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Easter Cake Pops – Easter Baskets

March 6, 2012 By 6 Comments

A few weeks ago the girls and I spent a whole day making and decorating Cake Pops from our Babycakes Cake Pop Maker.  Now, if you have been a MoscatoMom Reader for long, you know that my favorite part about the Babycakes Cake Pop Maker is that you can make so many more things than just cake pops – like cinnamon roll pops, corndog pops, and blueberry muffin pops.  But this day we wanted to make true cake pops – and decorate them all up for Easter.  It was a blast.

The first ones we made were the Easter Bunny Pops which were sooo very simple.  The Easter Sheep Pops were not quite as simple but still just as cute.  While we were perusing online we saw a picture on Wilton’s page of Easter Basket Cake Pops.  We knew we just had to make them.  These were – by far – our favorite.

Easter Basket Cake Pops

Ingredients:

  • Cake Mix – I recommend Pillsbury Funfetti
  • Blue Candy Melts
  • Chocolate Candy Melts
  • Green Candy Melts
  • Small Multicolored Jellybeans
  • Green Sugar Sprinkles
  • Piping bag with Small Tip
  • Babycakes Cake Pop Maker
  • Cake Pop Sticks
  • Cake Pop Stand (optional)

 

Mix your Funfetti Cake Mix as directed on the box.  Spoon one teaspoon into each spot in your Babycakes Cake Pop Maker.  Let cook four minutes.  Use Babycakes fork to put onto a cookie sheet and put into the freezer for one hour.

Melt three or four candy melts and dip the ends of your sticks into the melt and into the cake pop.  Set upside down on a cookies sheet and put back into the freezer for another hour.  You should then have a cookie sheet that looks like this -

Next, melt your chocolate candy melts and coat each cake pop entirely.  Set in your Cake Pop Stand (check this one out!!) to let the candy harden and cool- about an hour.  DO NOT PUT INTO THE FRIDGE – if they get too cold the candy will “sweat” and the next part will not work.

Once the chocolate is completely hardened, melt your blue candy melts and gently dip the Cake Pops upside down half way into the blue candy.  Set them back into the Cake Pop Stand to harden again.   Your Easter Basket Cake Pops should look like this:

After the candy has completely hardened around the Cake Pop, melt your green candy melts and put into your piping bag.  Pipe a line of candy around the edges where the chocolate and blue candy meets, and quickly dip into the green sugar sprinkles.  This makes your “grass” inside of the basket.

Next put the rest of your chocolate candy melts into a piping bag, and pipe the “handle” for your basket.  Since I had a very small tip I put four lines together to make it a bit thicker.  You could also use a wider flat tip for this.

For the “Easter Eggs”  cut the ends off of small Jelly beans, leaving some in the middle – in other words you should have three pieces from each jellybean – two “eggs” (each end) and a middle to snack on… because let’s face it, by this time you are probably starving… or ready to eat the cake pops – eggs or not!

Pipe a dot of leftover candy melts to help them “stick” and place them randomly on the “grass.”   Let your finished cake pops set for at least 20 minutes to make sure your eggs stay put.

These Easter Basket Cake Pops took much longer to make than any of the other Easter Cake Pops – but they were still a blast!  The girls had fun helping – and eating – the leftover decorations as we were making them.

Love these?  Check out my Easter Bunny Cake Pops, Easter Chick Cake Pops, and Easter Sheep Cake Pops!


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Easter Sheep Cake Pops

February 28, 2012 By 14 Comments

Last week when I decided to make Easter Cake Pops I hit up the internet and found tons of cute ideas – my favorite being these little “sheep” cake pops.  I already had the pearl sprinkles so I thought this would be a fun way to use them up.  These were not near as simple as the Easter Bunny Cake Pops but they still turned out very cute.

Easter Sheep Cake Pops

Ingredients:

Mix your Funfetti Cake Mix as directed on the box.  Spoon one teaspoon into each spot in your Babycakes Cake Pop Maker.  Let cook four minutes.  Use Babycakes fork to put onto a cookie sheet and put into the freezer for one hour.

Melt three or four candy melts and dip the ends of your sticks into the melt and into the cake pop.  Set upside down on a cookies sheet and put back into the freezer for another hour.  You should then have a cookie sheet that looks like this -

 

Melt the remainder of your candy melts and gently dip your cake pop into the melts coating the entire cake pop.  Immediately set into cake pop stand (I use large pieces of styrofoam that I poke holes in with a screwdriver – cheap and easy) Place the jellybean in place for the head and hold a new seconds to secure.  Then gently begin putting sprinkles on and kind of “tapping” them into the candy melt to gently secure them.  Do this slowly to make sure the weight of the “wool” does not slide off the other side.

Like I said this took a bit of practice and a bit of time but was fun nonetheless.  Each “sheep” takes about 5 minutes to complete applying the “wool.”  Once you are happy with the wool, place back into your cake pop stand and let set for at least 20 minutes.

Once the candy has completely set and the pearls are secure you can use a dab of candy melts to apply the pink heart “nose” and chocolate ship “ears” (eyes!?) to the jelly bean.   Then put them together in their own little “herd.”

These were the most difficult of the Easter Cake Pops that we made, but they were also the favorite at the party.  We also made them with different colored candy melts which were cute – we had some yellow sheep!

Love these?  Check out my Easter Bunny Cake Pops, Easter Chick Cake Pops, and Easter Basket Cake Pops!

 

 


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Easter Bunny Cake Pops

February 26, 2012 By 12 Comments

This week I began practicing my Easter Cake Pops with my Babycakes Cake Pop Maker- making Easter Bunnies, Chicks, Sheep, and even Easter Baskets.  They were all relatively easy – which surprised me – though some took many more steps than the others.   My favorite – or the ones I think turned out the cutest – were the Easter Bunnies. 

Easter Bunny Cake Pops

Ingredients:

  • Babycakes Cake Pop Maker
  • Pillsbury Cake Mix of your choice (Pillsbury works best in the Cake Pop Maker)
  • White Candy Melts
  • Sweet Mallows Marshmallow Confetti
  • Pink Heart shaped candy sprinkles
  • Chocolate Piping Icing with bag and small tip

Begin by making your cake pops as usual with the Babycakes Cake Pop Maker.  Pillsbury mixes work best – my favorite being the Funfetti style.  Mix your cake batter as usual by the directions on the box, and spoon a teaspoon of mix into each hole and cook for four minutes.  Place cooked cake pops on a cookie sheet and run into the freezer for no less than an hour.  Then “stick” your cake pops using a bit of candy melts on the tips of your sticks and run into the freezer for another hour.  Now your cake pops are ready to decorate.

I have seen pictures of these guys where the baker had used Spring Candy Corn for the ears…  I looked at four different stores and was unable to find them.  I was about to give up and ditch the entire idea when I saw these near the marshmallows in Walmart.  I decided to give them a try, and I was pleasantly surprised with the results.  I did use scissors to snip the very ends off  – both to make the proper size for “ears” but also to give some added “stickiness” to help them stay on the bunnies heads.

For the Easter Bunny Cake Pops you will use the white candy melts which can be found in just about any grocery store.  Almond Bark works as well but I have found it to be a bit thinner than the candy melts so it doesn’t stay smooth quite as well.  Do NOT try to use cake icing – its a totally different consistency when heated. Melt the white candy melts in 30 second increments and stir – making sure you do not burn it.

Dip your Easter Bunny Cake Pop gently into the white candy melts and place in your cake pop holder.  While the coating is still good and warm, stick the Marshmallow Confetti with the snipped ends into the melts in the place for ears.  Hold for a few seconds until the candy begins to set and the ears and secure.

Let the candy coating set for about 20 minutes or until completely cooled and hardened.  Do not put into the freezer or refrigerator as that will cause the candy coating to “sweat” – making the next steps virtually impossible.  Simply let the cake pops sit room temperature.

Using your piping bad and icing, put a tiny dollop of icing onto a pink candy heart sprinkle and place your “nose” in the center of the Easter Bunny Cake Pop leaving room for both eyes above and the mouth below.  I found that since I have acrylic nails that it was easier to lower the cake pop onto the sprinkle than trying to hold on to the teeny little heart and stick it on there.  I think I dropped about 15 of them before figuring this out. Then pipe on eyes and a mouth to complete your Easter Bunny Cake Pop.   The finished result:

These were not just the cutest, but by far the easiest as well.  This one was great to let the girls help with – whether it was placing and holding the “ears” or the “nose.”   They also love helping me with the Babycakes Cake Pop Maker – I put the batter in, Taylor is in charge of the timer, and Sami pops the cake pops out onto the cookie sheet when they are finished.  It’s like we have our own little assembly line… and it is CLEAN!!  No messy hands!


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Healthy Donut Holes Recipe With Equal Sucralose #CBias #EqualSucralose

February 23, 2012 By 3 Comments

Since the beginning of the year I have been working to get my family eating healthier and paying more attention to what we are actually putting into our bodies.   As someone who loves Cake Pops with a passion, the idea of having to cut back on sugar was well… depressing.   So when I was asked to try the new Equal Sucralose – a sugar alternative with zero calories AND zero carbs – I didn’t hesitate.

I headed to my local Walmart in Pensacola (Store #1222) where I found Equal Sucralose in the baking section next to all of the sugars.  I couldnt find it at first since I was looking for the “Equal Blue” colored container.  Thankfully I remembered someone calling it a “yellow canister” or I totally think I would have missed it…. I mean THIS is the sugar aisle:

 

Anyhow, I was impressed first that it was a great price compared to the other sweeteners, and love love love the canister – I will show you why in a minute – but the price is important because eating healthy can really put a pounding on your checkbook.   I was fearful that it was too tall for my cabinets, but as you can see by my Google + Story, it fits perfectly.

I finished up my Walmart Shopping with a bunch of fresh fruits and vegetables – satisfied that even after adding my “sugar” I still was going to have a very healthy meal.  Funny enough as I was checking out the cashier did a double take of the Equal Sucralose canister and said “oh how nice to have this in a canister – my kids are forever spilling the bag all over the floor.” 

I got home and immediately started throwing ingredients together for my “Healthy Donut Holes” substituting sugar with Equal Sucralose, as well as a few other minor adjustments.  Enjoy:

Healthy Donut Holes with Equal Sucralose

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/3 c wheat flour
  • 1/3 c Equal Sucralose
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 c 2% milk
  • 1/4 c oil
  • 1/4 c fat free sour cream
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix all ingredients together slowly until batter is well blended.  Fire up your Baby Cakes Cake Pop Maker and spoon in mixture as usual.   Now unlike the other donut holes I have shown, these only take a little over three minutes to cook.  They rise up perfectly making a little sphere of yumminess for you to enjoy guilt free.

Yes, I did even try a second recipe with the Equal Sucralose which I will share later, and both tasted fantastic!

You can choose to coat these with a drizzle but they really do not need it.  I was impressed at how the Equal Sucralose sweetened just like sugar and even when I had the girls give a taste test, they did not notice any difference from when I use regular sugar in my baking…. and if you are a Mom, you know even the slightest change to a recipe can cause whining and complaining. 

My favorite part about the Equal Sucralose though is easier explained in video than text, so here is a quick clip at how something as simple as a CANISTER can make all of the difference:

I really enjoyed checking out the Equal Sucralose and look forward to doing more baking with it.  I also added it to my coffee this morning and to Mike’s tea, so it is already a great addition to our healthier way of eating.   I am certain that any of the baking I do from here on out will include this instead of normal sugar.

 

The really exciting part though – is that my family will never know the difference.

 

 

This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. #CBias All images and opinions are my own. 


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Healthy Banana Bread – Cake Pops

January 17, 2012 By 16 Comments

It is no surprise that I have a mild addiction great love for my Babycakes Cake Pop Maker.   Since I discovered the little jewel back in July I have used it to make everything from quick cinnamon rolls for breakfast to cornbread muffin pops for dinner and even corndog pops for snacks in between.    There is no doubt in my mind that everyone needs a Cake Pop Maker – and not just for cake pops, even though these reindeer and snowmen were a huge hit at our Christmas Parties – but for quick, easy, fun eating at every meal.

With my New Years Resolution to be “Eating Clean” by the end of the year, I knew I was going to have to make a few adjustments to my Cake Pop Making Madness – and set out to find delicious, healthy Cake Pop recipes.  I am excited to share my favorite one so far – Healthy Banana Bread, Cake Pop Style!

Healthy Banana Bread Pops

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 c all purpose flour
  • 3/4 c wheat flour
  • 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 2 slightly beaten egg whites
  • 3 medium bananas
  • 3/4 c organic sugar cane crystals
  • 1/4 canola oil
  • 1/8 c water

Start by mashing your bananas with a fork.  Over-ripe browned bananas work best.  To ripen them more quickly you can put them in the refrigerator overnight.   In a medium bowl combine mashed bananas, sugar crystals, oil, and egg whites and mix well.

In a separate bowl mix all dry ingredients until evenly distributed.   Then pour dry ingredients directly into banana mixture and stir.   Add water to thin batter to a cake batter like consistency for easy scooping into your Babycakes Cake Pop Maker.

Heat your Cake Pop Maker until the green light comes on, and then scoop one heaping teaspoon of banana bread into each hole.   Close the lid and cook for 3 minutes or until center is completely cooked.

Pop each Banana Bread Pop onto a plate and let cool.   Now you can enjoy “just a bite” of yummy, healthy banana bread whenever you like!

These Pops were another huge hit at our house, and something I know I will cook again and again – next time probably adding in a cup of chopped walnuts to make Banana Nut Bread Pops.   I love that these are more “clean” than some of the other Cake Pops I have made, so I can feel better about eating a few alongside the ones I made for my family.

Just add this to the list of reasons I believe EVERYONE should own a Babycakes Cake Pop Maker!