I really wanted to make some of the cute character Cakepops from Bakerella's site.
- but time got the better of me, so I opted for a simple chocolate cake + chocolate frosting dipped in chocolate and covered in crushed candy canes. Still very pretty and super tasty.
I mixed it up a bit this time, and used a Italian meringue-based frosting instead of one make with powdered sugar. I like this type of frosting much better (and I was out of powdered sugar and really, really didn't want to go to the store.)
The results were very good from a taste and texture perspective. The Italian frosting is more slick than sticky, so I don't think it would be as good if you were forming the balls into shapes, but for the regular rounds I was happy.
I also used Ghiradelli baking chips instead of candy melts. The Ghiradelli chips are FABULOUS - they melt satiny-smooth and perfect for dipping without having to add Paramont Crystals or shortening, and taste so much better than Candy Melts.
I also had visions of CakepopDreidels and a few other ideas that will have to wait until next year. ...
The Mayor of Pumpkin Town approves of Pumpkin Pops
And why shouldn't he? They are delicious AND adorable! I'd planned to make black cats and ghosts as well, but the week got the better of me. I did make a whole patch of pumpkins for the Boy's class party.
Several moms asked me for the recipe - I may have created a few more CakePop converts!
The 2nd stage of the Carnival of Wonders that is the boy's 10th birthday was the Treats for Class. I'm usually good for some pretty decent class treats, but this year's had to be a show-stopper because it's the last one. Ever. Next year he'll be starting that Carnival of Horrors that is Middle School.
So, of course, the answer is Bakerella's Cupcake Pops - adorable, easy (if time-consuming) to make, easy to transport and serve and definitely a sure-fire way for the kid to win friends and influence people.
Everything was going fine in Cakepopland, and I left the room for a sec. When I came back, the boy was giggling uncontrollably and pointing at this....
Yep, the pop has slid down the stick, leaving the mini M&M perched at the top. I said, "Well, they must have been out of the fridge too long, let's pop 'em back in."
So we did, and 10 minutes later....
Yep, TWO had slid down and leaving their M&M toppers balancing like PillippePetit atop yon dizzy heights. I thought Max was going to bust a gut!
Luckily, I've rescued far worse mishaps than thus (do I have to remind you about the Tempest in a Teacup?) and was able to save them with a little bit of Candy Melt and a little bit of love.
The end-of-the-year school picnic is tonight and the occasion called for CAKEPOPS!
A collection of pops - some inspired by those at Bakerella, some I made up myself.
These went much better than the apples - mostly because I used better ingredients (Black Magic Cake and DeDe Wilson's Fudge Frosting from A Field Guide to Cupcakes) and Wilton Candy Melts, which are not as fancy as the Valrhona white chocolate, but they're much easier to work with.
Play Ball!
I used a food coloring pen for the laces - if I had more time/gumption, I'd do them with royal icing
Max asked how she can be called "Hello" Kitty when she doesn't even have a mouth?
While you ponder that, you can see how to make these here
Have a nice day!
Teacups!
How cute are these?
I wish I had taken pictures of the steps to make these, but there they are. Feel free to email me if anything is confusing:
1. Line a 1-tablespoon measuring spoon with plastic wrap, with enough for a 3" or so overhang 2. Fill the spoon with Cakepop mush level with the top 3. Drape the excess plastic wrap over the top of the spoon 4. Gently press into the plastic wrap with a film can or small spice bottle with a diameter smaller than the tablespoon to make an impression. 5. Remove the plastic wrap and pop out the molded Cakepop mush. Freeze for 15-20 minutes. 6. Put the stick in the pop and dip in colored Candy Melts just as for other Cakepops. 7. When the candy is set, fill the teacup with chocolate candy melt to make the "tea" (use a pastry bag) 8. Decorate around the rim with Candy Melts - use a pastry bag with just a teeny snip or a #1 round tip. 9. To make the handle, pipe a small "c" shape on waxed paper and let it set, attach to the cup with Candy Melt. 10. Voila - teatime!
I've been thinking about teapots too, and have a couple of ideas....
I've been dying to make Bakerella's Cakepops since I first discovered her blog. They are the cutest things ever. I knew my next baking opportunity was the teacher appreciation lunch at Max's school, so I decided that my maiden voyage into the world of cakepoppery would be apples. I definitely learned a thing or two in the process.
What you do is take cake, mush it up with your fingers or a food processor, then mix it with frosting into a moldable paste. I used the leftover 1/2 layer of cake from when I made the Fairfax Theater and some of the frosting I use in the Wilton classes. I put the frozen cake in the food processor to crumble it, but in retrospect I'd have let it thaw first and used my hands. I also think I added too much frosting. But hey, you live and learn.
I rolled the mush into balls, and froze them for about 1/2 an hour. To make the apple shape, I rolled the bottom half into a cone shape.
Then I put the small end of the cone on the cookie sheet and pressed down with my fingers and the handle of a wooden spoon - this gave me a tapered look to the apples, a flat bottom and a pretty good approximation of the top of an apple. These went back into the freezer for about 15-20 minutes.
While the pops were freezing, I melted white chocolate. I had a 7oz bar of Valrhona white chocolate that my friend Deborah had given me (she does their PR - it pays to have friends in high places) I dipped the tip of the lollipop sticks in the melted chocolate and then stuck them in the pops. Then back to the freezer.
I added pretty much a whole tub of Wilton No-Taste Red food coloring to get it to the right shade. In retrospect, I would have used Red Candy Melts. Because the chocolate was kind of thick, I thinned it out with Paramount Crystals. These are waxy "flakes" that makes chocolate thinner and more elastic. I use it when I want to get a nice "splatter" effect on cakes and cookies.
It took a while to get the hang of dipping the pops in the chocolate, but I was able to get a smooth-ish surface after a while.
I chilled the pops again for a couple of days, and then added the leaves and stems. The leaves are fondant (more leftovers from the Fairfax Theater project) cut with a leaf-shaped cutter, and the stems are pieces of these fancy French chocolate twigs (thanks again Deborah!)
I wanted to bag them into lollipop bags - but the bags were a very tight fit, so I sliced each of the bags down the side and overlapped two over the pop -voila!
And I just knew those 100 6" x 6" foam squares I got from Freecycle would come in handy!
This was a super fun project - I think I may make some more for the end of school picnic next week - stay tuned!
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