Beach Ball Cake Pops

Summer is officially here and I hope you guys will have the chance to do something fun, fun, fun!

These beach ball cake pops are a great way to get in the right mindset. I made them a while ago for Target’s blog (A Bullseye View) at the time, but it appears the instructions have since been removed in their site reorganization. So I thought I would update this post I made back then to include the complete how-to instructions. Now they‘ll be handy here if you want to give these cute pops a go.

They are so sweet and simple, and have such strong and graphic visual appeal. They just sing summer. And sunshine. And they make me smile. And they make me wish I was at the pool right now. P.S., if you love summer, you might like these Sunshine Cake Pops, too.

Now, let’s make some beach balls. The full instructions are at the end of this post, but first, here’s a photo play-by-play.

To make cake pops, start with crumbled cake and then mix it with frosting. Easy and so tasty.

The texture will be something like this. You can scoop amounts of the the cake and frosting mixture for even size balls.

And then just roll them by hand. If your cake crumbs are fine, you’ll get rounder, smoother balls which will make for smoother pops when dipped.

This is a good consistency of cake to frosting. The mixture should be moist but shouldn’t feel wet. Once they are scooped you can easily roll them into a smooth ball.

Speaking of consistency, you want your candy coating to be fluid and smooth so that it pours off the spoon instead of plopping. : ) I know. Nice visual, but this is what you want. Not too thick and perfect for dipping.

Once rolled, chill them and then dip them in white candy coating.

To decorate you’ll need some colorful sanding sugar in bright happy colors.

A helpful way to divide the pops into eight equal sections is to use a toothpick to draw or “etch” lines right on the surface.

Use a small brush to apply a thin layer of corn syrup to one of the sections.

Then dip that section in one of the sanding sugar colors.

Use a toothpick to clean up any edges for a more finished look.

Repeat, with each color of sanding sugar.

Add a blue confetti sprinkle to the top and voila – Beach Balls!

You can even display them in a dish filled with light brown sugar or cookie crumbs for sand.

So super cute for a party presentation.

Print

Yield: 36 Cake Pops

Beach Ball Cake Pops

Prep Time 1 hour

Cook Time 45 minutes

Additional Time 2 hours

Total Time 3 hours 45 minutes

Have a ball this summer and enjoy the perfect bite-size treat.

Ingredients

• 1 box cake mix (bake as directed)
• 1 18 oz can of frosting
• Wax paper
• Baking sheet
• White candy wafers
• Lollipop sticks
• Heatproof plastic bowl
• Toothpicks
• Corn syrup
• Small brush
• Yellow, red, green and blue sanding sugar
• Blue confetti sprinkles
• Styrofoam block

Instructions

1. Bake cake as directed on box for a 9 X 13 cake. Cool completely and crumble into a large bowl.
2. Mix 1/2 to 3/4 of a can of frosting into the cake crumbs using a large spoon. You won’t need the rest.
3. Roll mixture into 1.25 inch balls and place on a wax paper covered baking sheet. You can also use an ice cream scoop and then roll the balls. Let rest for about 30 minutes.
4. Place cake balls in the freezer for about 15 minutes so they will firm up. Then transfer them to the refrigerator to remain chilled and avoid freezing.
5. Melt white candy wafers in a heatproof plastic bowl so that the coating is at least three to four inches deep for easier dipping. Melt in the microwave in 30-second intervals on low, stirring in between. Repeat until melted and smooth.
6. Dip the tip of a lollipop stick into the melted white candy coating and insert stick into the cake ball. Dip the entire cake pop into the bowl of melted candy coating. Dip and remove in one motion without stirring. Make sure the entire cake ball is covered. If your coating is too thick, you can add a little vegetable oil to help thin it and make it easier to work with.
7. Remove and gently tap to allow any excess coating to fall off the pop and back in the bowl. Place in a Styrofoam block to dry.
8. When dry, use a toothpick to draw or lightly etch two perpendicular lines starting at the top of the cake pop. Draw the lines straight down the sides. Then draw two more perpendicular lines, so that you have eight equal sections. Brush off any white chocolate shavings.
9. Use a small kitchen brush to apply a thin layer of corn syrup to one section of the cake pop and dip in yellow sanding sugar. Repeat so all of the pops have yellow sections. Use a toothpick to clean up any edges and brush off any sanding sugar that gets on the exposed white sections of the pop. Repeat with the red, green and blue sections of the beach ball.
10. Use a toothpick to dot white candy coating on top of the pop and place a blue confetti sprinkle to finish off the Beach Ball look.
11. Let dry completely and enjoy!

What are you doing fun this summer? I’d love to know what you guys are looking forward to in your summer plans because I haven’t done anything fun yet. I’m longing for the pool and rest and adventure and rest and rest. What to do and where to go?

Hope you have a ball this summer!

A version of this post was originally posted on July 9, 2012.