Cupcake Pops

Cupcake pops are a super-cute, super yummy idea I got from this blog-www.bakerell.blogspot.com. (I added a link to my list on the left) She was also featured on Martha Stewart and if you go to Martha's website I believe there is even a video to show you how to make them. If you like to bake, especially cakes and cupcakes you must check out this blog! The basic idea for the cupcake pops is you bake a cake, crumble it all up when it is cool.(A food processor works great for this!) Then mix in a can of frosting. Next you roll into little balls and let chill. You then use a flower cook cutter, stick one end in the cookie cutter to shape the bottom of the cupcake. Let chill again then dip in chocolate. Add a lollipop stick if you want to make lollipops-fun for kids. If you don't want to make cupcake shapes you can just dip the balls in chocolate. The cake/frosting combinations are endless. And they taste so good! I made some to send into Kenzie's class for her birthday and I did chocolate cake with buttercream frosting-(I used home made frosting). They taste like supermoist munchkins dipped in chocolate. I made some more yesterday for a friends birthday party on Saturday and then experimented with some flavors.

I mixed yellow cake with raspberry preserves-this was a big hit with Dom. Then I mixed yellow cake with Nutella, also very yummy. If you don't know what Nutella is it is the consistency of peanut butter but it has a chocolatey hazelnut flavor.

For some reason I had trouble dipping just the plain balls in chocolate and they came out all deformed. I think because I was running out of chocolate and it was starting to harden up on me, they still tasted yummy, anyway. Words of wisdom from Mackenzie, "It doesn't have to look perfect, mom, as long as it tastes good!" So true! I don't have a lot of experience with melting chocolate so I'll just have to keep practicing!

Here are some cupcakes without the stick, called cupcake bites:

And here are my deformed cake bites for all you who think I am as perfect as Martha Stewart. I take that as a compliment, by the way. It usually takes a lot of practice to get things right and you should see what a mess I make of my kitchen when I bake-Martha would be horrified! Someday I'll have to take a picture of the chaos.