Cake Pop Tips & Tricks

Cake pops are one of the easiest AND cheapest treats to make, but I remember when I started cakes I had so many issues with cake pops. I even hear other cake decorators talk about how much they hate cake pops because they can be so tricky! So in an effort to give cake pops a better name, I thought I would share a couple tips that make the whole process a lot easier!

Cake pops can be made two ways. The first way is stick up. Where you make the cake pop and you place it on a piece of parchment paper to dry. The other way is stick down (I don't know the proper name for it, I'll admit I just made that up). Basically the second type needs to be placed in styrofoam or some type of cake pop holder so that the top can dry.

The reason cake pops are so cheap for me is because after I bake a cake, I shave the top of the cake off. I use these cake scraps to make my pops, but if you don't have a cake to bake, bake one anyway! All you need is a 6" cake to get enough dough for your cake pops. I only use a tiny scoop of buttercream to bind the cake crumbs together. If you put too much icing your cake pops will be really oily (which you don't want).

Speaking of oily, lets chat about cake pop oil. So yum, right? No. So the true and hard facts about cake pops is that if you don't eat them right away, as they sit they will begin to ooze oil. This oil comes from the butter or shortening in the icing as well as whatever oils are in your cake mix. I hate this for two reasons! If you use regular lollipop sticks, which are a type of paper, the stick starts to turn yellow! Ew! So I like to use plastic cake pop sticks. I found these sticks on Amazon. I'll include the link to all of my favorite Amazon cake pop products at the end of the post! Back to the pop sticks, if you use the plastic sticks, they wont turn yellow! Which is a win.

Rolling the Perfect Pop

The perfect cake pop!

Step 1: Mush all of the cake crumbs and icing together.

Step 2: Roll into a ball. The trick to getting your pop perfectly smooth and round is apply enough pressure with your hands. If your pop is lumpy, try rolling it around in between your palms with a little more UMPH!

Step 3: Freeze your pops for a couple of hours. When you are ready to dip them get your candy coating ready!

What is the best candy coating to dip your pops in?

Personally, I prefer to use almond bark as the base coating. It is seriously NO FAIL. It melts perfectly and it comes in white or "chocolate" brown. It isn't real chocolate, but it taste similar and I love it for its ease of use. I use Wilton candy melts as my drizzle. If you MUST use Wilton candy melts as the base to dip them in then you will find that it can be really chunky. If it is too chunky just add a little Crisco or any brand of shortening to the chocolate and it will help to thin it out. You don't want to add too much, so test your mix by adding only a teaspoon at a time.

Notice my little melting pot? This is a Wilton chocolate melting pot and I LOVE it! Makes dipping projects SO easy. I have it included in the Amazon link for you below!

Step 4: Dip your pop!

Step 5: Top it off! If you are topping your pop with sprinkles, you should sprinkle them on right away before the pop dries. Or you can drizzle!

Drizzles must be done after the first coat dries for the best outcome. Then Boom! You are all done! All that is left after your pop dries is to eat them! Or package them to give away as a sweet gift!

Tip: I like packaging the cake pops with paper shreds! The paper shreds help to soak up any extra oil that seeps out your cake pops without being noticable!

Thank you so much for stopping in! I hope you found a couple useful cake pop tips and tricks in this weeks post!

As promised, here is the Amazon link to my favorite cake pop doo-dads! https://www.amazon.com/shop/cheerstocake/list/4WG6R0F3IBQ7?ref_=cm_sw_r_cp_ud_aipsflist_aipsfcheerstocake_MPVPFDFERQ2MVHSZ1QFG

Cheers!