Cocktail Cake Pops to Toast To for the New Year!

In 2013, I made thousands of Cake Pops.

 

 

 

 

Each "Amazeball" (ie: cake pop) is hand rolled with the perfect amount of frosting. Just enough frosting to form a sticky ball that is dipped into a bowl of candy melts and/or chocolate and sprinkled with dots..eyes..batman capes..kitty ears...teeth..you name it.  When you eat it, you will understand the term "Amazeball"!

☺

There have been idealistic discussions about my wish for a cake pop factory, with little mechanical robots that help me hand roll each cake pop.   People often joke that I am a walking cake pop factory.

This is why:

My Cake Pops For Sale at Woodmans Grocery Store !
(one of my biggest career moves of 2013)

☺

To celebrate a grand year of cake pops,
let's toast to many things, with..
Cocktail Cake Pops in hand (or mouth! or tummy!)

Recipe for Pink Champagne..

or

Strawberry Margarita
 Amazeball Cocktail Cake Pops!

Ingredients Needed to make your Amazeball blend:
♥1 box of Strawberry Cake Mix
♥1/2 Cup of Pink Champagne or 1/2 Cup Liquid Strawberry Margarita Mix
♥1 Cup Buttermilk
♥4 Eggs

♥1 3.9 or 4 oz box of Instant Lemon or Strawberry Creme Pudding
♥1/3 Cup Oil
♥1/2 tsp orange extract
♥9x13 cake pan or you can use a cupcake pan
♥..Don't forget to add LOVE.

For Frosting: Use my buttercream recipe
For Pink Champagne Pops: add 3 Tablespoons of Pink Champagne to the frosting
For Strawberry Margarita Pops: add 1 1/2 Tablespoons of Tequila + 1 1/2 Tablespoons of Liquid Strawberry Margarita mix to the frosting

How to Bake:
1. Preheat your oven to 325.

2. Combine all ingredients above in a Kitchen Aid Mixer, and mix for 2 minutes until your batter looks amazing and smells bubbly.
3. Pour the  cake batter into a cake pan and bake for appx 30 minutes (depending on your oven, times may fluctuate-- a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean)
4. Once baked, let your cake sit out and cool.

To Roll The Cocktail Amazeballs:
You'll Need:

♥1 Large Bowl
♥1 or 2 Cookie Sheets, Lined with Parchment Paper
♥1 1/4" Meatballer
♥Pink Champagne or Strawberry Margarita Buttercream Frosting

1.  This is the fun and messy part.  Take out a big bowl and crumble your pink champagne cake into the bowl forming tiny little cake crumbs. (or if you don't want to use your hands, you can use a food processor).

2.  Add about a tablespoon of your frosting to the cake pop blend. If you need more frosting later you can always add more. Don't add too much to start with or the cake pops will end up too soggy to work with.

3.  I like to use a 1 1/4" meatball scoop (meatballer) to form my cake pops, or you can hand roll into a 1 1/4" ball. As you roll, the texture should be like play dough-sticky enough to form a cake pop ball.  If it gets crumbly or dry, this is how you know to add a little bit more frosting.

4.  Place all your finished amazeballs onto the parchment paper, and refrigerate for about an hour (don't freeze them, or they will expand inside the chocolate shell after you dip and the outer shell will crack).

To dip and decorate your Cocktail Cake Pops:

You will need:

♥Sucker Sticks (the size I like best is 4 1/2" x 5/32")
♥Candy Melts in any color you choose (You can buy them in the cake decorating aisle at a craft store)
♥A microwave proof bowl deep enough to dip your cake pops into the candy melts
♥Cookie Sheets Lined in Parchment Paper
♥Edible Glitter (I got some homemade edible glitter for Christmas but you can find sanded or crystal edible glitter at your local craft or grocery store in the baking aisle)
♥Sprinkles of your choice (see my pictures above for inspiration. There are no rules, you can mix and match)!
♥A Microwave

1.  Start by pouring your Candy Melt discs into the microwave proof bowl.

2.  Microwave in 20 second increments until candy melts are melted and creamy (do not microwave for too long or the candy melts will burn and turn too thick / lumpy to work with).

3.  Once candy melts are melted, the first thing you are going to do is use them as a "glue" to glue your cake pop stick to the cake pop.

4.  Dip one end of your cake pop stick into the melted candy and immediately insert the wet end of the stick 3/4 of the way into the cake pop. Repeat this for all the cake pops and let them all dry before proceeding. This glues the cake pop stick into the cake pop ball.

5.  Now you can start dipping your cake pops into your dreamy creamy pools of light pink candy melts.

6.  As you dip each cake pop, place your cake pop, stick side up onto parchment paper.  While the cake pops are still wet, sprinkle with edible glitter.  Let dry, and then.....

7.  Tadaa! You have a Pink Champagne Amazeball ♥ Celebrate with a cake pop toast and of course..a midnight kiss!

Spiked Rumchata Egg Nog Cupcakes. They heal hearts!

Spiked Rumchata Egg Nog Cupcakes.

♥

I ditched my little tutu and unicorn horn for a day, and I spiked my cupcakes with some 21+ flavor!

The Innocent Egg Nog batter was just sitting there, so lonely.
So I poured Rumchata into the batter (and the frosting, oh my!)
Now that's just what the Egg Nog needed.....a Caribbean Friend!

A holiday party inside of (and excitingly swirled on top of) a cupcake.

I sprinkled edible gold glitter on top of each cupcake to resemble nutmeg.  (The nutmeg is already in the frosting, so I figured that glitter is more shiny and fun than the act of sprinkling the cupcake with nutmeg).

I delivered a Rumchata Egg Nog Cupcake gift to my friend who came home from the hospital after a pretty scary open heart surgery procedure.  This was her review, it made me laugh so hard and filled me with just as much joy as that cupcake did for her!

...So in sharing this, I encourage you to share your cupcake creations with everyone. Cupcakes truly do help to heal hearts ♥

How to Spike Your Very Own Egg Nog Cupcakes:
(Recipe test tasted by my executive cupcake baker Andy, who says they are Egg Nogtastic)!
Note:  I find that using a box mix as your base and doctoring it up like crazy with Egg Nog and Rumchata is quite possibly the best option.  The flavors don't bake out like they do with a recipe from scratch. Oh, and please do pour it into your frosting too for a little holiday "zing!"

The Cupcake:

(Makes appx 18 cupcakes)

Ingredients Needed:

White Box Mix

4 Eggs

1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
1 Cup Egg Nog

1/4 Cup Rumchata

1/4 Teaspoon Nutmeg

Instant Vanilla or White Chocolate Pudding (3-4 oz box, dry-not prepared)

1. Preheat Oven to 325.

2. Line Cupcake Pans with Wrappers.

3. In stand mixer, combine all ingredients above, making sure all ingredients are blended well. Whip for about 2 minutes.

4.  Using an ice cream scoop, scoop the batter into cupcake liners, filling a little over 1/2 full.

5.  Bake at 325 for 18-22 minutes, or until your kitchen smells like egg nog, Caribbean spice and all things nice.

6.  Before decorating, let cupcakes cool ♥

The "Spiked" Frosting:
(frosts around 18 cupcakes)

8 oz cream cheese (softened at room temp)

1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened at room temp)

1-2 Tablespoons Heavy Whipping Cream

1-2 Tablespoons Rumchata

1-2 Tablespoons Egg Nog
1/4 Teaspoon Nutmeg

1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon

1 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

8-10 Cups Powdered Sugar

1. In Stand Mixer,  Whip Cream Cheese & Butter together until the ingredients begin to look light and fluffy.

2. Gradually add Heavy Whipping Cream, Rumchata, and Egg Nog until combined.

3. Now add Nutmeg, Cinnamon and Vanilla Extract.
4. When all ingredients are combined, gradually pour powdered sugar into what will be a fluffy frosting.  Keep adding powdered sugar until frosting is stiff enough to pipe out onto your cupcakes.
5. Once frosting is finished, cut a hole at the end of a disposable piping bag and place a 1A round tip at the end.

6. Fill your piping bag with frosting and swirl on top of cupcake.  Using edible gold glitter sugar crystals, sprinkle each cupcake with love and edible glitter.

***NOTE: I have received several comments on this frosting saying that it wasn't stiff enough. Please note that while this recipe may have worked for me, you may have to play around with it a little bit depending on the weather/your environment, etc. My best tip to you would be to add a little bit of liquid here & there & then add a little bit of powdered sugar. The more powdered sugar you add, the stiffer (and sweeter) the frosting will get. It is all about the time and love you put into the frosting!!!! Taste it as you go and add what you need.♥ Don't take it too seriously, enjoy the time you have baking & get love drunk on the Rumchata.