Red Velvet and Chocolate Cream Cheese Cake Pops

 Okay so this is my second recipe using that new chocolate cream cheese spread.  It did not turn out as I had wanted.  I don't know if it was the fact I used an actual from scratch cake and icing, or if it was that it was cream cheese icing or what, but I was not as happy with it as I am usually with my cake pops.

I will still share it because they were eaten within seconds of hitting work and Pork Chops class.  So maybe it was just me, who knows.  Basically I just made extra cake when I made those red velvet cupcakes and extra cream cheese icing.

So this is how it all started, the icing is really a winner in my books.

I did the usual and just crumbled up the cake, it was day old but I usually do day old cake, I bake it then once it cools I wrap it up.  Anyway I crumbled it all up and then added enough of the chocolate cream cheese icing to get it to stick together.  I should have added a bit more, but I am not used to this sort of cake pop, the box mix and pre made frosting is what I know.  Anyway it worked.

 Originally these were to be for a friend who had her baby in the NICU, we were going to visit, and I stayed up way late to finish them, but I was so tired that I never even decorated them.  I was so embarrassed, but figured the nurses wouldn't care.  Unfortunately my poor friend and her baby didn't have a good night so we had to put off our visit. Not a big deal, it actually meant I had cake pops for Pork Chops dance a thon, so it all worked out. And on a happy note, that cute little baby and my friend are now all settled at home, so Pork Chop is counting the days until he can hold the baby.

It looks so red, it didn't really stain my hands though.

  So once the cake was crumbled and mixed up I used my cake pop mold from My Little Cupcake because I like how uniform them are and the large size.  I was doing the forming and the all the stuff in one night so I froze them.  And some would fall apart or crack, so I think I really needed some more icing, but I was tired and just kept going.

You can sort of see it is a little dry.

  I was so wanting to decorate them with something pretty, but the fact that they were even done and wrapped was good enough for me, it had been a long day at work.  Anyway, they still went over well, as I said the kids in Pork Chops class liked them, and they didn't last long at work.  So maybe it was just me, but in cupcake form this combination was better.

So I want to say something sort of crude, like how do you like my balls, but I will refrain   Oh wait I wrote it, oh well...So, how do you like them?

   I think that my next chocolate cream cheese creation was even better than this one, not as good as the cupcakes but a close second.  All I have to say is my co workers know me well, because one of them handed me some coupons for the chocolate cream cheese, she was all "just in case you want to make more things with it."  And I so do, so that was a great treat to get.

My ball dipping set up, yep I went there.

 I don't know what I want to make next with this, but there will be more, trust me.

I thought I would toss this picture in again, ,because dude these were so good!

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Peppermint Cake Balls

I have been on a bit of a peppermint kick it seems.  In actuality I just didn't want to toss out the left over candy canes I had Pork Chop crush up.  So I was really just being lazy, but you know that right?  And I bet that this will come as no surprise that this post is from way back in December.  I know, I got way ahead of myself and did all this baking and then ran out of time. So you may notice a slight holiday feel to the things I am planning to post soon, and you can just keep them in mind for next Christmas; okay?

Sad thing about this post, all you get to see are my balls, (HA!)  and a bowl of crushed up candy. Pretty lame if you ask me.

 Basically this is a two picture post, because I bet you are sick of seeing pictures of my balls.  And yes I just said that.  And yes, I know how it sounds.  And yes, I am thankful my mother never reads this.  

 So anyway.  This is basic, but yummy.  And that is all you need to know.  You are basically making a regular cake ball, but before you get too far you need to have peppermint extract and crushed candy canes.  If you do not have a Pork Chop of your own to do your candy cane crushing, you can totally skip it.  I just happen to have one, and he likes to smash things.  

  So to make these you bake a cake, any old cake you want, but as you know I prefer chocolate cake mix cake.  So anyway you bake and cool your cake, then crumble it up.  Then instead of adding frosting, add some peppermint extract first, I don't know how much, just as much as you want, if you like a lot of mint, add a lot.  Anyway add it then mix, then add enough frosting to get it to how you like your cake ball mix.  You are not going to need as much as usual, but still add it.  Then do your cake ball thing, make the cake balls, dip them in chocolate and decorate how you like.  I did it with the crushed up candy canes to add some extra mint and crunch.  It's what I do, I use the left overs so I don't have to clean them up. I'm smart that way.

Funny thing is this was one of those things my friends at work went nuts over, I got to love them.  They tell me my balls are awesome.  And who doesn't like to hear that right?

 Also just in case you would like to, I joined a site that promotes Mom blogs, so there is a button way at the tippy top of my page, right there on the right.  If you click it, it takes you to the mommy blog site that lists all sorts of fun mom blogs.  I also can be ranked and maybe get more readers, which would be cool, because I certainly have enough crazy to go around!

I'm linking up HERE

 

Annual Cookie Exchange

 For the last few years I have been going to a cookie exchange my girl friend sets up.  I had never done one before her and well, I look forward to it now.  I go with the same old every year.  Cakeballs, of coarse.  This year I got containers from Walmart to make them cuter, I should have gotten the smaller size because they looked so tiny in there.  Oh well.   

Here is my huge table full of them, I was so tired I did the simplest thing I could.

See a drizzle of chocolate and a smattering of sprinkle.s

I was even too lazy to dig out my holiday sprinkles, they may never see the light of day.

I have  come to hate these types of sprinkles, you end up with them all over as they bounce off the table.

This was a new trick, I have been wanting to try it for a while, so I finally did.

I gilded my balls.

Yeah I know, I said it.  But there you go a short sweet post, and now on to the holidays!