tips for making cake pops

You’ll be a total cake pop star.

If you’ve only had cake pops on the spur of the moment at a coffee store, we have good news: they’re not that difficult to prepare at home! To create bakery-worthy delights in your own home, all you need is a package of cake mix, icing, skewers, and a few additional components. We used ingredients from our new Sweet Thai Popcorn Trio, which was inspired by Chrissy and Pepper’s favorite Thai treats: Coconut & Mango Sticky Rice, Thai Iced Coffee, and sweet-and-salty (and a little acidic and peppery) Tangy Tamarind and Sweet Chili.

Whether it’s your first time creating cake pops or you’re a seasoned pro, here are six important tips and techniques to keep in mind when baking, breaking, molding, and adorning for your next birthday gathering, dinner party, or odd Tuesday night desire.

1. Let’s Get Ready to Crumble!

For cake pops, we abide by packaged cake mix because there’s no need to bother with a handmade cake when you’re just breaking it up. Allow the cake to settle for a few minutes before gently scooping it into the basin of a stand mixer, if you have one. Using the spatula tool, rapidly pulverize the heated cake so that it adheres to itself BEFORE adding the icing! You can also do this in a food blender or with a manual mixer, though the whisk-like beaters may get caught.

2. Don’t Skip the Freeze

Cake poppers are straightforward to make but require some perseverance. Waiting for the cake pops to cool after you’ve submerged the skewers in chocolate and pushed them into the middle of the cake orb is the first test of patience. Freezing them will help everything stiffen up so you don’t loose a snap while applying the covering. You should only need 10 minutes, so prepare yourself a cup of coffee, go for a short walk, or browse through Instagram.

3. Keep Things Running Smoothly

If you use candy melts, which dissolve more evenly, or real chocolate, which you can use to really personalize your preferred style and degree of flavor, make sure to re-warm it in the microwave if it begins to harden! You want the soaking procedure to go as easily as possible. A little veggie oil can be added to the concoction to smooth it out and make the pops glossier.

4. Make an Emergency Cake Pop Stash

All of these recipes yield enough cake pops to serve a crowd…or your future self! Make a large quantity (32–46 bite-sized treats) and chill the nude cake pops evenly on a platter or sheet pan before adding skewers or dunking. After a few hours or overnight, move to a freezer-safe receptacle or zip-top freezer bag with as much air compressed out as possible and keep for up to four months!

5. Craft a DIY Cake Pop Resting Station/Display

Keep your cake pops erect to prevent them from becoming smushed as the chocolate solidifies on the outside. Turning over a cardboard egg box and cutting small openings in the center of each segment with a paring knife or shears is our preferred method. Then, in each area, raise up the skewers and place the whole item in the freezer to harden. If you’re having guests over, you can even arrange it as a showcase. If you don’t mind going to the craft shop, a piece of polystyrene or floral foam will do the trick.

6. Have Fun Decorating!

To adorn our three new cake pop recipes, we simply used a scattering of seasonings, marbled chocolate, and roasted coconut, but you should have fun with the arranging. To make them as colorful and artistic as you want, experiment with various flavored sugar melts, food coloring, decorations, almonds, and other ingredients.