Celebrate with colorful cake pops, chocolate coating, and festive decorations for a special graduation treat.
# What You’ll Need:
→ Cake
01 - 1 box (15 oz) vanilla or chocolate cake mix (plus eggs, oil, water as specified on package)
02 - Alternatively: 1 homemade 9-inch cake, fully cooled
→ Frosting
03 - 1/2 cup cream cheese frosting or buttercream frosting
→ Coating & Decoration
04 - 12 oz candy melts in school colors or white chocolate with food coloring
05 - 2 tbsp vegetable shortening (optional, to thin coating)
06 - Sprinkles, edible glitter, or colored sugar in coordinating colors
07 - 24 lollipop sticks
08 - 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
09 - Fondant in school colors (optional, for cap decorations)
# How To Make It:
01 - Prepare cake according to package or recipe instructions. Allow cake to cool completely before proceeding.
02 - Break cooled cake into fine crumbs using your hands or a fork in a large mixing bowl.
03 - Add frosting and mix with a spatula or hands until the mixture forms a cohesive mass that can be shaped. Avoid overmixing; use enough frosting for binding.
04 - Portion out about a tablespoon of mixture at a time and roll into 24 even balls.
05 - Arrange balls on a lined baking sheet. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or freeze for 20 minutes until firm.
06 - Place candy melts or chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and heat in 30-second intervals, stirring until smooth. Add vegetable shortening if needed for a thinner consistency.
07 - Dip the tip of each lollipop stick into melted coating, then insert halfway into each cake ball.
08 - Fully submerge each ball in melted coating, gently tap to remove excess, and place upright to set.
09 - While coating is wet, add sprinkles or colored sugar. For graduation caps, place fondant square atop the pop and affix a mini chocolate chip with a dab of melted coating as tassel.
10 - Stand finished pops upright in a styrofoam block or cake pop stand until coating hardens. Allow to cool and serve once fully set.
