Get started making chocolate cake pops from scratch with this delicious, easy-to-make recipe. All you need is a chocolate cake and frosting to make these tiny lollipop cakes for all occasions.
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Why we love these Cake Pops
At home, our kids love my homemade chocolate cake pop recipe, and I've got a super complete post about how to make cake pops that you absolutely must read to learn all about these lollipop cakes.
This all-chocolate cake balls are made with a chocolate cake, my soft and moist chocolate buttermilk cake mixed with a chocolate frosting made with cream cheese and covered in melted dark chocolate.
Homemade cake pops are great fun to make with kids during the holidays, and they love decorating them with colorful sprinkles, also they're perfect for so many occasions, like a birthday party, snacks, and more.
More Chocolate truffles and cake balls
Homemade chocolate cake pops are perfect if you have leftover cake from your homemade cakes, which you can also mix with leftover frosting such as my whipped buttercream recipe or Swiss meringue buttercream.
Ingredients you need
*You'll find the quantities and full instructions for making this recipe of chocolate cake pops in the recipe card at the end of the page.
Chocolate cake
- Flour: Preferably use cake flour, or all-purpose flour will also work.
- Cocoa powder: Only natural cocoa powder, unsweetened.
- Baking powder: Only baking powder, or replace half the quantity with baking soda.
- Sugar: Preferably extra-fine white granulated sugar or a mixture of white and brown sugar.
- Eggs: Only at room temperature, remember to take them out of the fridge in advance, or let them rest in a bowl of hot water.
- Milk: I like to use buttermilk, but it also works with simple dairy milk.
- Espresso coffee: For a full-bodied taste, you can replace it with water.
- Vanilla and salt: Essential for flavor, pure vanilla extract and table salt.
Chocolate frosting
- Cream cheese: Non-fat cream cheese, which you can replace with mascarpone chees.
- Powdered sugar: Powdered sugar is preferred, but if you don't have any you can also use granulated sugar.
- Cocoa powder: Unsweetened cocoa powder, but you can make a simple plain frosting without using cocoa.
- Vanilla: Optional to flavor the frosting.
Chocolate coating
- Chocolate: Use semi-sweet chocolate chips or baking chocolate or bittersweet chocolate to cover the cake pops.
- Candy melts: You can also use chocolate candy melts or colored candy melts directly to coat your cake pops.
What is the best chocolate for cake pops?
The answer would be to use candy melts or melting wafer also known as confectionery coating designed specifically for this type of sweets.
But I always prefer chocolate because it's a real chocolate coating, unlike candy melt, which is made entirely of sugar and oil with artificial coloring and very low cocoa content.
So it's up to you, candy melts are easier to use when the chocolate sometimes needs to be tempered (in this case I didn't temper it, although I probably should have gotten a shiny, crunchier shell).
How to make Chocolate cake pops recipe
Crumble the cake
- Place the chocolate cake, cut into large pieces, in a large bowl.
- Crumble with your fingertips until you have fine crumbs without lumps.
Add frosting
- Add your chocolate frosting to the crumbled cake and stir with a tablespoon until the mixture is compact and a little sticky.
Tip: Replace the chocolate frosting with Nutella or another spread.
Shape balls
- Scoop out heaps of cake pop mixture with a tablespoon or small ice cream scoop.
- Form chocolate cake balls between your hands until smooth and round.
- Place the cake balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill in the fridge for around 20 minutes.
Coating and decorations
- Melt chocolate (or chocolate melts/chocolate wafers) in a microwave or double boiler until smooth and completely melted.
- Dip the end of a cake pop stick into the chocolate before pushing it into the heart of a chocolate cake ball and repeat for other cake balls with your cake pop sticks.
- Leave chocolate cake pops to cool in the fridge for a few minutes.
- Then dip the chocolate cake pops completely into the melted chocolate mixture, shaking off any excess chocolate.
- Decorate your chocolate-covered cake pops with sugar pearls or sprinkles, and place them in a cake pop stand to cool completely at room temperature.
Storage and freeze
Store cake pops: Store chocolate cake pops in an airtight container or under plastic wrap in the fridge or at room temperature for around 5 days.
How do I freeze cake pops? Freeze cake pops when completely hardened in a freezer bag or box for up to 3 months. Let thaw gently at room temperature.
Tips for this recipe
- Finely crumble the cake until you have a very fine crumb. If there are still lumps, you'll have trouble forming smooth, round cake balls.
- Use a small ice cream scoop to form regular balls of the same size.
- Roll the cake balls 2 times, letting them rest in the fridge to firm up.
- Leave the cake pops to cool in the fridge before dipping them in the melted chocolate, but don't freeze them or the chocolate will sweat.
More Cake Pop Recipes
Recipe Variations
Frosting substitutions: This recipe for chocolate cake pops can be made with a chocolate frosting or a plain frosting such as chocolate mascarpone frosting, or simply a cream cheese frosting or a chocolate ganache frosting.
But you can just as easily use cream cheese or mascarpone cheese, or simply Nutella, peanut butter, etc.
Strawberry chocolate cake pops: Use cake flavored with real strawberry to make cake pops like this strawberry cake pop recipe.
FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, it's possible to use a cake mix directly to make this chocolate cake pops recipe, you'll just have to adjust the quantity of frosting to get a thick mixture.
To thin chocolate for cake pops, use vegetable oil, shortening or cocoa butter powder.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Did you like this recipe? Don't forget to rate it and leave me a review in the comments! And to not miss any recipes follow @sweetlycakes on Instagram and tag me to share it if you make this recipe 😊
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Chocolate Cake Pops
Description
Make these chocolate cake pops from scratch with a moist chocolate cake and chocolate frosting (perfect if you have leftover cakes) for around 20 cake pops.
Ingredients
Chocolate cake
- 75 g (⅔ cup) Cake flour
- 27 g (¼ cup) Cocoa powder - unsweetened
- ½ tsp baking powder (4 g)
- ¼ tsp salt
- 54 g (¼ cup) Vegetable oil - sunflower oil
- 100 g (½ cup) Sugar - granulated
- 1 Egg - medium at room temperature
- ½ tsp. Vanilla extract
- 64 g (¼ cup) Milk
- 57 g (⅔ cup) Black coffee - cooled
Chocolate Frosting
- 90 g (⅓ cup) Cream cheese - or mascarpone cheese
- 1 tbsp Cocoa powder - unsweetened
- 1 tbsp Powdered sugar
- ½ tsp Vanilla extract
Chocolate coating
- 200 g (7 oz) chocolate - semi-sweet or bittersweet
- Sprinkles
Instructions
Chocolate cake
- Preheat the oven to 329°F/ 165°C and prepare a 6 - 8 inch (15/20 cm) round cake pan lined with parchment paper on the bottom only.
- In a bowl, mix and sift together the dry ingredients, cake flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt.
- In another bowl, mix the milk with the cooled black coffee.
- Place the vegetable oil and sugar in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat on medium speed for 3 minutes.
- Add the eggs and vanilla, beating again for 3 minutes.
- Add the dry ingredients and milk/coffee mixture alternately and in batches, incorporating them gently with a spatula or hand whisk until the mixture is smooth and liquid.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and bake for approx. 20-25 minutes until done. (Check for even baking by plunging a toothpick into the center or the blade of a knife, which should come out with a few crumbs and not liquid batter).
- Leave the chocolate sponge cake to cool completely.
Chocolate frosting
In a small bowl, mix all the ingredients - cream cheese, cocoa powder, powdered sugar and vanilla - until you have a creamy frosting.
Making the chocolate cake pops
- Place the cooled chocolate cake in a large bowl and crumble with your fingers until you have a fine powder with no lumps.
- Add the chocolate frosting and mix with a spoon until you have a compact, slightly sticky mixture.
- Form the cake pop batter into cake balls and roll in your hands until smooth and well-rounded.
- Place the cake balls in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
Chocolate coating
- Melt chocolate in a microwave or double boiler until smooth and fluid.
- Dip the end of a cake pop stick into the melted chocolate, then insert it into the center of a chocolate cake ball and repeat for all the other cake balls.
- Place the chocolate cake pops in the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Reheat the dark chocolate and place in a deep bowl.
- Dip the cake pops completely into the chocolate, then shake off any excess.
- Decorate with sprinkles or sugar pearls, and place upright on a cake pop stand or upside down on a sheet of parchment paper until completely cooled.
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