Cake pops are delicious bite-sized treats that are really fun to make and decorate for both kids and adults (trust us, we had way too much fun with the sprinkles). 

If you’re looking to teach your little ones some beginner’s baking temperatures, this recipe is great as it includes how to check the cake is properly cooked as well as how to temper chocolate. In a rush to get to the decorating? Skip the cake baking and use a ready-made sponge instead! 

Ingredients

For the cake

• 100g butter, room temperature
• 100g caster sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 1tsp baking powder
• 100g self-raising flour

Or ready-made sponge cake

For the buttercream

• 75g butter, room temperature
• 150g icing sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp milk
• 6 tbsp olive oil

To decorate

• 400g white, milk or dark chocolate
• Sprinkles, stars and edible glitter
• Lollipop sticks

Directions

• Heat oven to 190°C/ fan 170°C/ gas mark 5. Butter a 20cm sandwich tin and line the base with non-stick baking paper. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until you have a creamy mixture.
• Add the eggs in one at a time and continue to beat after each one. Sift in the flour, baking powder and add the vanilla bean paste, gently folding into the mix. Spoon the batter into the sandwich tin and gently smooth the surface with a spatula.
• Bake for about 20 minutes until golden and the internal temperature of the cakes read 95-98°C.
• Run a knife around the inside edges of the tins and carefully transfer onto a cooling rack. Leave to come down to room temperature (around 22°C).

To make the buttercream

• Once the cake is cool make the buttercream. Combine the butter and icing sugar in a bowl and beat together until smooth and creamy. Then add the milk and vanilla bean paste and mix again.
• Over a large bowl, break the cake into crumbs. Stir the buttercream into the crumbs until you have a thick, sticky mixture.
• Take small portions of the mix and roll into balls, place onto a lined tray or plate and push a lollipop stick into each ball. Put into the fridge for an hour to set.
• Mix the flour with a little water and stir it in. Bring to the boil and allow the sauce to thicken. Whisk in the butter, and sieve before serving.

For the chocolate

• Bring a pan of water to a simmer over a medium low heat. Finely chop ¼ of your chocolate and set aside. Roughly chop the remaining ¾.

• Place a bowl on top of the pan, ensuring its base doesn’t touch the water. Put your roughly chopped chocolate into the bowl. Stirring regularly, melt the chocolate until your Thermapen reads 45-50°C for milk and white chocolate or 55-58°C for dark chocolate.
• Remove the bowl from the heat and add the finely chopped chocolate. Slowly stir the chocolate until it has melted and your Thermapen reads 26-27°C for milk chocolate, 27-28°C for white or 28-29°C for dark.
• Remove the bowl from the heat and add the finely chopped chocolate. Slowly stir the chocolate until it has melted and your Thermapen reads 26-27°C for milk chocolate, 27-28°C for white or 28-29°C for dark.
• Place the bowl back on a low heat and slowly reheat to 29-30°C for milk, 28-29°C for white or 31-32°C for dark chocolate.

To decorate

• Cover the cake pops in chocolate by dipping or drizzling spoonfuls of chocolate over the cakes.
• Top with sprinkles and decorations and then stand upright into a container to cool. This will take 30-60 minutes in the fridge or at room temperature. Enjoy!