With Spring-almost-Summer all around us, it’s that time of year for outdoor gatherings and picnics!

Recently, at our Easter celebration, my sis-in-law brought this recipe in the shape of eggs. They were such a hit and I couldn’t eat just one so I had to ask her how she made them. I couldn’t believe how easy it was! One great thing about these is there are a few steps and since each step can be done days apart, it makes this a non-hectic recipe on the day of your party.

You may have had made these or had them, often with sticks known as “cake pops”. I didn’t have any sticks on hand so I made them like you see above…they turned out like sweet, gooey, chocolate-y cake truffles.

I know. 🙂

I used white cake and vanilla frosting with white chocolate, but you can make these with your favorite cake combinations! 

What you’ll need:

2 boxes of cake mix

1 container of frosting

vegetable oil

A 12 oz. bag of chocolate (this you can find on the baking aisle, or even the craft store…or stock up on your favorite chocolate.)

sprinkles or toppings

wax or parchment paper

NOTE: If you want to bake just 1 cake to have a smaller batch, simply use 1/2 the frosting and chocolate

Steps:

1. Mix and bake the cakes according to the box directions. You can bake the cakes in any shape pan (I did one in a 12 x 9 and 1 in a bunt…you’re going to end up crumbling the cake, so it won’t matter the shape.)

2. Once the cake has cooled, crumble it all into a large bowl. You want this semi-fine. Any bits that are too chunky, may come back to haunt you when you try to form the balls. 😉

3. Mix in the can of frosting and stir until it’s all well combined. This is going to make it a bit gooey and will be the glue that holds everything together.

4. Chill – if desired.

5. Using about 1-2 TBSP of the mixture at a time, form the balls. It should come together quiet easily as you roll it in your hand. If it doesn’t, feel free to add more frosting. I made my balls as round as possible which gave me a bit of trouble later on, so if you want to make one side a little flatter, having a spot for the ball to rest on easily will be helpful!

6. Place them onto a pan covered with wax or parchment paper. 

7. Now you’re going to want to pop them into the freezer. We have a large outdoor freezer, so I slipped the pans in there overnight until the following day.

Now they are ready to dip! Onto the chocolate…

I do believe the chocolate can be melted in the microwave but since I don’t have a microwave, I just used a double boiler by boiling water in a small saucepan and placing a heatproof bowl on the top. In this bowl, the chocolate melted beautifully. My sister-in-law suggested to thin the chocolate just a tad by adding a small dollop of vegetable oil and I found this super helpful.

Pull the balls from the freezer and dip one at a time using a fork or slotted spoon to pull them out. (this was where I wished I’d formed these fellas with a flat side as they were rolling around when I didn’t want them to.) 🙂

Using a wooden skewer, gently slide the balls off the fork and onto the parchment paper and add your sprinkles (or other toppings) right away while the chocolate is still melted. I did a few with tiny sprinkles of salt and they were SO yummy!

Because the chocolate will melt if it gets too warm, these are best kept in the refrigerator on warm days. But these ones didn’t last that long as they were headed to a pint size tea party!

Let’s chat: Have you had these before or made them yourself? What are some of your favorite desserts for summer?