Description
Someone figured out that if you crumble cake, mix it with frosting, roll it into balls, stick them on lollipop sticks, and dip them in melted chocolate, you create the most addictive dessert delivery system known to humanity. Then someone else added Christmas decorations and suddenly these became the centerpiece of every holiday party. These are moist cake balls coated in chocolate or white chocolate, decorated with sprinkles, drizzles, and festive designs that make people go “aww” before they devour them. It’s what happens when you combine the best parts of cake and candy into one portable, poppable, impossibly cute package.
This isn’t some complicated pastry technique that requires years of training. This is “bake cake, crumble it, mix with frosting, dip in chocolate, decorate” simplicity that somehow results in something that looks bakery-professional. The cake stays moist because of the frosting. The chocolate coating adds texture and richness. The decorations make them festive and fun. It’s everything good about cake but in a form that you can eat with one hand while holding a glass of eggnog in the other.
This is holiday dessert energy that’s actually manageable. It’s what happens when you want something impressive for your cookie exchange but don’t want to spend eight hours in the kitchen. It’s cake that became a lollipop and decided to dress up for Christmas.
Ingredients
For the Cake Base:
- 1 box (15.25 oz) cake mix (vanilla, chocolate, or red velvet—any flavor works)
- Ingredients listed on box (usually eggs, oil, water)
- OR: 1 homemade 9×13 cake (any flavor)
For Assembly:
- 1 cup frosting (cream cheese, buttercream, or store-bought—match or complement your cake flavor)
- 40–50 lollipop sticks or paper straws
- 24 oz candy melts or chocolate (white, milk, dark, or a combination)
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil or vegetable shortening (helps thin the chocolate)
For Christmas Decorations:
- Red and green sprinkles
- Christmas-themed sprinkles (trees, snowflakes, ornaments)
- White chocolate for drizzling
- Red and green sanding sugar
- Mini chocolate chips for “eyes” on snowmen
- Pretzel sticks (for reindeer antlers or snowman arms)
- Candy canes, crushed
- Edible gold luster dust or gold sprinkles
- Red candy pearls or dragées
Optional But Festive:
- Food coloring for tinting white chocolate (red, green, gold)
- Edible markers for drawing faces or designs
- Royal icing for detailed decorations
- Mini M&Ms (great for ornament designs)
- Coarse sanding sugar for a sparkly look
- Mini marshmallows for snowman details
Special Equipment:
- 9x13 inch baking pan (for the cake)
- Large mixing bowl
- Cookie scoop or tablespoon (for portioning)
- Styrofoam block or cake pop stand (for drying)
- Microwave-safe bowls (for melting chocolate)
- Tall glasses or mugs (to hold melting chocolate for easy dipping)
- Parchment paper
- Patience and creativity
Instructions
Bake your cake according to package or recipe directions in a 9×13 pan. Let it cool COMPLETELY. And I mean completely—like, room temperature cool. If you try to work with warm cake, it’ll turn into a mushy disaster. This is the perfect time to bake it the day before. Once cool, you can even refrigerate it to make it easier to work with.
Once the cake is completely cool, crumble it into a large bowl using your hands. Break it up into fine crumbs—no large chunks. This is therapeutic. Embrace the destruction. You want it to look like coarse breadcrumbs or sand. Get all the edges and corners. Every bit of cake should be crumbled.
Add frosting to the crumbled cake, starting with 1/2 cup. Using your hands (cleanest tool for this job), mix the frosting into the cake crumbs until the mixture holds together when squeezed. It should be like Play-Doh—moldable but not sticky or wet. If it’s too dry and crumbly, add more frosting one tablespoon at a time. If it’s too wet, add more cake crumbs or refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, portion out the cake mixture into equal amounts. Roll each portion between your palms into a smooth ball, about 1-1.5 inches in diameter. Place the balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Try to make them as uniform as possible—they look better and cook more evenly. This is assembly-line work. Put on a Christmas playlist. Get in the zone.
Once all the balls are rolled, refrigerate them for at least 2 hours or freeze for 30 minutes. They need to be firm before dipping or they’ll fall apart in the chocolate. This is NOT optional. Cold, firm cake balls = success. Warm, soft cake balls = disaster. Use this time to prepare your decorations and chocolate.
Melt your candy melts or chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl in 30-second intervals, stirring between each, until smooth and completely melted. Add 1-2 tablespoons of coconut oil or shortening to thin it out—this makes dipping easier and creates a smoother coating. The chocolate should be the consistency of heavy cream. If you’re using multiple colors, melt them in separate bowls.
Dip the tip of a lollipop stick about 1/2 inch into the melted chocolate, then insert it into a cake ball, pushing it about halfway through. The chocolate acts as glue and prevents the ball from sliding off the stick later. Repeat with all the balls. Return them to the fridge or freezer for 10 minutes to let the chocolate-stick connection set.
Remove a few cake pops from the fridge at a time—working with cold pops is key. Hold a cake pop by the stick and dip it into the melted chocolate, submerging it completely. Lift it out and let excess chocolate drip back into the bowl. Gently rotate or tap the stick against the edge of the bowl to remove more excess chocolate. Don’t shake it or the ball might fly off.
While the chocolate is still wet, add your decorations. Work quickly—chocolate sets fast. Sprinkle with holiday sprinkles, add candy decorations, or drizzle with contrasting chocolate. Get creative. Make some look like ornaments, some like snowmen, some like reindeer. There’s no wrong way to decorate. If you mess up, lick it off and start over (just kidding, but also not really).
Stick the decorated cake pops into a styrofoam block, floral foam, or cake pop stand to dry vertically. You can also lay them on parchment paper to dry horizontally. Let them sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes until the chocolate is completely set. Once set, they can be stored upright or laid down.
Once the base coat is completely dry, you can add more details. Use melted chocolate in a piping bag or squeeze bottle to create drizzles, dots, or lines. Use edible markers to draw faces or designs. Add pretzels for antlers. Stack mini marshmallows and cake pops to make snowmen. Let your creativity run wild.
Arrange your finished cake pops on a platter, in a festive container, or wrap them individually in cellophane bags tied with ribbon. They’re almost too pretty to eat. Almost. Take one, admire your handiwork, take a bite, and experience the perfect ratio of moist cake interior to chocolate shell to festive decorations. Feel proud. You just made edible Christmas art.
Notes
Snowman Pops: Use white chocolate, add mini chocolate chips for buttons and eyes, pretzel arms, orange sprinkle nose.
Reindeer Pops: Chocolate coating, pretzel antlers, red M&M nose, candy eyes.
Ornament Pops: Any color coating, drizzle with gold, add a “cap” with contrasting chocolate at the top.
Santa Hat Pops: White chocolate, dip top in red candy melts, add white sprinkles at the tip.
Christmas Tree Pops: Green chocolate, decorate with colorful sprinkles like ornaments, yellow star on top.
Peppermint Pops: White chocolate coating, crushed candy cane topping.
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
Nutrition
- Calories: ~110 kcal
- Fat: ~5g
- Carbohydrates: ~16g
- Protein: ~1g