 tbsp cider vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon Vanilla powder or 1 vanilla pod
For The Frosting
- 70 g butter (2.47 oz) unsalted - softened at room temperature
- 50 g dates sugar (1/4 cup) or any cane sugar
- 2 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For Chocolate Coating
- 200 g white chocolate (7.05 oz) melted
- 200 g milk chocolate (7.05 oz) melted
- 2 tablespoons sprinkles anything you might have
Instructions
To make the cake
- Preheat the oven at 180°C/ 350°F. Butter two 20 cm/8in sandwich tins and line the bases with parchment paper that was cut to size, slightly overlapping and go up on the sides for about 2 cm/1 in.
- Mix the butter, sugar and the eggs together in a mixer for approximately 2 minutes at medium-high speed. Add the flour, soda bicarbonate, baking powder, vinegar or lemon juice, salt. Mix until incorporated.
- Using a silicone spatula, gently stir in the desiccated coconut and the cream. cream
- Divide the mixture between the two tins, smooth the tops and bake for approximately 25 min on a tray that was placed at a lower level so that the tins sit right at the middle of the oven level.
- When ready (golden in colour and firm in the middle), take out, loosen the edges of the two tins and allow to cool for a good 5 minutes.
- Take out on a cooling wire rack. Take off the parchment paper. Allow them to cool completely.
Make the frosting
- Using a freestanding mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or an electric hand mixer, into a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until nice and creamy, For approximately about 2 mins.
- Add the sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla extract whilst the mixer is running at low speed. Increase to high speed once everything was added and beat for 3 mins.
Make the chocolate coating
- Melt the white chocolate in a small bowl placed over boiling hot water or in the microwave.
- In a second small bowl do the exact same with the milk or dark chocolate. Set aside for when needed.
Putting the cake pops together
- Crumble the completely cooled cake into the bowl where the frosting is. Make small crumbs (no large lumps).
- Mix the frosting and the cake crumbs with the mixer on really low speed until well combined.
- Take approximately 1 Tablespoon of moist cake mixture place onto your palm and roll into a ball. Place all cake balls on a prepared lined baking sheet placed in a tray.
- Refrigerate for 1 hour or freeze for 20-30 min.
Coat the cake balls with the coating
- You will need to work pretty swiftly or remove only 2-3 cake balls from the refrigerator at one time to coat.
- Dip a lollipop stick about 1cm or 1/2 inch into the coating, then insert this into the center of the cake ball. You will only need to push it about halfway through the cake ball.
- Dip the cake ball into the chocolate coating until it is completely covered. The coating should cover all the way up the base of the cake ball where the lollipop stick was inserted.
- Allow excess coating to drop off. Decorate the top with sprinkles and place each cake pop upright into a foam block or a little tray from the cake pop-making kit or simply a jar if you do not have any. See recipe notes for an extra tip. The cake balls must be very cold when dipping!
- Repeat with all the remaining cake balls, remember the cake balls have to be super chilled when dipping to help with setting the chocolate nicely. Decorate with sprinkles before coating sets.
Notes
- Ideally is to make the cake a day before - it will be perfectly cool, less moist and it will even get better flavour.
- Keep the cake balls refrigerated while coating and only work with a couple at a time. You may even freeze these for longer than 1 hour and then transfer them into the refrigerator.
- place them right side up in a large foam block ( you can buy online) or even a cardboard box. Simply poke really tiny holes into it. An easy and cheap option.
- You may also melt the butter for the frosting and brown it for extra divine flavour. See in here how to brown butter.
Nutrition
What is the best cake to make cake pops?
Oh, this is such a good question and the answer to this is an even better one ;-). The sky is the limit but my favourite ones are :
- Vanilla cake
- Coconut cake (this will be featured in this recipe) since its is one of our favourites
- Chocolate cake
- Red velvet cake
- Carrot cake
- Vegan Lemon cake
Adriana says
Indeed these are gorgeous and so much fun. Who can resist a good cake pop have not met one person that doesn't fall in love with them plus yours are also beautiful.
Freya says
Such a fun recipe! I’ve always wondered how they were made, definitely going to give them a go now!
Tammy says
So good! I used vegan butter and coconut whip cream for the frosting and it was great! Thanks for sharing!
Natalie says
These pops look gorgeous! I love that you used spelt flour here in this recipe. I'm saving this recipe to give it a try. My family will love this I'm sure. Thanks!
Audrey says
My kids loved these!
Lara says
So pretty! I love cake pops for buffets! Perfect sweet bites
Raquel says
So festive for many occasions and everyone loves a cake pop!
Ramona says
Thank you Raquel!
Liz says
these are so adorbale. I love all the directions and steps so we can make them at home easily!!
Ramona says
thanks Liz, yes indeed they are super easy to make and fun too!
Elizabeth says
These cake pops are so fun and absolutely delicious!
Addie says
These are just so fun! Great for kids too!