Cake Bites

Ever since I tried a cakeball lollipop from the Sweet & Saucy Shop, I have been dying to try to make my own. I knew how to make them in theory, but what I can definitely say is that I underestimated these. Here is the best one of the batch:

Though recognizable as a chocolate covered cake pop, I have a long way to go until I would feel comfortable serving these anywhere. I feel that this whole blog is a learning experience, so I am still happy for taking a risk and attempting something unfamiliar to me. Below I will explain how to make cake bites, with some tips that I learned from my mistakes (so that hopefully you won't have to make them too!)

 

The first step is to make a cake. It was a rainy day yesterday and I wasn't wanting to spend all day on these, so I decided to use a cake mix (sorry!). Just follow the instructions and bake a cake just like normal. Once the cake is cooked and cooled, transfer it to a large bowl. Crumble the cake using a fork. Once you have a bowl of crumbled cake, add some frosting. Make sure you add a little at a time, because you don't want to add too much because you need the cake/icing consistency to be fairly firm. Once you have the right consistency, use a cookie scoop and scoop the mixture onto a sheet. Place the sheet into the fridge for a few hours, or use a freezer to speed up the cooling. Once the balls are chilled, roll them into perfect spheres using your hands. Then place them back into the fridge while you melt the chocolate. Plan on melting a lot of chocolate. I learned that being stingy with the chocolate makes the dipping process unnecessarily difficult. Melt the chocolate in the microwave or using a double boiler. An important thing to know while melting your own chocolate is to make sure that the chocolate does not get too hot or else it will not temper correctly. (Tempering allows it to cool and harden correctly.) Once the chocolate is ready, dip the cake balls into the chocolate and set on some wax paper to harden. If you are wanting to turn the cake bites into cake pops, add a lollipop stick into the ball while the chocolate is still melting. 

And that's it! Sounds like a lot of steps, and it is. Plan on spending a long time on these to do them right, but it is a fun experiment. Plus, they are so so yummy! Even when they don't have the best presentation :)