I first tasted these two years ago at a Christmas party and immediately had to have the recipe. It’s based on a mix, but I imagine you can follow the same directions substituting from scratch cake and frosting (I’ll try that one day). You can also try it with other cake combinations.
Yield: 45-48 balls
Red Velvet Cake Balls
Ingredients
1 box red velvet cake mix (cook as directed on box for 13 X 9 cake)
1 can cream cheese frosting (16 oz.)
1 package chocolate bark or candy coating (regular or white chocolate)
wax paper
Instructions
After cake is baked and cooled completely, crumble into large bowl.
Mix thoroughly with 1/2 can cream cheese frosting using the back of a large spoon. (start small - you can always add more if you need it.)
Roll cake and frosting mixture into quarter size balls and lay on wax paper cookie sheet. (Should make about 45. You can get even more if you use a mini ice cream scooper, but I like to hand roll them.)
Chill in fridge for a couple of hours. (You can speed this up by putting in the freezer for about 15 minutes.)
Melt chocolate candy coating in microwave per directions on package.
Roll balls in chocolate and lay on wax paper until firm. (Use a spoon to dip and roll in chocolate and then tap off extra.)
Notes
I also only melt a few pieces of chocolate bark at a time because it starts to cool and thicken. It’s easier to work with when the chocolate is still warm so it is fluid and smooth.
Natalie – not really. I haven’t tested different time frames.
Rachel – sure.
Crystal – make sure the balls are firm when you dip. The melts should be fluid so you can dip and remove in one motion. You don’t want to swirl them around. Same for the cake balls. Don’t roll those around either. Drop the balls in the melts. cover tops with a spoon and lift ball out with the spoon. tap off any excess. If the melts are too thick you can add paramount crystals or vegetable oil to help thin it out.
Hi, I am having a problem with the cake balls. Originally they were supposed to be pumpkin cake pops but the sticks kept sliding through the tops. I am not sure what I am doing wrong. When I dunk them in the melt, the balls don’t want to stay on the sticks either. It seems like the candy melt is too thick for the cake balls. They want to break or slide off. I bought the orange candy melts in a bag. Any suggestions? When I tried to just do cake balls, the balls seem to be coming apart and not wanting to roll on the candy melt. I made them with a box of yellow cake mix and a can of cream cheese icing. Please help :)
I have made the Oreo cakes and these but with toffee muffins and they’ve gone down so so well (especially as I added a little Jack Daniels!!!! Planning on making lots of cake pops for christmas presents! Well done, you’ve shown me a new way of thinking about foods that I’d have never thought about! xxx
Wow! I’ve totally fallen in love with your site! I now have the urge to just bake, bake, bake! I’m definitely going to try these…and perhaps just about everything on your site! Thanks!
I was planning to try these for the first time for a work function, however the event has been moved. Any idea how long these stay good in the freezer??
I was browsing online and i came upon your website. congratulations! you do such an amazing job. I did try these out with my daugther this weekend..she’s 8 and she had a blast!! mine balls came out ok, i think a tad bit to mushy…but after reading through the comments i think i added too much frosting and it was the “whipped” kind..only kind i had…and my chocolate was a bit too thick so they looked more like ball blobs!! now i’m anxious to try them again…..i look forward to trying your many other creations…all the best and much continued success!!!
Hi Bakerella, I have gotten so many great ideas from you!! I have a question about the cakes – prior to making cake balls. Can you bake the cake ahead of time, then freeze it till you’re ready to make the balls? I know you shouldn’t freeze the pre-dipped balls for very long, but will it affect the cake if that is frozen ahead of time? I will be making them soon, but I will be short on time – so I would like any shortcuts I can get! Thanks!
Hi, I can’t remember if I have commented already… I just wanted to say I made these for the third time last week :) The first time I made them for my friend’s birthday party, and everyone LOVED them. Then I made them for my mellophone section in marching band, and they loved them, too. One of my friend’s boyfriends liked them so much he wanted them for HIS birthday, so I gave the recipe to my friend and off she went. The reason I made them last week was for a bake sale on Friday at a football game (benefiting Relay for Life) and made 23 packages of 4 ($1 each). They were all sold by third quarter. (And that’s with all the other yummy baked goods that other girls baked there, too!) So thank you for such a fantastic recipe :D
(I’ve made them with red velvet cae, yellow cake, devil’s food cake, and angel food cake.)
I have had so much fun with this recipe! It is so versatile! I brought them to my women’s meeting placed around and in my kahlua cake and then I made them for my son’s kindergarden snack as “eyes” using m&m for the irises! Not to mention they are so yummy! They seem to get better the more times I make them! I would love to send the pictures.
I am really excited about these. I love things that are small and bite sized. I am going to try doing it with Funfetti cake and vanilla frosting. I am going to top them with sprinkles. I am making them for a class of teacher education people so I think the color is appropriate. :) So excited.
sorry if you have already answered this question but….
i tried these yesterday and everything was fine until the chocolate started cracking after it had set on the balls….. just wondering if you knew why this was???
YOUR’S LOOK SO GOOD! I tried this out yesterday, but I used chocolate chips instead since I don’t know where to buy chocolate bark around here. The melted chocolate chips were way too thick, so I tried thinning it out with oil. But when they dried, you can see the texture of the cake balls, it’s not smooth like yours! The chocolate is also way too soft. I can’t touch them without leaving marks. Is there another alternative to chocolate bark?Also, I had to do these pretty fast, since if they stayed in the chocolate for too long, they would start falling apart. Is there something I’m doing wrong?
Hi, I’d really like to make these but we don’t have ‘cans of cream cheese frosting’ in Australia. I could make cream cheese frosting but I have no idea how much is in a ‘can’?
Have you tried this with other cake flavors? So on the cake pops that look like cup cakes or other shapes, do you just shape them before you bake them in to what ever shape you want?
OK so I am getting on the cakepop band wagon a little late here, but I am going to a TWLIGHT Party and will be making these, dipped in white and coated with the irridesent spakle sugar in honor of Team Edward, do you hvae a suggestion for Team Jacob?
the ‘1 can cream cheese frosting’ does it have to be cream cheese frosting or can it be any frosting ? i’m in the UK and never heard of crea cheese frosting before.
An amazing idea and (just kill me now) my daughter wants these as the favors at her wedding. Any idea if you can freeze the finished product and for how long?
Heat on medium in 30 second intervals in the microwave and stir in between. Then if it’s still too thick – add some shortening or vegetable oil. You can also gently tap off any excess coating.
Esmeralda – you can use any flavor combination
Try less frosting next time and make sure your balls are firmly chilled. Dip in thin/fluid coating and make sure the coating surrounds the ball at the base of the stick
im in highschool (10th grade) and i made cake balls for the first time this school year for a friend’s birthday and i had alot of extras that i gave out. everyone Ate Them Up. they loved them and just freaked out. i think it’s because nobody ever had anything like it. so just wanted to say thanks.
you have made all my friends happy and wanting more :o]
Hello, I love your work. I want to make these for Thanksgiving. We’ll be traveling in the car for about an hour, if I keep them in an airtight container will they stick together?
Hi,I tried making cake balls using a box of D/H Devil cake mix,and buttercream frosting.I think I just added to much frosting,and did’nt let the cake cool enough.I tried to roll into balls and what a mess,then I tried to use the popcicle sticks and they came sliding down the stick.I got very frustrated and threw them all in the garbage,lol.I haven’t tried again.Are you suppose to use cream cheese frosting for any flavor of cake mix you use?I really wanted to make these right and at least try and make them for halloween for the g/kids school party.
Okay , so I am throughly frustrated! I have made three batches of cake balls…the first one with white chocolate bark from Krogers and the other two with Wilton’s candy melts and it doesn’t matter how I heat the chocolate it never seems to come out right. It’s always too thick and the cakeballs never have a smooth chocolatey appearance…more of a big glop of chocolate! I ended up at one point adding a little vegtable oil and that seemed to help thin the chocolate a smidge. What is going on? Is this normal and if so …how in the world do your cake balls and other cake pops look sooooo satiny smooth once done????
You are so sweet to share all your tasty and creative secrets. I love all your ideas and cant wait to try these. Tonight I am making chocolate chip cookie pie!
These are beyond words! Had them at a rehersal dinner, and could not stop eatting them. Asked for the recipe and made them a couple of days later. OMG! This must be what people eat in heaven.
This looks exciting! I am doing a fall wedding….and an eyebrow raises….maybe I will try a batch of these for the bride as a “freebie” and see how they do? I am making a small cake and 200 petite fours, this might make a cute addition. I was thinking spice cake/cream cheese frosting since her colors are orange’s….I wonder….would parmount crystals help in the chocolate? I notice many people have “trouble” dipping. Paramount crystals would have to be ordered…but makes the dipping smoother. Another tip….I dip my petite fours and I dip them in 1 can of store bought icing (I use Duncan Hines chocolate) with 2 squares of almond bark and a little paramount crystals. Dips nicely…I use a double broiler. Just thought I would share that. It doesn’t dry as hard obviously so that would be a problem if they weren’t set out individually. Anyway, thanks for the idea! I think I am going to give this a whirl!
Thaaaaaank you for posting this recipie!!! I had these at a bridal/baby shower and have been wanting to know where I can find them… now I can make my own! Yay! :)
We made the red velvet cake balls a few days ago with white chocolate, and they were awesome! So this week, we tried it with German chocolate cake mix and frosting. The texture was a little dryer than with cream cheese frosting, but they still rolled well, and came our incredibly delicious! We're going to keep experimenting with different flavors…this concept is too cool!!!!!
This is a really delayed comment but i love these !!! i need to make a favor box for family and i wanted to try these, how many packs of candy melts do get through for 1 recipe ? i just need an idea so i prepped I love love love your site !!!! Thanks so much
These are so cute! I speeded up the process by crumbling up the cake and putting it in the freezer to cool. Then mix in the frosting and put back in the freezer for like 5 min before rolling the balls! It has worked great so far (haven't dipped yet). I also didn't use the sticks because I didn't have any but I like the truffle look just as much
I am in the process of making these red velvet cake balls! I am so excited & Thank you for this recipe. You have inspired me to start baking! I love your work!
My mom and I made these for my engagement party earlier this year, and they were the hit of the party. People are still talking about them six months later!! They really weren't that hard to do – just a little time consuming, but once we got into a groove it was easy…
BTW, I'm throwing a baby shower in a few weeks – and saw the Pie Pops today. I can't wait to try them, they look delicious AND adorable!!
Hi, a quick question. How do you get the vivid red colour in Red Velvet cake? I can't see how any cake with cocoa in can turn out such a stunning colour – mine is a rather murky pink! I made it from a recipe as we don't have boxes of it here in the UK. Could it be that I used natural red colouring rather than another sort? Thanks for your help, you have amazing ideas!
Bakerella, i tried the red velvet cake balls and they were such a big hit!! i am not much of a baker but they turned out really good and were supper yummy! I would like to try it with strawberry cake, would i still use the cream cheese frosting or soemthing else?? Thanks for the awesome idea!
Michelle Geraghty – I doubt you did anything wrong. Next time, just add less frosting to suit your tastes. You only need enough to help form the cake into balls. Also, the texture changes slightly after a day or two. I think that's when they taste best.
i let out such a sigh of contentment after biting into one- it made the wait time for these so worth it. thank goodness i'm having ppl over tonight otherwise i could sit with the pan on my lap and eat the whole thing….and i'm only slightly joking.
Thankyou so much for introducing me to cake balls! I found your blog a couple of weeks ago and knew I had to use them for my son's b'day…and so I made him a cake ball car cake! he loved it and everybody was amazed! Thank you and please have a look at my cake if you like :) http://tinyurl.com/carcake
Michelle Geraghty, AVT 307.004, Spring 2008 —
Reply
i think i did something wrong. i used canned frosting (cream cheese) and they came out with a really weird texture. but then again, i'd never had them before so i dont know if the texture was correct or what. it was kind of like wet cake. my husband and i hated it and i threw the whole thing away.
what SHOULD these taste like? i mean, i could taste the cake, then there was this sweetness of the frosting, but the whole thing was like a lump of wet cake and not very appitizing.
this is an awesome recipe. Red Velvet Cake has been my fave since I have been a little child. I am going to a party on sunday and am going to try and make them!! Thanks a lot :)
Not sure if my post went through the first time around so sorry for the duplicate.
What is chocolate bark? Can I use the chocolate bars that you find at the grocery stores and can make chocolate covered pretzels and strawberries? I want to do this for my sisters baby shower this weekend. I have to do a dessert adn want to try this one. Thanks
What is chocolate bark? Would the chocolate bars that youbuy to make chocolate covered pretzels or chocolate covered strawberries work the same? Thank you want to try this for a baby shower for my sister this weekend.
Hi Bakerella, My daughter's 2nd Birthday is coming up and the Theme is going to be Butterflies. I've tried your Cakepops a couple of times and I think I might be ready for Shapes/Animals. Have you ever done Butterflies??
Hi Bakerella – Love your blog! These cake balls seemed perfect for my husband to bring to work for his team. I set out to the local grocery store with my 7-month old and was bummed to find they didn't have any white melting chocolate. Thinking of being Patriotic so close to July 4th, I bought blue chocolate. As I was making the balls Monday night after dinner I realized my husband was being forced to bring blue balls into work! It didn't seem to matter much as he got tons of compliments on the treat. Can't wait to try more recipes.
This really is a great recipe. They are very rich, decadent bits of deliciousness. Thanks for sharing!
Wanted to mention that I couldn't find the chocolate at any of my grocery stores (no surprise), so I used white chocolate and dark chocolate chips. The consistency is probably very different, but this definitely worked just fine. Just in case anybody else finds herself in a pinch.
I'm sorry if this has been asked and answered already.. Wouldn't melted chocolate chips work just as well as the candy chips from Hobby Lobby? (BTW – I am tickled pink that I found your amazing blog! It's such an inspiration!)
I've been dying to make these since you published the blog, and I finally had the chance this weekend. they're my surprise contribution to a camping trip that begins tomorrow, but I brought some into the office for some feedback.
WOW. everyone has flipped for them! unfortunately, I couldn't find any red velvet cake mix and since I didn't have the ingredients on hand, I improvised with two different cake/frosting flavors: chocolate cake and chocolate frosting (I'm a choco-holic, what can I say) and lemon cake with cream cheese frosting.
I had a little trouble with the chocolate dipping at first, but once I figured out a good technique I was flying. they turned out great, and they're flying off the plate! I can't wait to surprise my friends around the campfire tomorrow, thanks!
Dana – it will work with other cake and frosting combinations. Just watch your proportions if you are doing homemade. Add frosting a little at a time until it is moldable, and holds it shape. If you add too much frosting, you can add more cake to compensate.
im in Australia and dont have access to red velvet cake mix or the icing you are talking about. Would they work with , say a choc mud cake and creme cheese and icing sugar mixture???/
I found this recipe by chance and took a chance on it for a birthday party, and it was a screaming success. I couldn’t find red velvet cake mix, so I used cherry chip. And I couldn’t find chocolate bark, so I just used chocolate chips with a little extra oil, and they turned out great. One guest called them the yummiest food he’s ever eaten, though they were too sweet for me. I might need to make the cake and frosting from scratch next time, so I can cut down on the sugar.
Thanks for the great idea. I’ll definitely be crawling your blog for more!
I really want to try making these but i cant find any sort of cream cheese frosting here in Australia. We have normal philadelphia cream cheese. Would that work? Other then that we have betty crocker chocolate frosting in a can. I dont know if that’s similar?
My husband and I made these today for a Coast Guard Admiral! My husband is a personal cook for her over here in D.C. and she wanted something sweet to carry into the office to share. I have been raving about your website to him for months because I just adore your creations. Finally, I sold him on trying the Red Velvet Cake Balls! He loved them, and has told me at least 3 or 4 times what a great idea it was to make them! We did half in white chocolate and half in milk. I love the white chocolate, not only for taste but the visual effect as well.
His favorite cake is the Confetti Cake with the specs of color… I think I will try this recipe using that combo of cake/icing dipped in white chocolate for his birthday in August. They are going to be super sweet, but hopefully a big hit!!
Have you tried a chocolate cake using creamy peanut butter instead of icing? I adore choc/pb combo, but I’m not sure if the peanut butter might be too heavy in place of the icing.. any thoughts?
I just am joining this fun blog and saw your giveaway for the cupcake tower. Could you please enter my name, Krista. I love the chocolate on chocolate, chocolate buttercream is the end all, be all for me:)
Bakerella, just popped back to say thanks for your response. I think I really overheated my almond bark. I did a bit of research and found that the MORE you heat white chocolate, the more it clumps and/or separates. When I made them, I just thought “more heat more melt.” Nope. Found out the hard way. Thanks for your help! :)
My boyfriend and I made these for his birthday and they were great! The hardest part was the waiting…first for the cake to bake and cool, then for the formed balls to cool, then for the chocolate to harden. But it was worth it!
I made these for Mothers Day! They are super, but you really have to be sure you have others lined up to share them with or you just might eat too many of them as I did. Be careful and shareful! LOL
lovinsanta – Yeah, I think the fork helped get crumbs in your chocolate. Also, make sure they are firm/chilled when you dip. It will help. If you are dipping in white, you may want to re-dip them a second time if there’s any red specks.
Also, if they aren’t completely covered, that can happen. And you can use any cake and frosting combo you want.
I made these the other night and besides the chocolate turning pink, I had crumbs falling into the chocolate…could this be because I used a fork instead of spoon for dipping? Also, there were these little thinks (looked like cake sprouts growning) out of the side that I had to knock off is this the cold and chocolate making the cake expand thru where it wasn’t covered? (oh no I do have another ?) :)
If I make a german chocolate cake mix and use cocunut/pecan icing do you think it will work since it isn’t cream frosting? Then I thought I could dip them in chocolate.
Please let me know as I am hoping to make some more tomorrow for Teacher Appreciation Week.
I made a practice batch with boxed red velvet cake and homemade cream cheese icing (left over from cinnamon rolls). They weren’t hard to make at all, although they were time-consuming, and the real cream cheese means that they need refrigeration. In order to get a really smooth vanilla candy shell, I dipped each ball twice.
I brought some of my cake balls to work, and have already received a marriage proposal. :)
Thank you thank you for sharing all your fantastic ideas.
I am halfway through making these (waiting for better chocolate to arrive) and as a tool tip I gotta mention that these are easy enough to make but are even easier if you use a pampered chef cookie scoop to make the cake balls. They all come out uniformly sized and shaped.
you may have answered this already but i couldn't find it…if i wanted to store these for more than a day or two, how would i do it? could i make the balls, put them in the freezer according to the recipe but then leave them there for a week or two before dipping them? or can i complete them, dipped & all, and then freeze them? how long are they good in an airtight container? i made strawberry cake dipped in white & milk chocolate for Easter and everyone loved them! thanks for the ideas!
Mel – Well, I have never heard about that brand, but that may not be your problem.
I think you maybe just overheated the chocolate.
Next time, just start out and do it in the microwave. In 30 sec intervals making sure to stir in between each time. Use the heat setting indicated in the directions.
And, if you have a Kroger grocery store nearby, try them for the chocolate bark candy coating. It’s always thin.
Can someone PLEASE tell me what I’m doing wrong here? I love the idea of these cake balls and I REALLY want to make them.
I had some leftover cake scraps from a cake I made. I crumbled them up with some leftover mocked whipped cream frosting and made 16 balls. I froze them for half an hour or so and then refrigerated them. They firmed right up–so far so good!
I’ve never used almond bark before. I bought some from a company called Plymouth Pantry. I nuked up all but three of the squares and put the thick melted stuff in a “Little Dipper” crockpot, thinking I’d be able to keep the mixture hot while working with it. Then I waited. And I waited. And I waited. It still seemed so thick. So I added a teaspoon of vegetable shortening, which seemed to thin things ever so slightly. I added another teaspoon, which did the same. Then I waited. And waited. Still too thick to dip and drip and actually be able to “tap” off any extra. So I poured the stuff back in a bowl and nuked it twice for 30 seconds, stirring between each time. It seemed to get THICKER!! I wondered if it just wasn’t getting hot enough. I touched it and burnt my finger–badly!!
I grabbed those cake balls and rolled them around as best as I got in the somewhat melted white almond bark, which seemed to thin out slightly as it COOLED. It still looked “piecey.” I froze the balls for a few minutes to harden them up.
They tasted DEVINE!!!!!!!!!! But man were they BUTT UGLY!! That’s OK because I’ll eat ’em all myself, but I’d sure like to make some pretty ones like Miss Bakerella has so I can actually serve them to guests. I’d be afraid to show them the ones I’ve made for fear of them thinking they were alien spawn. :)
Miss Bakerella, can you PLEASE tell me what I did wrong here? I think your idea is just fantabbydodab, and I’d sure like to make it the right way! Plus I want to make your Hello Kitty pops, and I don’t want them to look like mutant kitties. Thank you!
I guess I left my uncoated cake balls in the freezer too long? I left the balls to cool after their chocolate dip, and the cake expanded and cracked (or leaked through) the chocolate coating. It also caused the chocolate to sweat. Of course they are still delish, but not very pretty.
I loved your recipe! So I made them and then created a blog post. I linked it to you. I just thought I’d let you know. :) http://www.jlyonsfamily.blogspot.com
I have one word for these…..DANGEROUS!!! They are wonderful – I’m getting ready to make my 2nd batch of Red Velvet and I’m going to try lemon cake mix with lemon frosting. I can just see myself getting carried away with these!! Like I said, DANGEROUS!!! Debbie
Hi Bakerella! I (literally) Stumbled Upon via StumbleUpon your blog and fell in love with your cake pops. I made these yesterday and brought them to work with me – needless to say they were a hit and I am in love. I want to make more and more of them. Everyone I work with wants the recipe…care if I share?
Thank you so much for sharing these – they are probably the best thing I have ever eaten!
Veronica – If you have the cake mixed and rolled, that would be best.You can refrigerate them up to several hours in advance. If you use the freezer, they only need about 15-20 min. (Not frozen)
And at the very least, mixed with frosting and ready to roll.
Do you have a kitchen you can work in for the group? It can get messy.
I was thinking of making the cake balls as a craft project for my friends club group at church since it looks sooooo cute. But I was wondering if I were to provide pre-baked cakes and just had the girls roll the balls…how long would they have to freeze to firm up? I mean can they firm up and be dipped in a hour? I guess I could have the girls roll them and freeze them and then next meeting dip them? Since we only meet once a week, can the balls survive the week long freeze? Thank you and all my 6-8 grade girls will thank you!
Hi!! I’m so excited to make these for my sisters bridal shower- can I use buttercream frosting instead of cream cheese, how do you think that would turn out?
Hi Bakerella- I found out about your cake balls from Pioneer Woman. When need arose to bring a gift to a hostess, I made a batch of devil’s food cake balls. When I gave them to the hostess, she exclaimed in delight: “Bakerella!”. The cake balls were a huge hit. Thanks for sharing!
I gave it a go tonight… But I should of read your comments before. Husband says they are great but I’ve had better. (Girl at work made them and told me about your Blog). I too had trouble dipping them. Plus a little too moist and sweet. I used a food processor to beak up the cake. Could that be the cause of them being too gooey?? BTW… thank you so much for sharing your recipes, you’ve reignited my love for baking!!
I’m making these for a friend for her birthday! I am SO excited. I just hope that using baking chocolate will work just as well when melted down. Maybe I’ll stir in some cream to lighten it up a bit?
We’ll see. The cake balls have been chilling since yesterday, so tonight’s task is to cover ’em in chocolate.
im planning on making these for an upcoming event, but i’ll be short on time. if i put the cake in the freezer before the chocolate coating, how long should i have them in there?
and once i cover it in chocolate, how long before they set?
When I tried these, my chocolate hardened too quickly from the coldness of the cakeballs. By the time I took it out of the bowl it hardened – didn’t look purty! What am i doing wrong?
(I froze the cakeballs overnite – was that too long?)
Anonymous – Thanks, I don’t know why people can’t take pics of their own stuff especially if they are selling them.
Amy – yes, they are addictive
Amy – thanks
Lisa1219 – I haven’t used a mixer, so maybe
marymary – no, but sounds good.
JB said… Is there a difference between chocolate melts and bark?
no difference
Also, have you done this with a vanilla cake mix or yellow cake?
yes
Were there any adjustments to the recipe for that?
no
Did it taste as good?
not one of my faves
Also, would you recommend folding the cream cheese into the cake mix or can you use a stand mixer and use that?
I use a spoon to mix the two
With my first attempt with the red velvet cake, I was only doing the cake balls and the cake it seemed to get too soft/warm to mold into a ball and hold the shape while dipping into the melted chocolate. Does that make sense?
use a little less frosting next time and keep them in the fridge for a while before dipping.
Is there a difference between chocolate melts and bark? I want to make these for my daughter’s birthday celebration. Also, have you done this with a vanilla cake mix or yellow cake? Were there any adjustments to the recipe for that? Did it taste as good? Also, would you recommend folding the cream cheese into the cake mix or can you use a stand mixer and use that? With my first attempt with the red velvet cake, I was only doing the cake balls and the cake it seemed to get too soft/warm to mold into a ball and hold the shape while dipping into the melted chocolate. Does that make sense? Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much!
Ever used a slow cooker to melt your chocolate and keep it warm while you work? I learned this candy-making tip from my mother-in-law and it works like a champion.
I made these but they were really creamy, not as cakey in the middle. I used an electric mixer, is that where I went wrong? they were still really good. again… HUGE hit!!!
Also, the Callebaut white chocolate works really well and is less tacky than the chips to work with, although i found mixing some chips in made it set faster. White chocolate sets well in the fridge but for dark or milk chocolate it seemed to work best to let them set at room temp before placing in the fridge to avoid that spotty or oily looking surface.
They turned out awesome (I won the “best balls” category at a themed valentine’s bake-off party) and wanted to make sure you got credit! I sent some to my boyfriend for valentine’s and he has become obsessed as well ( common theme?) so I brought him some white chocolate covered lemon cake balls with cream cheese frosting this weekend- I don’t think any combination can go wrong with this recipe! I think I am becoming obsessed with melting chocolate…
If you don’t have a double boiler I placed a small saucepan on the stove with 1 inch of water in it on simmer, put a wok steamer insert (flat, slotted thin metal) on top and then another smaller pan rested on that, no chance to burn that far away and the chocolate stayed melted between pouring over bon bons.
This might sound odd, but I recognized your photos and saw that there is a seller on Etsy under the username “cakeballfactory” who is using your red velvet cake ball photos.
I wasn’t sure if you were this person or not, so I figured I would let you know!
I made these a couple of weeks ago and they were amazing!
I’m going to make them next week for a friend’s bday. I wanted to experiment with flavors and really needed some advice lol. I am going to make white cake and wanted to put lemon curd instead of icing in it, would it be too sticky? Or should I just stick with a the lemon frosting?
I just made two batches of these and it’s not enough! Everyone loves them and wants more! This was my first attempt at baking, so thank you for a fun and easy recipe! I’ve posted pictures on my blog if you’re interested. :)
I’m in the process of making these (I let them sit in the fridge overnight, since I was busy to coat them with chocolate until now. I’m using a strawberry cake mix with cream cheese frosting and semi-sweet chocolate chips. I got around 75 balls…
This is a fantastic idea, I made these for valentine’s this year and they were a hit!
Just a note – like some other people I couldn’t find any of the candy coating at the local store, so instead I used regular chocolate (milk and white) melted with a little bit of shortening, like is used for dipping fruit. I was really careful while dipping them, and they ended up looking very smooth like in your pictures.
I made these this last weekend and they were a huge success! Thanks so much for sharing! I used a French Vanilla cake and mixed it with strawberry whipped frosting and fresh strawberries, and they turned out very well, in case anyone was curious about adding fresh fruit.
I made these over the weekend from a yellow cake mix – WOW! They are my new favorite treat! Thanks for sharing the technique with us, and thanks for being so awesome to actually reply to comments :) I documented my process on Flickr – http://flickr.com/photos/thepeachmartini/sets/72157613805425290/
I found this recipe while at work the other day, and couldn’t wait for a day off to try them. I used chocolate cake and mixed some alcohol into the canned frosting, and they turned out great! I’ve got one batch with mint-chocolate Bailey’s Irish Cream, and one batch with Kahlua. I’m going to try them with Grand Marnier next.
I want to make these SO BAD for my boyfriend’s little sister’s seventh birthday party (well, into cupcake pops actually), but they can’t have chocolate (some extreme allergy or something). Any ideas on substitutes for the dips?
Wonderful–thank you! I made them with white, dark and milk chocolate and they are all great. I also made some with strawberry cake, and my husband loved them!
Oh, I also put a pink candy heart on each one. I made red velvet with dark chocolate and put a red heart on each of those. I wish I took pictures! But they are gone. My sis took them to work and my lovely son dumped the extras on the floor.
I just made some yummy ones for Valentines day. Strawberry cake, strawberry icing, and coated with milk chocolate candy coating. I had to come share the idea!
Bakerella – GREAT recipe! Thanks for this!! My grandmother used to coat her chocolate candies with a mixture of chocolate chips and a tiny bit of parafin wax (to help the chocolate firm and set). Do you think this would work in the absence of candy-coating chocolate? I know not to use too much wax since it greatly affects the taste of the chocolate, but just enough to help it set…what do YOU think??
For ways to get shinier chocolate without a marble slab (http://www.cookingforengineers.com/article/155/Tempering-Chocolate). I tried this recipe but used a chocolate cake mix, with 1 oz of coloring, it made a rather burgundy looking (or spleen colored for those medical types out there) cake which as a vet i found kinda cool! I used the chocolate cake (it wasn’t German and had no pudding though-taken from http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/cake-mix-recipes/m-red-cake.htm) so i substituted water, oil and sour cream for the milk and oil the recipe called for. Delicious! Very moist when frosting (i used the recipe for homemade cream cheese frosting) was added but overnight in the fridge and magically they do firm up. Tasty without a coating either. I added red sprinkles to the uncoated balls, so they will have a little crunch once coated. I am in the process of learning how to melt/dip them right now. So far, an awesome recipe/base for future experimentation.
Hi Bakerella! Thank you for always sharing your recipes.
I was thinking to make these for a friend of mine, but she deeply dislikes anything cheese. What else do you think I could use to add to the cake crumbles to roll the balls up? Thank you in advance!
These balls look deliciously gorgeous. I just have one querry though.. Is there any substitution for cream cheese frosting? (In India, its a rare possibility to get this kinda frosting)
This is a dangerous recipe–so easy, so tasty, so…not exactly healthy! Now everyone in my church group thinks I’m a cooking genius. Keep the awesome recipes coming, please! And thanks.
Hi Bakerella! First, I want to say that I LOVE LOVE LOVE your blog! All your cupcake pops are super cute and I can’t wait to make that amazing peanut butter fuge cake – yum. Anyways, I wanted to tell you that I made the cake balls today…no luck :) they were delicious, but I definitely need some dipping practice!! My friends love them though, and I hope they can survive the mail – I am sending them to my mom as a surprise birthday gift! Thanks for the awesome idea!
you need to find Candy coating or candy melts. Kroger, Hobby Lobby, Michaels carry some.
That said, you can try the baker’s chocolate if that’s all you have, but it may be sticky to your fingers. You can try adding a drop or two of oil also to help thin it out.
i made these today! so yummy, but on the rich side. i’m gonna have to watch how many i eat! thanks for the great idea! i was worried when i first made them into balls [it seemed like they wouldnt keep together] but when i froze them it worked out perfectly.
Hi, I love your idea for cake pops. I can’t wait to try them out. I was wondering if there is any way to make these with chocolate chip cookies or any other cookies for that matter. It seems possible, using the same technique as the oreo/ nutter butter cookies, but what would be a good mix in rather than the cream cheese? peanut butter?
super scrumptuous! thank you! looks like someone is making a nice amount of $$ using your idea… http://crunchyjewelsbyjuliele.blogspot.com/ going for $70 a dozen on etsy! think i’ll just make them myself :)
This is a neat recipe. Someone gave me the link to it. My mind ran wild with this one. But after reading it. I had all sorts of ideas for this cake. It’s neat as it is. But it could be done with any flavor cake. I was thinking a Easter thing. Using that Funfetti cake. The cream cheese frosting as stated. Rolling the cakes to look like easter eggs. Chilling as the recipe says. Using white chocolate. I think you can put a couple drops of food coloring in it when you melt it down. Make different colors. Roll in different colors. Decorate up a basket. Put your cake eggs in it. It would make a nice center piece on the table as well as a nice fun holiday dessert the kids would like.
Or if you did them as the recipe says. You could after you rolled in chocolate. Roll immediately in jimmys, candy sprinkles, chopped nuts or coconut. I was thinking chopped pecans would be good. Or you could drizzle the balls with white chocolate for a tri color thing. I think this recipe could be done with basically any flavor cake mix. They just show it with red velvet cake. Making these smaller. Rolling in the different things I listed above. You could call them Bon Bons I guess.
These were so good the people at the party I took them to were calling them “crack balls”. None of them made it home uneaten. For the people who can’t find red velvet cake, german chocolate cake is extremely similar in flavor (most recipes for both use buttermilk, vinegar, and cocoa powder). I nearly choked when someone said they found a mix for $12! I personally tend to find when it comes down to it with red velvet cake (and it is my favorite cake of all time), making the cake from scratch isn’t necessarily worth it unless you have a special family recipe, and making the icing from scratch ALWAYS is. Plus, cream cheese icing is the easiest icing ever (most recipes out there are for two pounds so you’ll need to half them). I definitely ran out of chocolate bark (1lb package) before I was much over halfway done. I have no idea what I did differently- maybe there’s a trick to getting your chocolate thinner?
Yet again, I used your tutorial to make goodies for a gathering. Lat June I made the red velvet cake balls for a family reunion and this time I took it a step further and made what I call the “Snowball cake balls” for our office Christmas party. To see please go here:
Thanks for the great idea! I made these for my daughters second birthday party and they were a big hit. I also made a German Chocolate batch and Funfetti ones with white almond bark. YUM!
I did a spin on this recipe. I used coconut cake and coconut icing (tinted pink). After I dipped them in chocolate I did a pink icing squiggle on there to match the pink on the inside. They taste like Mounds candy bars!!!!
I’ve done it by filling up the cookie cutters, but the other way is worth a try. If you do, make sure to set the cookie sheet in the freezer for a little while to get firm. It will help to cut.
I wanted to make these in shapes with a cookie cutter..would you recommend pushing all of the cake and icing out on a sheet or just filling up the cookie cutters?
I just came across this recipe today, and I love it! I can’t wait to try these. I posted a link to this recipe on my Creative Entertaining blog; I hope that’s okay. You can check it out here: http://creativeentertaining.blogspot.com/
I made these for Christmas and they were a hit. Mine weren’t as pretty as yours but they tasted wonderful. Everyone asked for the recipe..I have sent them all to your blog. You are so very creative and talented.
I just had to comment and let you know how incredible these are!! For a bridal shower, I pressed the red velvet mixture through a heart shaped cookie cutter and then covered with the melted chocolate to make chocolate covered hearts. They came out soooo adorable, and are even more delishious than they are cute (My super kind husband was great enough to “dispose” of the ones that didn’t look “pretty enough” as he said!) LOL
I too froze the hearts and only took out a dozen or so at a time so they held up nicely. I used a double boiler for the chocolate and thinned it out a little with some veggie oil! I will be making them again for Valentines Day as hearts!!
I just had to let you know that I made these Red Velvet Cake Balls – and also the Oreo ones and the Nutter Butter ones – for Christmas and they were so easy and fun! There’s a picture on my blog if you want to take a look:
I needed to stop by and post a message of thanks to you, Bakerella, for having this recipe available. I am in LOVE with these. I was first introduced to cake balls by a friend who made pink lemonade ones (which weren’t dipped and thusly became mushy, yummy blobs as the day wore on). But these are just perfect!
I made them for the Christmas celebrations my roomie and I are having – half of the batch went out on Christmas Eve and the rest are going out for our St. Stephen’s party tonight – and they were a BIG hit.
So thanks again for sharing such an amazing recipe and for all that wonderful baking you do :)
These are awesome! Thanks for the recipe. I made these last week and they are now one of the stars of my Christmas treat boxes that I’m giving to friends.
My chocolate coating did not come out as pretty as yours, but I learned a lot this first time. I will be making these again :)
great recipe..thanks! I made mine pretty simple..with chocolate cake and vanilla icing. I am interested in how you made the chocolate coating look so nice though??
I haven’t read all the replies, so hope this isn’t redundant!
I’m stoked to try the red velvet cake balls, but am having a D’Oh moment. I could have sworn the recipe called for Peppermint Bark, so that’s what I bought. Will this work, or should I head back out for chocolate?
This is a great recipe for anyone who wants/needs to make this from scratch. I usually make cupcakes for my husband’s birthday, but I think I will have to try these this year! I can’t wait to see how they turn out!
I made these this past weekend for a cookie exchange and for the teachers at my boys school. I was almost assaulted when I got to school last night by all the teachers wanting the recipe and telling me that those were better than __________ (you fill in the blank).
Here’s a blog post that I even did on Monday about my Red Velvet Cake Balls and how they turned out!
Can you tell us how long the cake balls will last? (If they last….) I noticed on one of your comments that you said it is not required to keep cold. Do you know how long they will stay good just in a sealed, covered dish.
I made these this weekend and they are wonderful – I froze my cake balls and only took out a dozen or so at a time so they would stay frozen. Thus no crumbs in the melted chocolate.
I also melted my chocolate in a heat proof bowl and put INSIDE a larger pot with several inches of water in it – kept it on the stove in simmering water. This way, the chocolate stays thin.
Use a ‘slatted’ spoon (with holes) to dip the balls into the chocolate and it drains back into melted chocolate. Then sprinkle with Christmas colored sprinkles.
You’ll only get better every time you do it. And good job on going for both. I like them each for different reasons. I think the German cake version will be a hit.
Hi there. Every Thanksgiving I make some kind of desert(s) to go along with dinner. I’ve always had a knack for cooking and baking and I needed something to turn dinner up a notch. So when I found this entry in your blog, it was my eureka moment. Made my cake and frosting from scratch, so it made it even more special. I also made the oreo balls as well. I don’t have a food processor yet, so crushing them by hand was a lot of work, but I managed. I did mangled the poor ziplock bag to bits.
I’m still getting the hang of dipping them, since mine didn’t come out as nice as your. But they were absolutely delicious. My friends are now asking me to make them some for their Christmas parties. I might just even try doing this with the annual german chocolate cake I bake every christmas.
This site focuses on fun and easy baking. You’ll find ideas for cake pops (a Bakerella creation), cakes, cupcakes, cookies, and more. You may even find yourself smiling from all the sweetness.
Natalie – not really. I haven’t tested different time frames.
Rachel – sure.
Crystal – make sure the balls are firm when you dip. The melts should be fluid so you can dip and remove in one motion. You don’t want to swirl them around. Same for the cake balls. Don’t roll those around either. Drop the balls in the melts. cover tops with a spoon and lift ball out with the spoon. tap off any excess. If the melts are too thick you can add paramount crystals or vegetable oil to help thin it out.
Hi, I am having a problem with the cake balls. Originally they were supposed to be pumpkin cake pops but the sticks kept sliding through the tops. I am not sure what I am doing wrong. When I dunk them in the melt, the balls don’t want to stay on the sticks either. It seems like the candy melt is too thick for the cake balls. They want to break or slide off. I bought the orange candy melts in a bag. Any suggestions? When I tried to just do cake balls, the balls seem to be coming apart and not wanting to roll on the candy melt. I made them with a box of yellow cake mix and a can of cream cheese icing. Please help :)
One thing that works great is if you incorporate mini chocolate chips into the cake batter before baking.
I have made the Oreo cakes and these but with toffee muffins and they’ve gone down so so well (especially as I added a little Jack Daniels!!!! Planning on making lots of cake pops for christmas presents! Well done, you’ve shown me a new way of thinking about foods that I’d have never thought about! xxx
Wow! My friend had your website as a link so i followed it, and I am so excited! You are amazing!!! I am going to try a bunch of these!!!
Wow! I’ve totally fallen in love with your site! I now have the urge to just bake, bake, bake! I’m definitely going to try these…and perhaps just about everything on your site! Thanks!
Would it be ok to use a double boiler on low heat as opposed to a microwave to melt and work with the chocolate? Would it change the outcome at all?
I was planning to try these for the first time for a work function, however the event has been moved. Any idea how long these stay good in the freezer??
I was browsing online and i came upon your website. congratulations! you do such an amazing job. I did try these out with my daugther this weekend..she’s 8 and she had a blast!! mine balls came out ok, i think a tad bit to mushy…but after reading through the comments i think i added too much frosting and it was the “whipped” kind..only kind i had…and my chocolate was a bit too thick so they looked more like ball blobs!! now i’m anxious to try them again…..i look forward to trying your many other creations…all the best and much continued success!!!
Joellen – not sure how long, but you can freeze them.
holly-louise – it can be any flavor. Don’t buy the whipped kind though.
jessica – yes. The shapes are made after the cake is cooked and crumbled. Adding the frosting lets you roll in a ball or shape into something else.
eva – use any frosting flavor. It’s about 1 3/4 cup.
essie – you can buy candy melts online. Also called, confectioners coating, compound coating, bark coating.
kiki – could be you rolled them too tight or the coating was too hot or the balls were too cold. Make sure they aren’t frozen.
Preeti – until they are firm.
jane – sure, you can freeze the cake.
Hi Bakerella, I have gotten so many great ideas from you!! I have a question about the cakes – prior to making cake balls. Can you bake the cake ahead of time, then freeze it till you’re ready to make the balls? I know you shouldn’t freeze the pre-dipped balls for very long, but will it affect the cake if that is frozen ahead of time? I will be making them soon, but I will be short on time – so I would like any shortcuts I can get! Thanks!
Hi, I can’t remember if I have commented already… I just wanted to say I made these for the third time last week :) The first time I made them for my friend’s birthday party, and everyone LOVED them. Then I made them for my mellophone section in marching band, and they loved them, too. One of my friend’s boyfriends liked them so much he wanted them for HIS birthday, so I gave the recipe to my friend and off she went. The reason I made them last week was for a bake sale on Friday at a football game (benefiting Relay for Life) and made 23 packages of 4 ($1 each). They were all sold by third quarter. (And that’s with all the other yummy baked goods that other girls baked there, too!) So thank you for such a fantastic recipe :D
(I’ve made them with red velvet cae, yellow cake, devil’s food cake, and angel food cake.)
A great treat. I sooo want to make these soon. I just discovered red velvet cake and these will be a great way to to have it .
How many hrs do I have to keep them in the fridge?
pssst, i make them with a recipe from vanillacupcakes an after crumbling i mix it with espresso and peanutbutter…..yummiie :D
I have had so much fun with this recipe! It is so versatile! I brought them to my women’s meeting placed around and in my kahlua cake and then I made them for my son’s kindergarden snack as “eyes” using m&m for the irises! Not to mention they are so yummy! They seem to get better the more times I make them! I would love to send the pictures.
this is so so awesome! I am so drooling now!
I am really excited about these. I love things that are small and bite sized. I am going to try doing it with Funfetti cake and vanilla frosting. I am going to top them with sprinkles. I am making them for a class of teacher education people so I think the color is appropriate. :) So excited.
sorry if you have already answered this question but….
i tried these yesterday and everything was fine until the chocolate started cracking after it had set on the balls….. just wondering if you knew why this was???
thanks..
YOUR’S LOOK SO GOOD! I tried this out yesterday, but I used chocolate chips instead since I don’t know where to buy chocolate bark around here. The melted chocolate chips were way too thick, so I tried thinning it out with oil. But when they dried, you can see the texture of the cake balls, it’s not smooth like yours! The chocolate is also way too soft. I can’t touch them without leaving marks. Is there another alternative to chocolate bark?Also, I had to do these pretty fast, since if they stayed in the chocolate for too long, they would start falling apart. Is there something I’m doing wrong?
Hi, I’d really like to make these but we don’t have ‘cans of cream cheese frosting’ in Australia. I could make cream cheese frosting but I have no idea how much is in a ‘can’?
thankyou for your help!
Have you tried this with other cake flavors? So on the cake pops that look like cup cakes or other shapes, do you just shape them before you bake them in to what ever shape you want?
OK so I am getting on the cakepop band wagon a little late here, but I am going to a TWLIGHT Party and will be making these, dipped in white and coated with the irridesent spakle sugar in honor of Team Edward, do you hvae a suggestion for Team Jacob?
Awesome i tried it and my freind’s mouth was watering when it was done she ate it and immedietly got addicted
hi bakerella:)
the ‘1 can cream cheese frosting’ does it have to be cream cheese frosting or can it be any frosting ? i’m in the UK and never heard of crea cheese frosting before.
thanks x
An amazing idea and (just kill me now) my daughter wants these as the favors at her wedding. Any idea if you can freeze the finished product and for how long?
Thanks,
Joellen
Jennifer
You may be overheating the chocolate.
Heat on medium in 30 second intervals in the microwave and stir in between. Then if it’s still too thick – add some shortening or vegetable oil. You can also gently tap off any excess coating.
Esmeralda – you can use any flavor combination
Try less frosting next time and make sure your balls are firmly chilled. Dip in thin/fluid coating and make sure the coating surrounds the ball at the base of the stick
Nichole – they should be fine.
im in highschool (10th grade) and i made cake balls for the first time this school year for a friend’s birthday and i had alot of extras that i gave out. everyone Ate Them Up. they loved them and just freaked out. i think it’s because nobody ever had anything like it. so just wanted to say thanks.
you have made all my friends happy and wanting more :o]
Hello, I love your work. I want to make these for Thanksgiving. We’ll be traveling in the car for about an hour, if I keep them in an airtight container will they stick together?
Hi,I tried making cake balls using a box of D/H Devil cake mix,and buttercream frosting.I think I just added to much frosting,and did’nt let the cake cool enough.I tried to roll into balls and what a mess,then I tried to use the popcicle sticks and they came sliding down the stick.I got very frustrated and threw them all in the garbage,lol.I haven’t tried again.Are you suppose to use cream cheese frosting for any flavor of cake mix you use?I really wanted to make these right and at least try and make them for halloween for the g/kids school party.
Okay , so I am throughly frustrated! I have made three batches of cake balls…the first one with white chocolate bark from Krogers and the other two with Wilton’s candy melts and it doesn’t matter how I heat the chocolate it never seems to come out right. It’s always too thick and the cakeballs never have a smooth chocolatey appearance…more of a big glop of chocolate! I ended up at one point adding a little vegtable oil and that seemed to help thin the chocolate a smidge. What is going on? Is this normal and if so …how in the world do your cake balls and other cake pops look sooooo satiny smooth once done????
Jean – nope. It doesn’t matter.
You are so sweet to share all your tasty and creative secrets. I love all your ideas and cant wait to try these. Tonight I am making chocolate chip cookie pie!
Does it matter what kind of cak you use?
Also, Can you use a different kind of icing? Like vanilla?
These are beyond words! Had them at a rehersal dinner, and could not stop eatting them. Asked for the recipe and made them a couple of days later. OMG! This must be what people eat in heaven.
This looks exciting! I am doing a fall wedding….and an eyebrow raises….maybe I will try a batch of these for the bride as a “freebie” and see how they do? I am making a small cake and 200 petite fours, this might make a cute addition. I was thinking spice cake/cream cheese frosting since her colors are orange’s….I wonder….would parmount crystals help in the chocolate? I notice many people have “trouble” dipping. Paramount crystals would have to be ordered…but makes the dipping smoother. Another tip….I dip my petite fours and I dip them in 1 can of store bought icing (I use Duncan Hines chocolate) with 2 squares of almond bark and a little paramount crystals. Dips nicely…I use a double broiler. Just thought I would share that. It doesn’t dry as hard obviously so that would be a problem if they weren’t set out individually. Anyway, thanks for the idea! I think I am going to give this a whirl!
Thaaaaaank you for posting this recipie!!!
I had these at a bridal/baby shower and have been wanting to know where I can find them… now I can make my own! Yay!
:)
We made the red velvet cake balls a few days ago with white chocolate, and they were awesome! So this week, we tried it with German chocolate cake mix and frosting. The texture was a little dryer than with cream cheese frosting, but they still rolled well, and came our incredibly delicious! We're going to keep experimenting with different flavors…this concept is too cool!!!!!
Marilyn said, WOW, what a great site, I'm so glad my friend, Leslie, gave me this information. Can't wait to try the Red Velvet Cake Balls.
This is a really delayed comment but i love these !!! i need to make a favor box for family and i wanted to try these, how many packs of candy melts do get through for 1 recipe ? i just need an idea so i prepped
I love love love your site !!!! Thanks so much
These are so cute! I speeded up the process by crumbling up the cake and putting it in the freezer to cool. Then mix in the frosting and put back in the freezer for like 5 min before rolling the balls! It has worked great so far (haven't dipped yet). I also didn't use the sticks because I didn't have any but I like the truffle look just as much
I am in the process of making these red velvet cake balls! I am so excited & Thank you for this recipe. You have inspired me to start baking! I love your work!
My mom and I made these for my engagement party earlier this year, and they were the hit of the party. People are still talking about them six months later!! They really weren't that hard to do – just a little time consuming, but once we got into a groove it was easy…
BTW, I'm throwing a baby shower in a few weeks – and saw the Pie Pops today. I can't wait to try them, they look delicious AND adorable!!
Could be. You can also try using more of it.
Hi, a quick question. How do you get the vivid red colour in Red Velvet cake? I can't see how any cake with cocoa in can turn out such a stunning colour – mine is a rather murky pink! I made it from a recipe as we don't have boxes of it here in the UK. Could it be that I used natural red colouring rather than another sort? Thanks for your help, you have amazing ideas!
strawberry or vanilla frosting will work, too!
I did strawberry ones for Valentines day. I used strawberry icing instead of the cream cheese and they turned out great.
Bakerella, i tried the red velvet cake balls and they were such a big hit!! i am not much of a baker but they turned out really good and were supper yummy! I would like to try it with strawberry cake, would i still use the cream cheese frosting or soemthing else?? Thanks for the awesome idea!
Michelle Geraghty – I doubt you did anything wrong. Next time, just add less frosting to suit your tastes. You only need enough to help form the cake into balls. Also, the texture changes slightly after a day or two. I think that's when they taste best.
Charlotte – Glad you enjoyed them so much.
i let out such a sigh of contentment after biting into one- it made the wait time for these so worth it.
thank goodness i'm having ppl over tonight otherwise i could sit with the pan on my lap and eat the whole thing….and i'm only slightly joking.
Thankyou so much for introducing me to cake balls! I found your blog a couple of weeks ago and knew I had to use them for my son's b'day…and so I made him a cake ball car cake! he loved it and everybody was amazed! Thank you and please have a look at my cake if you like :)
http://tinyurl.com/carcake
i think i did something wrong. i used canned frosting (cream cheese) and they came out with a really weird texture. but then again, i'd never had them before so i dont know if the texture was correct or what. it was kind of like wet cake. my husband and i hated it and i threw the whole thing away.
what SHOULD these taste like? i mean, i could taste the cake, then there was this sweetness of the frosting, but the whole thing was like a lump of wet cake and not very appitizing.
Lisa – It's basically candy coating and is meant for dipping, not baking.
If you try regular chocolate, add some veg oil to make it easier to work with.
this is an awesome recipe. Red Velvet Cake has been my fave since I have been a little child. I am going to a party on sunday and am going to try and make them!! Thanks a lot :)
Not sure if my post went through the first time around so sorry for the duplicate.
What is chocolate bark? Can I use the chocolate bars that you find at the grocery stores and can make chocolate covered pretzels and strawberries? I want to do this for my sisters baby shower this weekend. I have to do a dessert adn want to try this one. Thanks
What is chocolate bark? Would the chocolate bars that youbuy to make chocolate covered pretzels or chocolate covered strawberries work the same?
Thank you want to try this for a baby shower for my sister this weekend.
Aurora – You should be able to find a small butterfly cutter and use the cupcake pop method.
Hi Bakerella,
My daughter's 2nd Birthday is coming up and the Theme is going to be Butterflies. I've tried your Cakepops a couple of times and I think I might be ready for Shapes/Animals. Have you ever done Butterflies??
Kind Regards,
Aurora
rora1313@sbcglobal.net
Hi Bakerella – Love your blog! These cake balls seemed perfect for my husband to bring to work for his team. I set out to the local grocery store with my 7-month old and was bummed to find they didn't have any white melting chocolate. Thinking of being Patriotic so close to July 4th, I bought blue chocolate. As I was making the balls Monday night after dinner I realized my husband was being forced to bring blue balls into work! It didn't seem to matter much as he got tons of compliments on the treat. Can't wait to try more recipes.
This really is a great recipe. They are very rich, decadent bits of deliciousness. Thanks for sharing!
Wanted to mention that I couldn't find the chocolate at any of my grocery stores (no surprise), so I used white chocolate and dark chocolate chips. The consistency is probably very different, but this definitely worked just fine. Just in case anybody else finds herself in a pinch.
RaeMaeLou – the candy melts work better. They are made for coating not baking.
A – I used canned, but you can make any frosting you want.
re the Cream Cheese Frosting, did you make it from scratch?
I'm planning on making these, but our grocery (I live out of the country) doesn't have the canned cream cheese frosting.
I'm sorry if this has been asked and answered already.. Wouldn't melted chocolate chips work just as well as the candy chips from Hobby Lobby? (BTW – I am tickled pink that I found your amazing blog! It's such an inspiration!)
I've been dying to make these since you published the blog, and I finally had the chance this weekend. they're my surprise contribution to a camping trip that begins tomorrow, but I brought some into the office for some feedback.
WOW. everyone has flipped for them! unfortunately, I couldn't find any red velvet cake mix and since I didn't have the ingredients on hand, I improvised with two different cake/frosting flavors: chocolate cake and chocolate frosting (I'm a choco-holic, what can I say) and lemon cake with cream cheese frosting.
I had a little trouble with the chocolate dipping at first, but once I figured out a good technique I was flying. they turned out great, and they're flying off the plate! I can't wait to surprise my friends around the campfire tomorrow, thanks!
Dana – it will work with other cake and frosting combinations. Just watch your proportions if you are doing homemade. Add frosting a little at a time until it is moldable, and holds it shape. If you add too much frosting, you can add more cake to compensate.
im in Australia and dont have access to red velvet cake mix or the icing you are talking about.
Would they work with , say a choc mud cake and creme cheese and icing sugar mixture???/
Karen – Usually Duncan Hines
Anonymous – That’s awesome!
I found this recipe by chance and took a chance on it for a birthday party, and it was a screaming success. I couldn’t find red velvet cake mix, so I used cherry chip. And I couldn’t find chocolate bark, so I just used chocolate chips with a little extra oil, and they turned out great. One guest called them the yummiest food he’s ever eaten, though they were too sweet for me. I might need to make the cake and frosting from scratch next time, so I can cut down on the sugar.
Thanks for the great idea. I’ll definitely be crawling your blog for more!
What brand cake mix do you use for the velvet cakes? Really curious to know…
Whitney – No. I think it would be too sticky. But, maybe if you used less and used it with brownies.
Apple – No, it’s not the same thing. You can use regular chocolate or vanilla frosting.
Hi!
I really want to try making these but i cant find any sort of cream cheese frosting here in Australia.
We have normal philadelphia cream cheese. Would that work?
Other then that we have betty crocker chocolate frosting in a can. I dont know if that’s similar?
My husband and I made these today for a Coast Guard Admiral! My husband is a personal cook for her over here in D.C. and she wanted something sweet to carry into the office to share. I have been raving about your website to him for months because I just adore your creations. Finally, I sold him on trying the Red Velvet Cake Balls! He loved them, and has told me at least 3 or 4 times what a great idea it was to make them! We did half in white chocolate and half in milk. I love the white chocolate, not only for taste but the visual effect as well.
His favorite cake is the Confetti Cake with the specs of color… I think I will try this recipe using that combo of cake/icing dipped in white chocolate for his birthday in August. They are going to be super sweet, but hopefully a big hit!!
Have you tried a chocolate cake using creamy peanut butter instead of icing? I adore choc/pb combo, but I’m not sure if the peanut butter might be too heavy in place of the icing.. any thoughts?
Thanks!!
Hi,
I just am joining this fun blog and saw your giveaway for the cupcake tower. Could you please enter my name, Krista. I love the chocolate on chocolate, chocolate buttercream is the end all, be all for me:)
thank you. Kristad@roadrunner.com
Bakerella, just popped back to say thanks for your response. I think I really overheated my almond bark. I did a bit of research and found that the MORE you heat white chocolate, the more it clumps and/or separates. When I made them, I just thought “more heat more melt.” Nope. Found out the hard way. Thanks for your help! :)
My boyfriend and I made these for his birthday and they were great! The hardest part was the waiting…first for the cake to bake and cool, then for the formed balls to cool, then for the chocolate to harden. But it was worth it!
I made these for Mothers Day! They are super, but you really have to be sure you have others lined up to share them with or you just might eat too many of them as I did. Be careful and shareful! LOL
lovinsanta – Yeah, I think the fork helped get crumbs in your chocolate. Also, make sure they are firm/chilled when you dip. It will help.
If you are dipping in white, you may want to re-dip them a second time if there’s any red specks.
Also, if they aren’t completely covered, that can happen. And you can use any cake and frosting combo you want.
Ahhh!!! I have a questions (okay 2)
I made these the other night and besides the chocolate turning pink, I had crumbs falling into the chocolate…could this be because I used a fork instead of spoon for dipping? Also, there were these little thinks (looked like cake sprouts growning) out of the side that I had to knock off is this the cold and chocolate making the cake expand thru where it wasn’t covered? (oh no I do have another ?) :)
If I make a german chocolate cake mix and use cocunut/pecan icing do you think it will work since it isn’t cream frosting? Then I thought I could dip them in chocolate.
Please let me know as I am hoping to make some more tomorrow for Teacher Appreciation Week.
Thanks a bunch!
I made a practice batch with boxed red velvet cake and homemade cream cheese icing (left over from cinnamon rolls). They weren’t hard to make at all, although they were time-consuming, and the real cream cheese means that they need refrigeration. In order to get a really smooth vanilla candy shell, I dipped each ball twice.
I brought some of my cake balls to work, and have already received a marriage proposal. :)
Thank you thank you for sharing all your fantastic ideas.
Wow. I did not need to know these existed. Seriously.
I’m in the process of baking a cake right now so that I can try this recipe!
I am halfway through making these (waiting for better chocolate to arrive) and as a tool tip I gotta mention that these are easy enough to make but are even easier if you use a pampered chef cookie scoop to make the cake balls. They all come out uniformly sized and shaped.
I love love love love this idea! Thank you for sharing your wonderful creations with your readers
Kristin – they last for several days in an airtight container.
? said.- sure, try it.
the candy melts harden.
cream cheese frosting isn’t a must. use chocolate or whatever.
hey!
can i use brownie instead of the cake??
btw, isit possible to use the chocolate that will harden by itself after melting??
cream cheese frosting, Isit a must? If yes, do you have the receipt? :)
hey!
can i use brownie instead of the cake??
btw, isit possible to use the chocolate that will harden by itself after melting??
cream cheese frosting, Isit a must? If yes, do you have the receipt? :)
hey!
can i use brownie instead of the cake??
btw, isit possible to use the chocolate that will harden by itself after melting??
cream cheese frosting, Isit a must? If yes, do you have the receipt? :)
hey!
can i use brownie instead of the cake??
btw, isit possible to use the chocolate that will harden by itself after melting??
cream cheese frosting, Isit a must? If yes, do you have the receipt? :)
hey!
can i use brownie instead of the cake??
btw, isit possible to use the chocolate that will harden by itself after melting??
cream cheese frosting, Isit a must? If yes, do you have the receipt? :)
you may have answered this already but i couldn't find it…if i wanted to store these for more than a day or two, how would i do it? could i make the balls, put them in the freezer according to the recipe but then leave them there for a week or two before dipping them? or can i complete them, dipped & all, and then freeze them? how long are they good in an airtight container?
i made strawberry cake dipped in white & milk chocolate for Easter and everyone loved them! thanks for the ideas!
Mel – Well, I have never heard about that brand, but that may not be your problem.
I think you maybe just overheated the chocolate.
Next time, just start out and do it in the microwave. In 30 sec intervals making sure to stir in between each time. Use the heat setting indicated in the directions.
And, if you have a Kroger grocery store nearby, try them for the chocolate bark candy coating. It’s always thin.
Other brands are Merckens (online and amazon)
and Make n mold (from Hobby Lobby)
Can someone PLEASE tell me what I’m doing wrong here? I love the idea of these cake balls and I REALLY want to make them.
I had some leftover cake scraps from a cake I made. I crumbled them up with some leftover mocked whipped cream frosting and made 16 balls. I froze them for half an hour or so and then refrigerated them. They firmed right up–so far so good!
I’ve never used almond bark before. I bought some from a company called Plymouth Pantry. I nuked up all but three of the squares and put the thick melted stuff in a “Little Dipper” crockpot, thinking I’d be able to keep the mixture hot while working with it. Then I waited. And I waited. And I waited. It still seemed so thick. So I added a teaspoon of vegetable shortening, which seemed to thin things ever so slightly. I added another teaspoon, which did the same. Then I waited. And waited. Still too thick to dip and drip and actually be able to “tap” off any extra. So I poured the stuff back in a bowl and nuked it twice for 30 seconds, stirring between each time. It seemed to get THICKER!! I wondered if it just wasn’t getting hot enough. I touched it and burnt my finger–badly!!
I grabbed those cake balls and rolled them around as best as I got in the somewhat melted white almond bark, which seemed to thin out slightly as it COOLED. It still looked “piecey.” I froze the balls for a few minutes to harden them up.
They tasted DEVINE!!!!!!!!!! But man were they BUTT UGLY!! That’s OK because I’ll eat ’em all myself, but I’d sure like to make some pretty ones like Miss Bakerella has so I can actually serve them to guests. I’d be afraid to show them the ones I’ve made for fear of them thinking they were alien spawn. :)
Miss Bakerella, can you PLEASE tell me what I did wrong here? I think your idea is just fantabbydodab, and I’d sure like to make it the right way! Plus I want to make your Hello Kitty pops, and I don’t want them to look like mutant kitties. Thank you!
Yeah. they shouldn’t be in the freezer very long.
You can always just redip them.
I guess I left my uncoated cake balls in the freezer too long? I left the balls to cool after their chocolate dip, and the cake expanded and cracked (or leaked through) the chocolate coating. It also caused the chocolate to sweat. Of course they are still delish, but not very pretty.
I’m gonna try them again today, though!
I loved your recipe! So I made them and then created a blog post. I linked it to you.
I just thought I’d let you know. :)
http://www.jlyonsfamily.blogspot.com
Kimberly – good!
Debbie – That’s exactly what happened to me.
I have one word for these…..DANGEROUS!!! They are wonderful – I’m getting ready to make my 2nd batch of Red Velvet and I’m going to try lemon cake mix with lemon frosting. I can just see myself getting carried away with these!! Like I said, DANGEROUS!!!
Debbie
Bakerella…YUM! These were so easy and so good. I’m wondering how German chocolate icing would be mixed with chocolate cake and dipped in chocolate??
Kimberly
Stefanie Hartung – they’re awesome.
jdumas – no problem. send them to the site.
Hi Bakerella! I (literally) Stumbled Upon via StumbleUpon your blog and fell in love with your cake pops. I made these yesterday and brought them to work with me – needless to say they were a hit and I am in love. I want to make more and more of them. Everyone I work with wants the recipe…care if I share?
Thank you so much for sharing these – they are probably the best thing I have ever eaten!
My kids did them better than me, not fair. they came out so adorable, thank you if you want to see we’re at http://overlyblessed.blogspot.com/
hugs
Stefanie Hartung – you’ll like
TheresaG – that’s hilarious.
Urooj Afzal – yes, you can.
Veronica – If you have the cake mixed and rolled, that would be best.You can refrigerate them up to several hours in advance. If you use the freezer, they only need about 15-20 min. (Not frozen)
And at the very least, mixed with frosting and ready to roll.
Do you have a kitchen you can work in for the group? It can get messy.
I was thinking of making the cake balls as a craft project for my friends club group at church since it looks sooooo cute. But I was wondering if I were to provide pre-baked cakes and just had the girls roll the balls…how long would they have to freeze to firm up? I mean can they firm up and be dipped in a hour? I guess I could have the girls roll them and freeze them and then next meeting dip them? Since we only meet once a week, can the balls survive the week long freeze? Thank you and all my 6-8 grade girls will thank you!
Hi!!
I’m so excited to make these for my sisters bridal shower- can I use buttercream frosting instead of cream cheese, how do you think that would turn out?
Hi Bakerella- I found out about your cake balls from Pioneer Woman. When need arose to bring a gift to a hostess, I made a batch of devil’s food cake balls. When I gave them to the hostess, she exclaimed in delight: “Bakerella!”. The cake balls were a huge hit. Thanks for sharing!
you’re brilliant-can’t wait to try it!
Tina – Just don’t tell them how many the recipe actually makes and you’re good.
Made these for my sons birthday party. It was hard sharing. They were so good, I almost ate them all myself.
Thanks for the recipe. I took a shot and will post on my blog. I gave you credit and linked to your blog.
try using a little less frosting next time. And you can use different flavors if the cream cheese frosting is too much for you.
I gave it a go tonight… But I should of read your comments before. Husband says they are great but I’ve had better. (Girl at work made them and told me about your Blog). I too had trouble dipping them. Plus a little too moist and sweet. I used a food processor to beak up the cake. Could that be the cause of them being too gooey??
BTW… thank you so much for sharing your recipes, you’ve reignited my love for baking!!
Little Bites N Pieces – not yet.
Deutlich – glad you found an answer.
ps: I read through some of the comments and noticed that some drops of vegetable oil were recommended. I’ll be sure to do that.
I’m making these for a friend for her birthday! I am SO excited. I just hope that using baking chocolate will work just as well when melted down. Maybe I’ll stir in some cream to lighten it up a bit?
We’ll see. The cake balls have been chilling since yesterday, so tonight’s task is to cover ’em in chocolate.
Do you sell your cake bites? If yes, what is your pricing?
Kitty – thanks
Ondine – they’ll be fine
Meeshy – what kind of chocolate are you using. And yes, don’t freeze them. Just keep them in the freezer long enough to get firm.
lainers 10 minutes in the freezer. They shouldn’t be frozen. You can keep them in the fridge for hours though.
and once i cover it in chocolate, how long before they set? about 10 minutes.
im planning on making these for an upcoming event, but i’ll be short on time. if i put the cake in the freezer before the chocolate coating, how long should i have them in there?
and once i cover it in chocolate, how long before they set?
thanks for sharing your recipes!
When I tried these, my chocolate hardened too quickly from the coldness of the cakeballs. By the time I took it out of the bowl it hardened – didn’t look purty!
What am i doing wrong?
(I froze the cakeballs overnite – was that too long?)
How long do these last for? Thinking of making them for a party 3 days off – will they still taste ok by then?
http://blog.nola.com/recipes/2009/02/red_velvet_cake_balls.html#more
My local newspaper ran this recently. I don’t know if you can do anything about it, or the copyrights, liberties of recipes.. but.. yeah.. just letting you know.
xoxo
Anonymous – Thanks, I don’t know why people can’t take pics of their own stuff especially if they are selling them.
Amy – yes, they are addictive
Amy – thanks
Lisa1219 – I haven’t used a mixer, so maybe
marymary – no, but sounds good.
JB said…
Is there a difference between chocolate melts and bark?
no difference
Also, have you done this with a vanilla cake mix or yellow cake?
yes
Were there any adjustments to the recipe for that?
no
Did it taste as good?
not one of my faves
Also, would you recommend folding the cream cheese into the cake mix or can you use a stand mixer and use that?
I use a spoon to mix the two
With my first attempt with the red velvet cake, I was only doing the cake balls and the cake it seemed to get too soft/warm to mold into a ball and hold the shape while dipping into the melted chocolate. Does that make sense?
use a little less frosting next time and keep them in the fridge for a while before dipping.
Is there a difference between chocolate melts and bark? I want to make these for my daughter’s birthday celebration. Also, have you done this with a vanilla cake mix or yellow cake? Were there any adjustments to the recipe for that? Did it taste as good? Also, would you recommend folding the cream cheese into the cake mix or can you use a stand mixer and use that? With my first attempt with the red velvet cake, I was only doing the cake balls and the cake it seemed to get too soft/warm to mold into a ball and hold the shape while dipping into the melted chocolate. Does that make sense? Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks so much!
Ever used a slow cooker to melt your chocolate and keep it warm while you work? I learned this candy-making tip from my mother-in-law and it works like a champion.
I made these but they were really creamy, not as cakey in the middle. I used an electric mixer, is that where I went wrong? they were still really good. again… HUGE hit!!!
Also, the Callebaut white chocolate works really well and is less tacky than the chips to work with, although i found mixing some chips in made it set faster. White chocolate sets well in the fridge but for dark or milk chocolate it seemed to work best to let them set at room temp before placing in the fridge to avoid that spotty or oily looking surface.
Bakerella,
They turned out awesome (I won the “best balls” category at a themed valentine’s bake-off party) and wanted to make sure you got credit! I sent some to my boyfriend for valentine’s and he has become obsessed as well ( common theme?) so I brought him some white chocolate covered lemon cake balls with cream cheese frosting this weekend- I don’t think any combination can go wrong with this recipe! I think I am becoming obsessed with melting chocolate…
If you don’t have a double boiler I placed a small saucepan on the stove with 1 inch of water in it on simmer, put a wok steamer insert (flat, slotted thin metal) on top and then another smaller pan rested on that, no chance to burn that far away and the chocolate stayed melted between pouring over bon bons.
Amy (the vet)
Hi there!
This might sound odd, but I recognized your photos and saw that there is a seller on Etsy under the username “cakeballfactory” who is using your red velvet cake ball photos.
I wasn’t sure if you were this person or not, so I figured I would let you know!
Laura – Why not experiment and do half and half.
Amy – YAY!
Made these for an Oscar’s party this past weekend, and it was a hit! I’m now dreaming of all the excuses I can come up with to make more :)
I love your blog! its my favorite!
I made these a couple of weeks ago and they were amazing!
I’m going to make them next week for a friend’s bday. I wanted to experiment with flavors and really needed some advice lol. I am going to make white cake and wanted to put lemon curd instead of icing in it, would it be too sticky? Or should I just stick with a the lemon frosting?
Elaine – now you know what it’s like. And they’ll be asking you to make more. Great work.
I just made two batches of these and it’s not enough! Everyone loves them and wants more! This was my first attempt at baking, so thank you for a fun and easy recipe! I’ve posted pictures on my blog if you’re interested. :)
bluejena – definitely!
Jen – yep. That works too.
kitten_ – wow. that’s a lot. I ususally get about 50. I guess I like bigger balls. :)
I’m in the process of making these (I let them sit in the fridge overnight, since I was busy to coat them with chocolate until now. I’m using a strawberry cake mix with cream cheese frosting and semi-sweet chocolate chips. I got around 75 balls…
This is a fantastic idea, I made these for valentine’s this year and they were a hit!
Just a note – like some other people I couldn’t find any of the candy coating at the local store, so instead I used regular chocolate (milk and white) melted with a little bit of shortening, like is used for dipping fruit. I was really careful while dipping them, and they ended up looking very smooth like in your pictures.
Thanks for the recipe!
Just realized this is a great use for leftover cupcakes… I’ll be trying it this afternoon! :)
Thanks for the heads up.
I made these this last weekend and they were a huge success! Thanks so much for sharing! I used a French Vanilla cake and mixed it with strawberry whipped frosting and fresh strawberries, and they turned out very well, in case anyone was curious about adding fresh fruit.
Peach Martini – glad you like them and thanks for taking time to comment.
I made these over the weekend from a yellow cake mix – WOW! They are my new favorite treat! Thanks for sharing the technique with us, and thanks for being so awesome to actually reply to comments :) I documented my process on Flickr – http://flickr.com/photos/thepeachmartini/sets/72157613805425290/
Thanks again!
Sierra – check out the white bark. It’s vanilla flavored and I don’t think there is actually any chocolate in it.
Diane – Yum!
I found this recipe while at work the other day, and couldn’t wait for a day off to try them. I used chocolate cake and mixed some alcohol into the canned frosting, and they turned out great! I’ve got one batch with mint-chocolate Bailey’s Irish Cream, and one batch with Kahlua. I’m going to try them with Grand Marnier next.
Thanks so much for the recipe!
I want to make these SO BAD for my boyfriend’s little sister’s seventh birthday party (well, into cupcake pops actually), but they can’t have chocolate (some extreme allergy or something). Any ideas on substitutes for the dips?
Anonymous – you can do that. I need to try it and see how good it works.
kristina b – cool
Heather – the strawberry with vanilla coating is really good, too.
Heather – I wish you had pics, too.
inthewabe – excellent
Elliot – Aren’t you a sweetie. I love it.
Lenna – good luck and you’re welcome.
These look fabulous. I'm going to try and make some this weekend. <3 Thanks for the recipe and idea!!
Simply delightful. A co-worker’s wife sent him to work with some of these. I’ve decided to make them for my wife for valentines day tomorrow.
These were a HUGE success at work today! Thanks so much.
Wonderful–thank you! I made them with white, dark and milk chocolate and they are all great. I also made some with strawberry cake, and my husband loved them!
Oh, I also put a pink candy heart on each one. I made red velvet with dark chocolate and put a red heart on each of those. I wish I took pictures! But they are gone. My sis took them to work and my lovely son dumped the extras on the floor.
I just made some yummy ones for Valentines day. Strawberry cake, strawberry icing, and coated with milk chocolate candy coating. I had to come share the idea!
Great recipe! I tried it yesterday and photo-documented each step. Thanks!
Bakerella – GREAT recipe! Thanks for this!! My grandmother used to coat her chocolate candies with a mixture of chocolate chips and a tiny bit of parafin wax (to help the chocolate firm and set). Do you think this would work in the absence of candy-coating chocolate? I know not to use too much wax since it greatly affects the taste of the chocolate, but just enough to help it set…what do YOU think??
janel – yay!
Anonymous – you can use any flavor frosting.
Cynthia – chocolate morsels or baking chocolate. You may have to add a few drops of veg oil to thin it out though
sakuraminamoto – Any other flavor frosting that she likes.
Amy – thanks for the tips amy!
For ways to get shinier chocolate without a marble slab (http://www.cookingforengineers.com/article/155/Tempering-Chocolate). I tried this recipe but used a chocolate cake mix, with 1 oz of coloring, it made a rather burgundy looking (or spleen colored for those medical types out there) cake which as a vet i found kinda cool! I used the chocolate cake (it wasn’t German and had no pudding though-taken from http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/cake-mix-recipes/m-red-cake.htm) so i substituted water, oil and sour cream for the milk and oil the recipe called for. Delicious! Very moist when frosting (i used the recipe for homemade cream cheese frosting) was added but overnight in the fridge and magically they do firm up. Tasty without a coating either. I added red sprinkles to the uncoated balls, so they will have a little crunch once coated. I am in the process of learning how to melt/dip them right now. So far, an awesome recipe/base for future experimentation.
Hi Bakerella! Thank you for always sharing your recipes.
I was thinking to make these for a friend of mine, but she deeply dislikes anything cheese. What else do you think I could use to add to the cake crumbles to roll the balls up?
Thank you in advance!
Gorgeous! What do you suggest as a substitution for the chocolate bark? It is not available where I live.
These balls look deliciously gorgeous.
I just have one querry though..
Is there any substitution for cream cheese frosting? (In India, its a rare possibility to get this kinda frosting)
This is a dangerous recipe–so easy, so tasty, so…not exactly healthy! Now everyone in my church group thinks I’m a cooking genius. Keep the awesome recipes coming, please! And thanks.
Tara – they should survive the journey and don’t worry. You’ll get better with each batch.
Hi Bakerella! First, I want to say that I LOVE LOVE LOVE your blog! All your cupcake pops are super cute and I can’t wait to make that amazing peanut butter fuge cake – yum. Anyways, I wanted to tell you that I made the cake balls today…no luck :) they were delicious, but I definitely need some dipping practice!! My friends love them though, and I hope they can survive the mail – I am sending them to my mom as a surprise birthday gift! Thanks for the awesome idea!
Baking chocolate is really meant to bake with.
you need to find Candy coating or candy melts. Kroger, Hobby Lobby, Michaels carry some.
That said, you can try the baker’s chocolate if that’s all you have, but it may be sticky to your fingers. You can try adding a drop or two of oil also to help thin it out.
All I found at the store was Baker’s brand but on the bottom it stated it was a baking chocolate, would that work?
Anonymous – just make the oreo balls with the cream cheese and put sticks in. They’ll be fine.
You can also do brownies with frosting.
Sara – I felt the same way when I first made them.
i made these today! so yummy, but on the rich side. i’m gonna have to watch how many i eat! thanks for the great idea! i was worried when i first made them into balls [it seemed like they wouldnt keep together] but when i froze them it worked out perfectly.
Hi, I love your idea for cake pops. I can’t wait to try them out. I was wondering if there is any way to make these with chocolate chip cookies or any other cookies for that matter. It seems possible, using the same technique as the oreo/ nutter butter cookies, but what would be a good mix in rather than the cream cheese? peanut butter?
Angel in Los Angeles
Anonymous – They are pretty
D´s – just use your favorite frosting flavor. Any will work. You don’t have to use cream cheese.
Hi
I was wondering if you know, if I could mix mascarpone cheese with icing sugar to make the creme cheese that goes in the lollipops?
I´m not sure what the creme cheese is exactly, but I do know that I can´t get it in my country :(
hope you can me
super scrumptuous! thank you!
looks like someone is making a nice amount of $$ using your idea…
http://crunchyjewelsbyjuliele.blogspot.com/
going for $70 a dozen on etsy! think i’ll just make them myself :)
Your absolutely right. Andi I’ve done most of that and more…
Check it out.
http://bakerella.blogspot.com/search/label/cupcake%20pops
This is a neat recipe. Someone gave me the link to it. My mind ran wild with this one. But after reading it. I had all sorts of ideas for this cake. It’s neat as it is. But it could be done with any flavor cake. I was thinking a Easter thing. Using that Funfetti cake. The cream cheese frosting as stated. Rolling the cakes to look like easter eggs. Chilling as the recipe says. Using white chocolate. I think you can put a couple drops of food coloring in it when you melt it down. Make different colors. Roll in different colors. Decorate up a basket. Put your cake eggs in it. It would make a nice center piece on the table as well as a nice fun holiday dessert the kids would like.
Or if you did them as the recipe says. You could after you rolled in chocolate. Roll immediately in jimmys, candy sprinkles, chopped nuts or coconut. I was thinking chopped pecans would be good. Or you could drizzle the balls with white chocolate for a tri color thing. I think this recipe could be done with basically any flavor cake mix. They just show it with red velvet cake. Making these smaller. Rolling in the different things I listed above. You could call them Bon Bons I guess.
Anonymous – They’ll be pretty
Jessie – Indeed.
bree – So gald you liked them
Mel – Pretty!
katieb – That’s so funny! You can use a few drops of veg oil to thin it out. Or a product called Paramount crystals.
These were so good the people at the party I took them to were calling them “crack balls”. None of them made it home uneaten.
For the people who can’t find red velvet cake, german chocolate cake is extremely similar in flavor (most recipes for both use buttermilk, vinegar, and cocoa powder). I nearly choked when someone said they found a mix for $12!
I personally tend to find when it comes down to it with red velvet cake (and it is my favorite cake of all time), making the cake from scratch isn’t necessarily worth it unless you have a special family recipe, and making the icing from scratch ALWAYS is. Plus, cream cheese icing is the easiest icing ever (most recipes out there are for two pounds so you’ll need to half them).
I definitely ran out of chocolate bark (1lb package) before I was much over halfway done. I have no idea what I did differently- maybe there’s a trick to getting your chocolate thinner?
Yet again, I used your tutorial to make goodies for a gathering. Lat June I made the red velvet cake balls for a family reunion and this time I took it a step further and made what I call the “Snowball cake balls” for our office Christmas party. To see please go here:
http://oddsnendsnthings.blogspot.com/2009/02/snowball-cake-balls.html
Thanks again for sharing!
Thanks for the great idea! I made these for my daughters second birthday party and they were a big hit. I also made a German Chocolate batch and Funfetti ones with white almond bark. YUM!
Oh. My. God. Wow!
+Jessie
a.k.a. The Hungry Mouse
Def. Making these for superbowl sunday in white choco for some cardnials love =)
They sound pretty and tasty. (Even though I’m not a big coconut fan.)
I did a spin on this recipe. I used coconut cake and coconut icing (tinted pink). After I dipped them in chocolate I did a pink icing squiggle on there to match the pink on the inside. They taste like Mounds candy bars!!!!
I’ve done it by filling up the cookie cutters, but the other way is worth a try. If you do, make sure to set the cookie sheet in the freezer for a little while to get firm. It will help to cut.
I wanted to make these in shapes with a cookie cutter..would you recommend pushing all of the cake and icing out on a sheet or just filling up the cookie cutters?
auntie – I’m so glad you liked all of them.
Deenah – Sounds like this was a breeze for you. Congrats!
Debbie – Thanks a bunch. And I’m sure they looked great.
Jaime – Thanks!
Hi Bakerella!
I just came across this recipe today, and I love it! I can’t wait to try these. I posted a link to this recipe on my Creative Entertaining blog; I hope that’s okay. You can check it out here: http://creativeentertaining.blogspot.com/
Thanks for fabulous ideas! I love your blog!
Jaime
I made these for Christmas and they were a hit. Mine weren’t as pretty as yours but they tasted wonderful. Everyone asked for the recipe..I have sent them all to your blog. You are so very creative and talented.
I just had to comment and let you know how incredible these are!! For a bridal shower, I pressed the red velvet mixture through a heart shaped cookie cutter and then covered with the melted chocolate to make chocolate covered hearts. They came out soooo adorable, and are even more delishious than they are cute (My super kind husband was great enough to “dispose” of the ones that didn’t look “pretty enough” as he said!) LOL
I too froze the hearts and only took out a dozen or so at a time so they held up nicely. I used a double boiler for the chocolate and thinned it out a little with some veggie oil! I will be making them again for Valentines Day as hearts!!
-Deenah
I just had to let you know that I made these Red Velvet Cake Balls – and also the Oreo ones and the Nutter Butter ones – for Christmas and they were so easy and fun! There’s a picture on my blog if you want to take a look:
http://imstillhereagain.blogspot.com/2008/12/warm-and-fuzzy.html
Thanks for the great inspiration!!
WannaGarden – You’ll need to use the chocolate bark.
Also called candy coating or almond bark.
It’s in the recipe to this post.
jlamm – Read some of the comments to this post and I describe how I dip them.
Brownies for Dinner – It gets easier each time.
Busty Yorneekaps – You are most welcome. Glad they were a hit.
I needed to stop by and post a message of thanks to you, Bakerella, for having this recipe available. I am in LOVE with these. I was first introduced to cake balls by a friend who made pink lemonade ones (which weren’t dipped and thusly became mushy, yummy blobs as the day wore on). But these are just perfect!
I made them for the Christmas celebrations my roomie and I are having – half of the batch went out on Christmas Eve and the rest are going out for our St. Stephen’s party tonight – and they were a BIG hit.
So thanks again for sharing such an amazing recipe and for all that wonderful baking you do :)
These are awesome! Thanks for the recipe. I made these last week and they are now one of the stars of my Christmas treat boxes that I’m giving to friends.
My chocolate coating did not come out as pretty as yours, but I learned a lot this first time. I will be making these again :)
great recipe..thanks! I made mine pretty simple..with chocolate cake and vanilla icing. I am interested in how you made the chocolate coating look so nice though??
I gave you credit on my blog!
I haven’t read all the replies, so hope this isn’t redundant!
I’m stoked to try the red velvet cake balls, but am having a D’Oh moment. I could have sworn the recipe called for Peppermint Bark, so that’s what I bought. Will this work, or should I head back out for chocolate?
Thanx!
Thanks Elizabeth!
My sister just sent me this link, because I love to make Red Velvet cake. I use the recipe I found on Smitten Kitchen’s blog: http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/09/red-velvet-cake/
This is a great recipe for anyone who wants/needs to make this from scratch. I usually make cupcakes for my husband’s birthday, but I think I will have to try these this year! I can’t wait to see how they turn out!
Awesome! Glad everyone loved em.
I made these this past weekend for a cookie exchange and for the teachers at my boys school. I was almost assaulted when I got to school last night by all the teachers wanting the recipe and telling me that those were better than __________ (you fill in the blank).
Here’s a blog post that I even did on Monday about my Red Velvet Cake Balls and how they turned out!
http://ourlifeasriley.blogspot.com/2008/12/red-velvet-cake-balls.html
They can last up to a week in an airtight container on the counter. You can keep them in the fridge, too.
Some people like them cold.
Can you tell us how long the cake balls will last? (If they last….) I noticed on one of your comments that you said it is not required to keep cold. Do you know how long they will stay good just in a sealed, covered dish.
Thanks in advance!
Awesome! Sounds like you’ve got it down Anonymous.
I made these this weekend and they are wonderful – I froze my cake balls and only took out a dozen or so at a time so they would stay frozen. Thus no crumbs in the melted chocolate.
I also melted my chocolate in a heat proof bowl and put INSIDE a larger pot with several inches of water in it – kept it on the stove in simmering water. This way, the chocolate stays thin.
Use a ‘slatted’ spoon (with holes) to dip the balls into the chocolate and it drains back into melted chocolate. Then sprinkle with Christmas colored sprinkles.
Thanks for sharing Little J
You’ll only get better every time you do it. And good job on going for both. I like them each for different reasons. I think the German cake version will be a hit.
Hi there. Every Thanksgiving I make some kind of desert(s) to go along with dinner. I’ve always had a knack for cooking and baking and I needed something to turn dinner up a notch. So when I found this entry in your blog, it was my eureka moment. Made my cake and frosting from scratch, so it made it even more special. I also made the oreo balls as well. I don’t have a food processor yet, so crushing them by hand was a lot of work, but I managed. I did mangled the poor ziplock bag to bits.
I’m still getting the hang of dipping them, since mine didn’t come out as nice as your. But they were absolutely delicious. My friends are now asking me to make them some for their Christmas parties. I might just even try doing this with the annual german chocolate cake I bake every christmas.
Anyway, here are some of the pictures:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/razon/sets/72157610530522662/
You are so awesome!!!
Bianca – glad to help. Hope you get lucky with amazon.
Elizabeth – Welcome! I love How About Orange.
Glad you are liking the site.