First up.......cake pops!

Now who doesn't love cake?! Add in your favorite icing, smash it all together, put it on a stick and voila! You have a cake pop! Okay, okay, so there's a little more than that involved. But still, doesn't it sound yummy? If not, check your pulse because something must be wrong!! My kids absolutely LOVE these things. The best part about it? You don't have to be some professional baker like Buddy from Cake Boss to make these. 

See my cake pops? Not perfect. I'll admit it. Far from it as a matter of fact. It's a work in progress to get them to look like the pro's do, but they still taste yummy. So what if you gain a few pounds while working on your art work? You could probably afford to gain a few pounds. Me? Not so much, but hey- who's complaining? Just follow my instructions below and you can make your family and friends a fun dessert everyone is sure to enjoy. 

Ingredients/Supplies:
Cake Mix (choose whatever flavor you like)

Frosting (store bought or homemade - any type and flavor will do)

Lollipop sticks

Chocolate melts

Any decorations you want to put on i.e. sprinkles, nothing too heavy though!

So what you want to do is make your cake like you normally would - just bake a regular 9x13 cake. When it's done, you need to make sure you completely cool the cake off, preferably overnight if you do it later in the day. Once cooled, cut the cake into big chunks and place in a large mixing bowl, slowly add in your frosting. It's messy, so beware! Once you have a nice consistency of mix to frosting, you're going to start rolling your mix into their shape. Balls!!  (Done laughing yet?) About 1-1 1/4" in diameter is a good size, you don't want them to big because they will not hold up on your lollipop stick. Place them on a cookie sheet covered in wax paper. When you're all done, place in the refrigerator or freezer. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes. If you choose to freeze- only leave them in for about 10 minutes. 

Next, prepare to melt your chocolates. Let me warn you- if you want good cake pops- do NOT use Wilton's chocolate melts. Sorry Wilton's, but your chocolate melts do not melt very nicely for me, or anyone else I've encountered during this process! I even bought a tiny crock pot for melting cheese/dips to see if I could get them to melt nicely, but they just don't work well. I have to add shortening to it to give it a good consistency. If you can find Merckens chocolate melts in your local cake supply store- buy the bag and run! They are the best chocolates to use. If not, use what you can. Last weekend I was in a rush and used Bakers chocolate dipping containers- you pop it in the microwave for 30 second intervals and the chocolate melted perfectly. Only problem was the containers were pretty small so I needed 2 of them. But they worked well and turned out nicer than any of the Wilton's chocolates ever did. 

So when your cake pops have cooled down and you're chocolates are melted you are ready to go! Take your lollipop sticks and dip the ends in the chocolate just about 1/4" then stick it in your ball. (Okay seriously, stop laughing) Do this for all cake pops. Once all have the sticks in them- freeze for 5 minutes to make sure the stick stays in. Keep an eye on your chocolate, stir if needed to keep your consistency. When pops are done- now you're going to start dipping.  Pick up each cake pop, holding by the stick obviously, and dip in your chocolate. when pop is completely covered, take out of the chocolate - place on a spoon and tap off any excess chocolate a couple of times. Be gentle as you don't want to damage your cake pop. Once your done, place back on the wax paper covered cookie sheet. When all cake pops are done- you can place in the refrigerator and you are done. Unless of course you want to add your own special treats like sprinkles or sugar crystals or any other cute decoration. 

It can get very messy with the chocolates - and especially when decorating so make sure you  have a good working space. I know this sounds like a lot of work but trust me- this is one of the easiest things you can make. and they are SO yummy. Kids and adults of all ages love these. On a side note - if you want to buy a styrofoam  board to stick the cake pops in instead of placing back on the cookie sheet once you've dipped in the chocolate- feel free! Or if you want to not use the lollipop sticks - that's fine too- just use a spoon to dip them into the chocolate and call them cake truffles! 

Oh wait!!!! The most important thing of all. HAVE FUN doing this! Enjoy!