Candy hearts aren’t just adorable as tiny ears on puppy cupcakes; they also make perfect little bows for cake pops.
Arow of gift-top cake pops looks especially sweet when finished with candy-heart bows.
After sharing the candy hearts recently, I was reminded of these present-shaped cake pops.
They’re a project from the Cake Pops Holidays book. I’ll walk you through the process here for anyone who doesn’t yet own the book.
White candy coating combined with red candy hearts gives these pops a perfect Valentine’s Day look. If the boxes were red and green, they’d read more like Christmas, but the white and red make them ideal for sharing a little love.
You can also add small tags to the lollipop sticks for a finishing touch. In the book I used gift-style tags; below are coordinating printable tags you can use for cake pops or cupcake toppers.
Download these tags and use a 1 7/8 inch paper punch to make cake-pop toppers, or use them as cupcake decorations.
Happy Valentine’s Day Tags
Conversation Hearts Tags – red
Conversation Hearts Tags – pastel (not shown)
Below is a clear, step-by-step guide to making these Give Love Cake Pops. Enjoy!
Give Love Cake Pops
Ingredients
- 9 x 13 cake, cooled (makes 48 cake pops)
- Frosting
- Wax paper
- Baking sheet
- Cookie cutter with a straight edge
- 48 oz (1.4 kg) white candy coating
- Deep, microwave-safe plastic bowl
- 48 lollipop sticks
- 96 red candy hearts
- 48 red mini M&M’s
- Styrofoam block
- Red colored cocoa butter (or red candy coating for piping)
- Small dish
- Small paintbrush
Instructions
- Crumble the cooled cake and mix it with 2/3 to 3/4 of a container of ready-made frosting (or about 1 cup of homemade frosting) until fully combined. Roll the mixture into 48 even balls and place them on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Freeze for about 15 minutes to firm, then move to the refrigerator to keep chilled (do not fully freeze).
- Work with one cake ball at a time. Remove from the refrigerator and shape each ball into a small square to resemble a gift box. Use wax paper to help flatten the sides—slide each side across the wax paper-covered baking sheet and rotate until flat. A metal cutter with a flat edge can trim rounded bits and help form straight edges.
- After shaping, return the squares to the freezer for about 15 minutes to firm up for dipping. Transfer them back to the refrigerator, and remove just a few at a time when you’re ready to dip so the remainder stays cold.
- Melt the white candy coating in a deep, microwave-safe plastic bowl following the package directions. Fill the bowl to about 3 inches (7.5 cm) deep to make dipping easier and neater.
- Dip the lollipop stick: coat about 1/2 inch (12 mm) of the stick in melted candy and insert it straight into the bottom of the box shape, pushing no more than halfway through. Dip the cake pop into the coating, then tap off excess. Hold the pop over the bowl in your left hand and gently tap your left wrist with your right hand to remove extra coating—this reduces the chance of the pop flying off the stick. Rotate the stick while tapping so coating doesn’t build up on one side. If too much coating accumulates at the base, wipe it away with a finger while spinning the stick. This technique improves with practice.
- While the coating is still wet, place two candy hearts on their sides with the pointed ends facing each other on top of the pop, leaving space between them for a mini M&M. Gently tilt the hearts upward to form a bow shape before the coating sets. Set the finished pops into a Styrofoam block to dry completely.
- Warm red colored cocoa butter according to the bottle directions and pour a small amount into a dish. Use a small paintbrush to paint ribbon lines across the sides and top of each pop for a flat ribbon look. Alternatively, use red candy coating and pipe ribbons with a squeeze bottle or toothpick for a more dimensional effect.
- Allow the cake pops to dry fully in the Styrofoam block before packaging or serving.
Notes
Source: © 2012 Cake Pops Holidays by Bakerella
Enjoy!