{Homemade Cake Balls}

I love dessert, and I love baking, which is definitely a dangerous combination.  Saturday night I had a wine night to go to with some girlfriends, and of course, I wanted to bring dessert.  I love cake balls, and I have heard people talk about how they are made, so I decided to give it a try.  I really wanted to have everything homemade, but with just bringing Bella home, I knew I wouldn't have time.  I sent Darrell out to get some groceries and had him pick up the ingredients while I stayed at home and spoiled Bella.  Here is my 'general' recipe for how I made my own version of cake balls. 

Homemade Cake Balls

{Ingredients}

Your favorite cake box, any flavor {Or if you are really up for it make a homemade cake}
• A can of frosting {I suggest which ever flavor you would have normally put on the cake.  Again, if you are up for it, go homemade}
Some sort of chocolate {either chips or bark} to melt for coating the cake balls
Popsicle sticks or something similar to stick in them. 
Wax paper
Any extras you want to place inside the cake balls or on top

 

{Directions}

• First, make the cake recipe as directed.  I baked mine as a bundt cake because I think it holds in the moisture best.  Really, any way is fine, just don't over cook it.

 

 As you can see, I used Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge and Cream Cheese Frosting

Once it is out of the oven, let it cool completely.  I broke my cake apart in a bowl to help expedite the process, or you can put it in the fridge. 
Once it is completely cool, break up the cake in a bowl so it is all crumbles.  You'll need a fairly large bowl.
• You will then pour in the whole can of frosting.  Mix well - you will want all the cake covered in the frosting.  If you are really adventurous and want to spice it up, you can add other items in the mix that you think would be good, like fresh chopped strawberries to white cake mix or sprinkles, etc.

• The mix is easier to make into balls when it is cold, so I stuck mine in the freezer for a couple of hours, uncovered. 
• Once it is cold, you can take the mix out and start making the balls.  Cover a baking pan with wax paper and put the rolled balls on there.  You can make them what ever size you'd like.  Insert the popsicle stick into the ball and then freeze for a few hours again.  The sticks make dipping them in chocolate much easier.  
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• When they are good and cold, go ahead and melt the chocolate


• I do not own a double boiler, so this is what I do to melt chocolate.  You can put it in the microwave, but I tend to burn it when I do it that way.  I think this is actually faster and easier.  Take two small pots (One should be able to fit in the other one) and put water in the larger of the two.  You don't need a ton of water, just about 1/3 of the way full.  I bring the water to a boil and place the other pot on top/inside the pan.  Careful, the steam if VERY hot.  I kind of have to hold my top pot, because it would fall in if I didn't.  Once you do that, just place your chocolate in the pan and mix while it starts to melt.  Use a spatula so you can get the chocolate mixed that is on the bottom of the pan.  Again, make sure it doesn't burn.  It is also nice to do it this way because if you didn't melt enough chocolate or it starts to get cold, you can just put it back on the burner for a few minutes. 

Once melted, remove from the other pan and now the messy, fun part begins.  Take out the balls from the freezer and you can begin to dip.  You might need to melt more chocolate if you start to run low.  Simply put the pan back on the boiling water and add more chips/bark.

Be sure to place them back on the wax paper.  This will make it so they are easily removed.  Wax paper is definitely a must! 

Then if you feel up to it and have some extra fun stuff around the house, feel free to spice them up while they are still warm.  Note, that if you are doing anything other than more melted chocolate on them, you will need to add things as you are doing each individual one so it will stick to the chocolate.  You could add things like smashed candy bar crumbs or sprinkles or anything your heart desires.  Some like the chili powder on them with dark chocolate.  

I had extra milk chocolate chips, so once I was done with the white bark chocolate, I melted some of my chips in that same pan.  I then took a Ziploc bag and opened it up by folding over the zippy part, that way I wouldn't dribble chocolate everywhere when I put the chocolate in there.  Once it is all good to go, just close the Ziploc bag and cut a tiny sliver off on of the bottom corners.  Then just take it and apply pressure to make it drizzle over the cake balls. 

Put them back in the freezer for at least 1 hour to harden.

Enjoy!!

Overall, this is a really fun and easy recipe to make.  I think it would be super cute to wrap them in individual pieces of clear plastic wrap and give as favors or shower gifts.  So many possibilities.  I had forgotten to get the Popsicle sticks, which was a mistake.  I ended up using way more melted chocolate than necessary.  They were pretty delicious though!