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Tag: Cake Pops

Dessert Mash-Ups

by Siobhan
Food & Drink / February 15, 2011

Maybe my head's still spinning from eating too many Valentine's chocolates, or my vision is getting blurry from all the sugar in the technicolour anatomical heart cake that our designer Mark brought in, but I'm seeing a lot of mash-ups in the dessert world recently...

 

Macarons + Cake Pops = Macaron Pops!

Get the scoop on these sweeties from both Bakerella and Tartelette.
 

 

Another sweet mash-up...

Whoopie Pies + Macarons = Whoopie Pies disguised as Macarons!

Project Wedding posted a great recipe for these sneaky treats.

 

And of course the new trend...

Cupcakes + Cakes = Cupcake Cakes!

Gibbs Smith just published a new cute book on Cupcake Cakes.

 

I wonder what other desserts could (or should) be combined? Mmmm, the possibilities are endless...

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Give your loved one cake pops for Valentine’s Day!

by Danielle
Excerpts + Food & Drink / January 25, 2011

Looking for a fun gift to give your special loved one on that very special day? Try your hand at making a few cake pops from Chronicle Books' Globe and Mail bestseller Cake Pops. I'm sure they'll be thrilled!!

 

Sweet Hearts
You’ll need

48 uncoated Basic Cake Balls (below), chilled
Metal heart-shaped cookie cutter, 11/2 inches wide
16 ounces yellow candy coating
16 ounces pink candy coating
16 ounces light green candy coating
Three deep, microwave-safe plastic bowls
48 paper lollipop sticks
Red edible-ink pen
Styrofoam block

To decorate

Remove the chilled cake balls from the refrigerator and press them,
one at a time, into a small heart-shaped cookie cutter to form the
shape, or if you are adventurous, shape them by hand. They should
be about 11/2 inches wide and 1/2 inch deep.

After shaping, put the heart-shaped cakes in the freezer for about
15 minutes to firm them up again for dipping. Once they are firm,
transfer them to the refrigerator. Remove a few at a time for dipping,
keeping the rest chilled.

Melt each color of candy coating in a separate microwave-safe
plastic bowl, following the instructions on the package. The coating
should be about 3 inches deep for easier dipping. Work with one
color at a time before moving on to the next. (You should be able to
get 16 heart-shaped cake pops from each pound of candy coating.)

One at a time, dip about 1/2 inch of the tip of a lollipop stick into the
melted candy coating, and insert the stick straight into the bottom
of a heart-shaped cake, pushing it no more than halfway through. Dip
the cake pop into the melted coating, and tap off any excess coating,
as described in Basic Cake Pops, (below).

Let the pops dry in a styrofoam block.

When completely dry, use a red edible-ink pen and write sweet
notes on one side of the cake pop.

Return the pops to the Styrofoam block and let the ink dry
completely.

Basic Cake Balls
Makes 48 cake balls

Cake balls are bite-sized balls made of crumbled cake mixed with
frosting and covered in candy coating. They are super easy to
make and form the basis of endless variations of decorated cake
pops, cupcake pops, and cake bites.

You’ll need

One 18.25-ounce box cake mix
One 16-ounce container ready-made frosting
48 ounces (3 pounds) candy coating

Equipment

One 9-by-13-inch cake pan
Large mixing bowl
Large metal spoon
Two baking sheets
Wax paper
Plastic wrap
Deep, microwave-safe plastic bowl
Toothpicks
Squeeze bottle or resealable plastic bag (optional)

Bake the cake as directed on the box, using a 9-by-13-inch cake pan.

Let cool completely.

Once the cake is baked, get organized and set aside plenty of time
(at least an hour) to crumble, roll, and dip 4 dozen cake balls.

Crumble the cooled cake into a large mixing bowl. You should not see any large pieces of cake.

Add three-quarters of the container of frosting. (You will not need
the remaining frosting.) Mix it into the crumbled cake, using the back
of a large spoon, until thoroughly combined. If you use the entire
container, the cake balls will be too moist.

The mixture should be moist enough to roll into 1 1/2-inch balls and
still hold a round shape. After rolling the cake balls by hand, place
them on a wax paper–covered baking sheet.

Cover with plastic wrap and chill for several hours in the refrigerator,
or place in the freezer for about 15 minutes. You want the balls to be
firm but not frozen.

If you’re making a project that calls for uncoated cake balls, stop
here and proceed to decorate the cake balls, following the project
instructions.

While the cake balls are chilling, melt the candy coating.
Place the candy coating in a deep, microwave-safe plastic bowl.
These bowls make it easier to cover the cake balls completely with
candy coating while holding the bowl without burning your fingers.

(I usually work with about 16 ounces of coating at a time.)

Melt the candy coating, following the instructions on the package.
Microwave on medium power for 30 seconds at a time, stirring with a
spoon in between. You can also use a double boiler. Either way, make
sure you do not overheat the coating. See “Candy Coating Basics,”
(below), for more on working with candy coating.

Now you’re ready to coat. Take a few cake balls out of the refrigeratoror freezer to work with at a time. If they’re in the freezer, transfer
the rest of the balls to the refrigerator at this point, so they stay firm
but do not freeze.

Place one ball at a time into the bowl of candy coating. Spoon extra
coating over any uncoated areas of the cake ball to make sure it is
completely covered in candy coating. Then lift out the cake ball with
your spoon. Avoid stirring it in the coating, because cake crumbs can
fall off into the coating.

Holding the spoon over the bowl, tap the handle of the spoon several
times on the edge of the bowl until the excess coating falls off
and back into the bowl. This technique also creates a smooth surface
on the outside of the cake ball.

Transfer the coated cake ball to another wax paper–covered baking

sheet to dry. Let the coated cake ball slide right off the spoon. Some
coating may pool around the base of the ball onto the wax paper. If
so, simply take a toothpick and use it to draw a line around the base
of the cake ball before the coating sets. Once the coating sets, you
can break off any unwanted coating.

Repeat with the remaining cake balls and let dry completely.
If you have extra candy coating left over, pour it into a resealable
plastic bag with the corner snipped off or into a squeeze bottle and
drizzle it over the tops in a zigzag motion to decorate.

Store the cake balls in an airtight container on the counter or in the
refrigerator for several days.

Tips

• The cake balls will be easier to roll if you wash and dry your
hands periodically during the rolling process. Dry your hand
completely each time, and make sure you don’t get water in
the candy coating, as it can make it unusable.

• You can use a mini ice cream scoop to get uniform-sized
cake balls.

• If you don’t want to make 48 cake balls, simply divide the
cake in half for 24 cake balls or in quarters for 12 and freeze
the remaining cake for later use. Remember to reduce the
amount of frosting

• Make round-shaped cake balls first, until you’re sure you will
end up with the appropriate number. If you start shaping
right away, you can end up with pieces that are too big.

• It’s helpful to place the cake balls in the freezer for a few
minutes to firm up before reshaping them. Don’t roll the cake
balls too tightly. They may try to expand after coating, which
can cause the coating to crack.

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Favourite Books 2010: Danielle Johnson

by Danielle
Food & Drink + News / December 09, 2010

Cake Pops: Tips, Tricks, and Recipes for Irresistible Mini Treats
By Angie Dudley
978-0-8118-7637-7
$22.95

Angie Dudley (AKA Bakerella) was just in Toronto promoting at Teatro Verde and Williams-Sonoma. The book is fun & yummy and I can't wait to try my hand at making some of the delicious treats over the holidays!

Here is her clip from Canada AM when she was on explaining how to make her magical treats.

Very Merry Cookie Party: How to Plan and Host a Christmas Cookie Exchange
By Barbara Grunes and Virginia Van Vynct
978-0-8118-6675-0
$22.95

This one has every and any type of cookie for a cookie exchange. I'm looking forward to baking some of these up as well! Oh where will I find the time?!?

 

The Ultimate Metallica
By Ross Halfin
978-0-8118-7505-9
$40.00

I know, this is a totally different pick from the above two but I'm a closet lover of metal. I saw them when they toured to Vancouver for their Black album waaay back in the day. Oh the memories!! Would have loved to have seen them for their Kill'Em All or their Ride the Lightning tours, but I would have been a little less than 10 and I wouldn't think my mom would have sent me. So instead I was able to see Michael Jackson's Spider tour instead.

 

Danielle Johnson is a publicist for Raincoast. When she's not promoting her many authors and pitching titles to the media, she enjoys the casual bike ride with her special someone and enjoying life best she can.

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Cake Pops in Toronto

by Dan
Events + Food & Drink / November 22, 2010

Attention Toronto Foodies! Angie Dudley, the creator of popular blog Bakerella.com, will be at the Yorkville location of Teatro Verde on December 3rd  to talk about her new book Cake Pops!

Cake Pops: Bakerella Talk and Book Signing
Teatro Verde, 100 Yorkville Avenue, Toronto
Friday, December 3rd, 2010
4:30pm-6:30pm

Find the event on Facebook. 

 

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Cook, Bake, Blog ... You could win $500 worth of cookbooks!

by Siobhan
Food & Drink / October 15, 2010

You could win $500 worth of cookbooks from Chronicle Books, Quirk Books and Gibbs Smith!

It's easy ... and delicious!

There are two ways for Canadian foodies to enter:

1) Cook, Bake ... Blog!
Make a recipe from any cookbook published by Chronicle Books, Quirk Books or Gibbs Smith, then blog about it. Photos are encouraged! To enter, comment below and leave us a link to your blogpost about your culinary adventures with the recipe or cookbook. (This option counts as two entries!)

2) Share your faves.
To enter, comment below and leave a comment about your favourite cookbook published by Chronicle Books, Quirk Books or Gibbs Smith. Which cookbook is your favourite and why? What's the one recipe that everyone definitely needs to try out? (This option counts as one entry.)

You have until January 1, 2011 to enter!
The contest is open to Canadian residents only.

Contest Details: Winners will be drawn at random on January 5, 2011. Winners must live in Canada. Multiple entries (with different recipes!) are accepted. Prize will be $500 CDN retail worth of cookbooks published by Chronicle Books, Quirk Books or Gibbs Smith, as selected by the Winner from a list provided by Raincoast.

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Be inspired ... at the market, in the kitchen, and at the table!

Here are a few new cookbooks — with some videos and sample recipes! — to get your tastebuds fired up. Click on the covers to learn more about each book.

 

Recipe for Leo's Classic Sugar Cookies from Blackbird Bakery Gluten-Free Baking

 

Recipe for Cupcake Bites from Cake Pops

 

 

Recipe for Baked Beets with Fresh Citrus and Herbs from The Homesteader's Kitchen
Recipe for Pear Sherbet and Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Shortbread Bars from The Commonsense Kitchen

 

Recipe for Kadota Fig Tart with Mascarpone Cream  from The Winemaker Cooks

 

 

 

 

Recipe for Ajvar from D.I.Y. Delicious

 

Recipe for Wagon-Wheel Pasta and Goat Cheese from Time for Dinner
Recipe for Sweet and Sour Chicken with Plums from Time for Dinner
Recipe for One-Pot Coconut Chicken Curry from Time for Dinner

 

Listen to an interview with the creators of The Geometry of Pasta on  NPR.
Recipe for Penne All'arrabbiata (Spicy Tomato Sauce) from The Geometry of Pasta
Recipe for Gnudi Al Ragu D'Agnello (Lamb Sauce) from The Geometry of Pasta
Recipe for Gemelli Al Fagiolini (Green Beans) from The Geometry of Pasta

 

Recipes for Bloody Sundae and Mummy Pops from Little Monsters Cookbook

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Cake Pops

by Dan
Food & Drink / September 16, 2010

What's a cake pop? If you need to ask then you are missing out! 

Created by überblogger Bakerella — AKA Angie Dudley — these cute little cakes on a stick are an adorable alternative to cake at any party. From decorated balls to baby chicks, snowmen, ice cream cones, and EVEN cupcakes, Bakerella makes it easy and fun to make these amazing treats at home with her new book Cake Pops!. Clear step-by-step instructions and photos guide you through more than 40 featured projects with clever tips for presentation, decorating, dipping, coloring and melting chocolate, and much more along the way:

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