Cupcake Pops Or Bites Recipes

BASIC CUPCAKE POPS

Steps:

• In a 9- by 13-inch cake pan, bake the cake as directed on the box. Let cool completely.
• Once the cake is baked, get organized and set aside plenty of time (a few hours) to crumble, roll, shape, dip, and decorate 4 dozen cupcake pops.
• Crumble the cooled cake into a large mixing bowl. The texture of the cake causes it to crumble easily. To make crumbling easier, first cut the baked 9- by 13-inch cake into 4 equal sections. Remove a section from the pan, break it in half, and rub the two pieces together over a large bowl, making sure to crumble any large pieces that fall off. You can also use a fork to break any larger pieces of cake apart. Repeat with each section until the entire cake is crumbled into a fine texture. If you have large pieces mixed in, the cake balls may turn out lumpy and bumpy. You should not see any large pieces of cake.
• Add three-quarters of the container of frosting. (You will not need the remaining frosting.) Mix it into the crumbled cake, using the back of a large spoon, until thoroughly combined. If you use the entire container, the cake balls will be too moist.
• The mixture should be moist enough to roll into 1 1/2-inch balls and still hold a round shape. After rolling the cake balls by hand, place them on a wax paper-covered baking sheet.
• Cover with plastic wrap and chill for several hours in the refrigerator, or place in the freezer for about 15 minutes. You want the balls to be firm but not frozen.
• Remove the baking sheet from the refrigerator or freezer and begin shaping the cake balls into cupcakes. Take a chilled ball and roll it into a cylinder shape. Then slide it into the flower-shaped cookie cutter. The cake mixture should fill the entire cutter, with any excess forming a mounded cupcake top on one side. You can use your thumb to keep the shape flat on one side, allowing the rest to form a mound on the other. When you have the shape the way you like it, gently push the shaped cupcake out of the cutter from the bottom. If the mixture is still firm enough, you should also be able to gently pull it out by holding the top mounded side.
• Place the cupcake-shaped cake ball, right-side up, back on the wax paper-covered baking sheet. Continue with the remaining cake balls.
• Once the balls are all shaped into cupcakes, return them to the freezer for 5 to 10 minutes to keep them firm.
• Place the chocolate candy coating in a deep, microwave-safe plastic bowl. These bowls make it easier to dip the cupcake bottoms completely in candy coating while holding the bowl without burning your fingers. (It is usually easier to work with about 16 ounces of coating at a time.)
• Melt the chocolate candy coating, following the instructions on the package. Microwave on medium power for 30 seconds at a time, stirring with a spoon in between. You can also use a double boiler. Either way, make sure you do not overheat the coating.
• Take a few cupcake-shaped cake balls at a time out of the freezer to work with. Transfer the rest to the refrigerator at this point, so they stay firm but do not freeze.
• One at a time, take a cupcake-shaped cake ball and, holding it by the mounded top, dip the bottom into the melted chocolate candy coating - just to the point where the mounded shape starts. Remove it from the chocolate, turn it upside down, and swirl your hand in a circular motion. This will cause any excess chocolate coating to slide down. When the coating reaches the bottom of the mounded cupcake top shape, you can stop. Have a dish towel handy to wipe off your fingertips, as it is highly likely that you will get some coating on them. Don't use water to rinse your hands, as getting water in the coating can make it unusable.
• Place the half-coated cupcake shape on the second wax paper-covered baking sheet, chocolate-candy-coating-side up, mounded side down. Immediately dip about 1/2 inch of the tip of a lollipop stick into the melted candy coating, and insert the stick straight into the flat, chocolate-coated bottom of the cupcake while the chocolate is still wet. Push it no more than halfway through. Continue with the rest of the cupcake-shaped cake balls. Allow the chocolate to dry completely.
• Melt the pink candy coating in the same way as the chocolate.
• Holding its lollipop stick, dip the top of a cupcake in the melted pink candy coating. It should completely cover the rest of the exposed cupcake and meet the edge of the chocolate coating.
• Remove the cupcake pop from the coating and turn it right-side up. If the coating is too hot, it will start to drip down the sides. If this happens, let the coating sit for a few minutes to cool and start to thicken. Then when you dip the tops, the coating will stay in place.
• While the coating is still wet, use a toothpick to touch up any areas the coating may not have covered. Then place 1 M&M (M-side down) on the top and add sprinkles for decoration.
• Place the cupcake pop in a prepared Styrofoam block to dry completely. Repeat with the remaining cupcake pops.
• Store the cupcake pops in an airtight container on the counter or in the refrigerator for several days. You can also cover them in small treat bags, tied with a ribbon, and leave them in the Styrofoam block on the counter.

SIMPLE CAKE POPS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.
• Beat cake mix, water, eggs, and oil in a bowl using an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds. Increase speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes more. Pour batter into the prepared baking dish.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 28 to 33 minutes. Cool completely, at least 1 hour.
• Crumble cake into a large bowl. Stir frosting into cake crumbles until mixture is sticky but not too smooth. Chill in refrigerator, at least 30 minutes.
• Roll cake mixture into 1 1/2-inch balls and arrange on a baking sheet. Place 1 lollipop stick into each ball.
• Melt about 1/4 cup chocolate candy melts in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave, about 20 seconds. Dip each cake pop in the melted chocolate. Repeat melting chocolate and dipping remaining cake pops. Decorate pops with decorating icing.

CUPCAKE CAKE POPS

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Trim about 1/2 inch from the perimeter of the cake. Working in batches, crumble cake into the bowl of a food processor; process until fine crumbs form. Transfer to a large bowl and add frosting; blend together using the back of a spoon, until well combined, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Roll mixture into 1 1/4- to 1 1/2-inch balls; transfer to prepared baking sheet. Cover with parchment-paper-lined aluminum foil. Transfer to refrigerator until chilled, about 2 hours or to a freezer for about 10 minutes.
• Begin to shape balls into cupcakes by rolling balls first into logs. Fit logs into a 1 1/4-by-3/4-inch flower-shaped cookie cutter. Push cake mixture into the cutter halfway so that some of the cake mixture extends beyond the top of the cutter. Shape extended cake mixture into a cupcake-shaped top. Push cake from cutter to remove. Transfer to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Transfer to freezer until chilled, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt chocolate in heatproof bowl set over (but not touching) simmering water. Line another baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Remove cupcakes from freezer and dip the bottom of each cupcake into the chocolate; transfer, bottom-side up, to prepared baking sheet. To make lollipops, insert a lollipop stick into the bottom of each cupcake. Let chocolate set, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Melt white chocolate or pink candy melts in heatproof bowl set over (but not touching) simmering water. Dip the tops of the cupcakes into the chocolate and place right-side up on prepared baking sheet or stick lollipop sticks into a Styrofoam square. Place a candy-coated chocolate in the center of each and top with sprinkles. Let dry completely.

CUPCAKE POPS (OR BITES)

Steps:

• Bake a cake from a mix or from scratch and cool completely.
• Crumble cake into a fine consistency into a large bowl. TIP: If the texture is too coarse, you can run it through a food processor.
• Add can of cream cheese frosting or homemade frosting and blend together using the back of a large spoon. Blend thoroughly.
• Roll mixture into 1.25" - 1.5" size balls and lay on wax paper covered cookie sheet. You may want to periodically rinse and dry your hands off in between.
• Cover with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for several hours. TIP: You can speed this up by placing in the freezer for about 15 minutes.
• Remove. Begin to shape into cupcakes using a small flower-shaped cookie cutter. Take the chilled ball and roll it into more of an oval and then slide into cookie cutter. Push it into cutter until about half fills the cutter and the rest sticks out of the top in the shape of a mound. Then push the shaped cupcake carefully out of the cookie cutter from the bottom. Set right side up on a wax paper covered cookie sheet. Continue with remaining balls.
• Once shaped, cover and return to freezer. (5-10 minutes). TIP: You can leave them covered in the refrigerator overnight if you want to do the dipping on the following day.
• While cupcake shapes are chilling, begin to heat up your chocolate bark.
• Brown chocolate bark for the bottoms. Pink or white chocolate for the tops.
• Follow the instructions on the package for melting. Most recommend heating for 30 second intervals at a time and stirring in between. You can also do the double boiler method.
• When you are ready to dip, remove from freezer and set up another wax paper covered cookie sheet.
• Take the cupcake shaped mixture and dip bottoms into the melted chocolate - just to the point where the mounded shape starts. Remove from chocolate, turn upside down and wiggle so that the excess starts to slide down slightly. Then lay on the wax paper upside down. If you want them to be lollipops, then go ahead and insert the lollipop sticks while the chocolate is still wet. Continue with rest of the cupcakes. You can also leave some without the sticks. They're just as cute as Cupcake Bites. TIP: Dip end of your lollipop stick in the melted chocolate before inserting into chocolate bottoms. Not sure if this helps a lot, but it couldn't hurt.
• DON'T - get water in the chocolate. Make sure your hands are completely dry. Water will cause the chocolate to separate and mess up all your hard work.
• Dry completely. (15-20 minutes).
• Once dry, dip the tops of the cupcakes in the pink or white chocolate. You may need to move it around a little to cover all the exposed areas.TIP: Let the pink chocolate sit for a few minutes after heating to thicken. This will help it from dripping down the sides of the cupcake.
• Remove from the pink/white chocolate and turn right side up. You may need to hold and rotate it if there is any excess so that it doesn't drip down too far. You can use a toothpick to help cover any areas the melted chocolate didn't cover.
• For the Cupcake Bites - just turn right side up and rest on the wax paper. Then go ahead and put a m&m on the top and add sprinkles while wet.
• For the lollipops, Continue holding and place an m&m on the top and add sprinkles. Let them dry in a styrofoam block that you have already poked holes into.
• When completely dry, cover the lollipops with small plastic treat bags and tie with a ribbon.
• For the Cupcake Bites, place in a candy cup and package in small candy truffle boxes to present individually.
• Makes about 50.
• You can store these in an airtight container and they will last for several days. You can also store in the refrigerator if you would like them cold.