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Christmas Cake Pops (Classic Bakerella-Style Holiday Ornaments)

Christmas Cake Pops

These are the cake pops that built the trend: a dense vanilla crumb worked with just enough buttercream to hold like damp sand, chilled firm, anchored on a stick with a dab of coating, then dipped once in red and green candy melts. The shell snaps, the center stays moist, and the sprinkles land while the coating is still wet. Make them two days ahead.
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Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 30 Cake Pops
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 215
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 2.5 cups all-purpose flour for the cake
  • 1.5 cups granulated sugar
  • 2.5 tsp baking powder
  • 0.75 tsp salt
  • 0.75 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 3 large eggs room temperature
  • 1 cup whole milk room temperature
  • 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
  • 0.75 cup vanilla buttercream frosting added sparingly as a binder; you may not need all of it
  • 12 oz red candy melts
  • 12 oz green candy melts
  • 6 oz white candy melts for drizzling
  • 30 lollipop sticks 6 inch paper sticks
  • 0.5 cup holiday sprinkles nonpareils plus snowflake and star quins
  • 2 tsp coconut oil optional, to thin the coating

Equipment

  • 1 9x13 Inch Baking Pan for the cake layer
  • 1 Large mixing bowl
  • 1 Food processor optional, for crumbling the cake
  • 1 small cookie scoop 1.5 tablespoon size
  • 2 rimmed baking sheets lined with parchment
  • 2 deep narrow microwave-safe bowls for melting coating
  • 1 styrofoam block or cake pop stand for drying upright

Method
 

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.
  2. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add the softened butter, eggs, milk and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes until smooth and thick.
  3. Spread the batter in the pan and bake 28 to 32 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan, at least 1 hour. A warm cake will steam and turn the mixture gummy.
  4. Trim away the browned edges and top crust. Crumble the cake into a large bowl with your fingertips, or pulse it in a food processor, until the crumb is fine and even with no large pieces left.
  5. Add 2 tablespoons of frosting and work it in with your hands. Keep adding frosting a spoonful at a time, squeezing the mixture, until it just holds together like damp sand and a pinch stays in a ball. Stop there. Most of a 9x13 cake needs about 1/2 to 3/4 cup.
  6. Scoop level 1.5 tablespoon portions and roll each between your palms into a smooth ball slightly smaller than a golf ball. Place them on a parchment-lined sheet. You should get about 30.
  7. Chill the balls in the refrigerator for 1 hour, or the freezer for 15 minutes, until firm but not frozen solid.
  8. Melt the red candy melts in a deep narrow bowl in the microwave at 50 percent power in 30 second bursts, stirring between each, until smooth. Stir in a little coconut oil only if the coating is too thick to flow off a spoon in a ribbon.
  9. Dip the tip of a lollipop stick about 1/2 inch into the melted coating, then push it straight into a chilled ball until it reaches halfway through. Repeat with the rest and return them to the refrigerator for 10 minutes so the coating sets and glues the stick in place.
  10. Take the pops out and let them stand at room temperature for 5 minutes. Dipping them ice-cold cracks the shell.
  11. Holding the stick, lower a pop straight down into the coating until the ball is fully submerged, then lift it straight out in one motion. Do not swirl or stir. Tap your wrist gently against your other hand so the excess drips off evenly.
  12. While the coating is still wet, scatter sprinkles over the pop, then stand it upright in a styrofoam block to dry. Work one pop at a time so the sprinkles stick.
  13. Repeat with the green candy melts for the remaining pops, reheating the coating briefly if it begins to thicken.
  14. Melt the white candy melts and drizzle them over the set red and green pops with a spoon or a snipped corner of a zip-top bag. Let everything dry fully upright, about 20 minutes, before serving or packing.

Notes

  • The mixture should feel like damp sand, not dough. Add frosting one spoonful at a time and stop the moment it holds a ball. Over-frosted pops are heavy and slide off the stick.
  • Use candy melts, not chocolate chips. Candy melts set hard and stay on the stick. If the coating is too thick, thin it with a teaspoon of coconut oil or paramount crystals, never water.
  • Never dip straight from the freezer. Let chilled balls sit out 5 minutes first or the temperature clash cracks the shell as it sets.
  • For shapes: pinch a ball into a cone for Christmas trees and Santa hats, or stack two for snowmen, before the first chill.
  • Store finished pops in a single layer in an airtight container at cool room temperature for 3 days, or refrigerate up to 1 week. Bring to room temperature before serving so the shell doesn't sweat.
  • Serve alongside hot chocolate, coffee or eggnog, or set them on a Christmas cookie platter. Slipped into glassine bags with ribbon they make excellent party favors and gifts.
  • Not suitable for toddlers. Each pop is two to three bites and the sticks are a choking and poking hazard.