Creating Chocolate Flower Pops For Your Wedding

Chocolate flower pops are a fun and easy dessert to make for your wedding. They can be served as a replacement for a wedding cake or as wedding favours for your guests to take home. To make them, you'll need a cake mix, frosting, chocolate for melting and dipping, lollipop or candy sucker sticks, and decorations of your choice. You can get creative with the decorations, using items like food glitter, mini chocolate chips, and ribbon. The process involves baking a cake, mixing it with frosting, shaping it into balls, dipping them in melted chocolate, and decorating them. These chocolate flower pops are sure to be a delightful treat for your wedding guests!

Bake your favourite cake mix, then crumble and mix with frosting

Now it's time to bake your favourite cake mix! Once that's done, take it out of the oven and let it cool completely. This is important because if you try to frost a cake that's even slightly warm, the frosting will melt off. If you're short on time, you can always pop the cake in the freezer to speed up the cooling process.

Once your cake is cooled, cut off the crusts and crumble the soft cake into a large mixing bowl. You want to get the cake to a crumbly, brownie-like texture. Next, you'll add your frosting. For a standard cake mix, you'll need about 1/3 cup of frosting. Mix it into the crumbled cake until combined. You're looking for a texture similar to brownie batter.

Once your cake and frosting are mixed, it's time to roll the mixture into balls. Each ball should be about 1-1/2 inches in diameter. Place the rolled cake pops on a tray lined with wax paper or parchment paper and put them in the freezer for about 30 minutes to an hour to firm up. Chilling the cake pops will make them easier to work with when it's time to dip them in chocolate.

Shape the cake and frosting mixture into balls

To shape the cake and frosting mixture into balls, you'll need to first ensure that your cake has cooled completely. Then, crumble it into a large mixing bowl and add your frosting. The amount of frosting you add will depend on the texture of your cake—you're aiming for a texture similar to that of a brownie. Once you've added the frosting, scoop out the mixture and roll it into small balls.

To ensure that the cake balls hold their shape, place them on a tray and put them in the freezer for about 30 minutes. This will help the cake firm up. If you're making a large batch, you can also try using a mini meatballer or a silicone mould to shape your cake pops. When rolling by hand, remember to cup your hands to keep the mixture rounded and prevent it from crumbling. About a tablespoon of cake mixture will make a standard-sized cake pop.

Melt chocolate and dip the cake balls

Now that you've prepared your cake balls, it's time to melt your chocolate and dip them!

Melting the Chocolate

There are two ways to melt your chocolate. The first method involves filling a pot with water and bringing it to a simmer. Place your chocolate in a metal bowl and place the bowl over the pot. Stir the chocolate until it's fully melted. The second method is to place the chocolate in a microwavable container and microwave it in 30-second increments, stirring after each interval until the chocolate is completely melted.

Dipping the Cake Balls

Once your chocolate is melted, pour it into a taller container for dipping. Take your cake balls out of the freezer and place a lollipop stick into each one. Begin by dipping the end of the lollipop stick into the melted chocolate, then insert it directly into the cake ball. Next, dip the cake pop into the melted chocolate until it is fully submerged. Gently tap the stick on the side of the container to allow any excess chocolate to drip off, then lightly scrape the bottom of the cake pop on the rim of the container to remove any remaining chocolate. Place the chocolate-covered cake pop on a cookie sheet to dry.

Tips

• If you're using white chocolate, make sure to keep it warm and fluid while you work.
• If you're using a microwave to melt your chocolate, heat it in 20-second increments to prevent overheating.
• Before dipping your cake balls, let them sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes if they were frozen. This will prevent the chocolate from cracking due to temperature changes.

Decorate with icing, glitter, or chocolate

Once the chocolate has dried, it's time to decorate your flower pops! Here are some ideas using icing, glitter, or chocolate:

Icing

Use a piping bag to pipe swirls or other patterns onto your flower pops. If you have a metal tip, you can use that, or simply cut a small hole in the bottom of the bag. Fill the bag about one-third full of icing and get creative! You can use royal icing, or make your own buttercream frosting by mixing powdered sugar and butter with an electric mixer on low speed, then stirring in vanilla and milk. If you want to add some colour, a few drops of food colouring will do the trick.

Glitter

Sprinkle edible glitter over the wet icing design to make it pop. You can also use glitter to decorate white chocolate "bride" cake pops—pipe a white dress pattern with icing, then sprinkle with edible glitter or white sugar, and add candy dots to complete the design.

Chocolate

Dip the sides of your flower pops in melted chocolate to create a "tuxedo" effect, or dip the whole pop in chocolate for a full chocolate coating. You can also use mini chocolate chips to create bow ties and buttons, or melt chocolate and put it in a piping bag to pipe out more intricate designs.

Package the chocolate flower pops with ribbons or bags

Once your chocolate flower pops are ready, you can package them in small plastic candy bags. If you want to add a decorative touch, use ribbons to tie the bags. You can also use colourful wire twist ties to secure the bags. If you plan to hand out the chocolate flower pops as wedding favours, consider buying cello bags and twist ties.

Frequently asked questions