Have some fun with festive baking and make these Christmas Tree Chocolate Cake Pops. They are really easy to make and the kids will absolutely love decorating them! A great way to get into the kitchen with your children this Christmas!
I’m always in awe (and a little bit jealous!) of people who can produce such beautifully decorated cakes and cupcakesbut when I saw these Christmas Tree Pops on the BBC Good Food site I thought even a baking novice like me could give them a go!
The cake recipe itself is super simple. It’s a basic chocolate cake all mixed together in one bowl.
Because it is so easy, it’s a brilliant recipe to get the kids involved in making. You could even make it the day before and then decorate the next day if you are short on time.
Decorating the Christmas Tree Chocolate Cake Pops
Once the cake is cooked and cooled you need to cut it into 8 triangles (watch the video below to see how simple this is!) and then decorate the top.
I decided to do something a bit different from the BBC Good Food recipe and instead of making my own icing, I used those small tubes of icing writing to create a criss cross effect across each of the cake pops.
We then decorated them with some smarties and some edible silver balls, used a candy cane instead of a cake pop stick and finished with a little dusting of icing sugar.
I had a lot of fun making and decorating these with my daughter and all her friends were delighted when we gave them one. They have a real Christmas novelty effect and would make such a great addition to a Christmas party!
For the full recipe check out the video or written instructions below(anddon’t forget to subscribe to myYouTube Channel to stay up to date on all my Christmas videos!).
And if youtry this recipe please do let me know what you think. Or tag me in a picture onFacebook, Instagram or Twitterusing the hashtag #myfussyeater.I love seeing all your pictures!
Have some fun with festive baking and make these Christmas Tree Chocolate Cake Pops. They are really easy to make and the kids will absolutely love decorating them!
Ingredients
For the cake:
100g unsalted butter at room temp
100g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 medium eggs
100g self raising flour
3 tbsp cocoa powder
3 tbsp milk
For the decoration:
red and white writing icing
2 packets (approx 75g) smarties
handful of edible silver balls
8 candy canes
icing sugar
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180c / 160c fan. Grease and line a 9 inch round cake pan with parchment paper.
In a large bowl cream together the butter, caster sugar and vanilla extract with an electric mixer.
Add the eggs, one at a time and continue to mix.
Sift in the flour and cocoa powder and mix by hand. Add the milk and mix again.
Spoon the cake mixture into the prepared tin and flatten with a spoon or spatula.
Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.
Allow the cake to cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
It’s really important to let the cake cool completely before cutting it so that it won’t crumble. We need it to hold its shape.
Once the cake is completely cooled cut it into 8 triangles – in half first, then quarters, then eights.
Turn the cake triangles upside down for a flatter surface. Use the writing icing to create a string or tinsel effect and then add a few smarties. Then decorate with a few silver balls.
Use the end of a teaspoon to make a small hole in the bottom of the christmas tree. Snap off the curved part of the candy cane and insert that into the hole.
Finally, dust with a little icing sugar.
Notes
Recipe adapted from BBC Good Food (http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/christmas-tree-pops)
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Cracking the #1 cake pop mystery. Generally, it's a temperature issue - the cake balls are too cold and the melted candy is too hot. Some bakers like to chill their cake pops in the freezer, and use mini Crock pots or double boilers to keep their chocolate hot - this can create an extreme difference in temperature.
Chocolate: You can use candy coating/candy melts, almond bark, or pure semi-sweet chocolate. If using almond bark or pure chocolate, chop it up before melting. Melt it down with 1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil to thin out so it's easier to use as a coating. Bittersweet, white chocolate, or milk chocolate work as well.
Make sure you pick a mix that calls for 3 eggs. Substitute the oil and water in the directions with 1 cup (250 ml) of milk and 1 stick (½ cup or 125 ml) of butter, melted. The use of oil in the cake will cause your cake pops to heavily ooze oil in certain instances and the sticks will yellow severely.
If you don't chill your cake pops enough before adding the sticks and coating them, they may not be completely set. This could cause them to fall apart rather than hold their shape. In addition, your cake pops could be too big for their sticks.
The trick is to make sure that both the cake and the sweet outer layer (which is usually made from icing, melted chocolate, or candy melts) are as close to the same temperature as possible before coating.
Don't make your cake balls too big or they may fall apart when you dip them. Do scoop and form only a few portions at a time. It'll help prevent your dough from drying out. Don't keep the unformed dough exposed to air (again, it will dry out).
While this gives them a glossy look without the need to temper, it results in a less rich and nuanced taste when compared to real chocolate. For a more grown-up and luxurious form of cake pop, you can use melted chocolate instead of candy melts.
You can dip the cake balls into pure white chocolate, which is what I prefer for best taste, but that stuff is pretty expensive. And you need a good amount for all 40 cake pops! You can use candy melts/candy coating instead.
To avoid cracking, let your cake balls warm up to room temperature a bit before dipping in warm candy or chocolate. Once dipped, let your cake pops sit at room temperature for 5 to 7 minutes before placing in the fridge or freezer so the candy has time to cool.
I usually add all of my frosting in but each cake recipe/box cake mix is slightly different. You don't want to add too much frosting in if you don't need too as you don't want the cake pops to be mushy.
If your cake pops aren't round, the trouble is in the frosting. Either a) you didn't use enough, causing the cake pop to fall apart, or b) you used too much, making it way too sticky! The idea consistency should be like play-dough: not too dry, and not too thin.
Your cake mix should be moist enough to shape into a large mound and keep its shape. Roll your cake mix into 1 inch balls using the palms of your hands. You should be able to get 35-40 cake balls from a single batch of cake mix. Pour one entire package of white chocolate candy melts into a microwave safe bowl.
Bakeries make them out of leftover cake which otherwise would be thrown away, so they should be cheap. However, making leftover cake into solid balls, installing a stick that won't fall out, and dipping them in white chocolate, requires a human being on a time clock to make the whole thing happen.
Add oil, butter, or shortening to thin a small amount of chocolate. The best way to thin chocolate is with the addition of oil. The exact amount of oil you will need will depend on the thickness of your chocolate and your desired consistency. Start by stirring in just a little splash, then add more if you need to.
A good place to start is by adding 1 part of neutral vegetable oil to every 6 parts of chocolate. I.e., for 1 kilogram of chocolate, add 150 grams of vegetable oil such as grape seed or sunflower oil.
The cake balls need to be extremely cold before dipping. Make sure you have enough room in your refrigerator or freezer for them. I always chill them on a large lined baking sheet. A 2-cup glass liquid measuring cup is the perfect depth for dipping the cake pops.
If your melted candy appears too thick or is not smoothly covering your treat, you can thin it out using EZ Thin Dipping Aid. These crystals dissolve into your melted candy, making it the perfect consistency for dipping and drizzling. To use EZ Thin, simply add 2 tablespoons of crystals to 12 oz. melted candy.
Introduction: My name is Aron Pacocha, I am a happy, tasty, innocent, proud, talented, courageous, magnificent person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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