Now you can enjoy your own festive Christmas Cake pops at home with this delicious recipe for homemade easy Christmas Cake Pops with our step-by-step instructions for making these bite-sized treats.
I don’t think there is a super easy way to make homemade cake pops, but this recipe will make the perfect cake pop and is a heavenly dessert you will enjoy.
Plus the best part is that you get to decorate this sweet treat with the whole family, and can make this Christmas cake pops recipe look like anything you want them to be.
Make them into cute reindeer cake pops, snowman cake pops, or any other cake pop designs you’ve seen on Pinterest. Either way, this recipe will become one of your favorite Christmas desserts to have at your dessert table this holiday season.
Recipe Ingredients:
Vanilla Cake:
- Cake mix: you will need to get your favorite box of vanilla cake mix
- Other ingredients: be sure to have the other ingredients called for on the box including water/oil/eggs
Frosting:
- Butter: have unsalted butter ready at room temperature
- Sugar: powdered sugar
- Cheese: you will also need softed cream cheese
- Extract: use the pure vanilla extract you have on hand already or buy a bottle from the grocery store
Coating:
- Chocolate: you will need to get white chocolate melting wafers from either the grocery store or Michael’s
- Toppings: use your favorite festive sprinkles or other desired decorations
How To Make Christmas Cake Pops:
Prepare the Vanilla Cake
- Preheat the Oven. Set the oven to the temperature indicated on the vanilla cake mix box.
- Mix the Batter. Follow the directions on the cake mix box, combining the cake mix with the required water, oil, and eggs.
- Bake the Cake. Pour the batter into a greased 9×13-inch baking pan or as directed. Bake according to the box instructions, typically until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (about 30 minutes).
- Cool. Allow the cake to cool completely before moving on to the next step.
Make the Frosting
- Cream the Butter. In a medium bowl, beat 5 tablespoons of unsalted butter with an electric mixer until it becomes creamy. Gradually incorporate powdered sugar, beating continuously until the mixture is smooth.
- Add cream cheese and pure vanilla extract. Beat until the frosting is light and fluffy.
Prepare the Cake Pop Mixture
- Crumble the Cake. Once the cake is completely cool, crumble cake it into a large bowl using your hands or a fork. Aim for fine, even crumbs.
- Combine with Frosting. Mix the crumbled cake with the prepared frosting. Stir until the mixture is well-combined and has a moist, dough-like consistency that holds together when pressed.
Form the Cake Pops
- Shape the Cake Balls. Roll the cake mixture into 1-inch balls and place them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Melt a small portion of the white chocolate melting wafers according to the package instructions. Dip the tip of each of the cake pop sticks into the melted chocolate and then insert it into the center of a cake ball. This will help anchor the stick in place.
- Chill. Place the cake pops in the freezer for at least 30 minutes to allow them to firm up.
Coat the Cake Pops
- Melt the Chocolate. Melt the remaining white chocolate melting wafers as per the package instructions.
- Dip and Coat. Dip each chilled cake pop into the melted chocolate, ensuring it is completely covered. Gently tap the stick on the side of the bowl to remove any excess chocolate.
- Decorate. While the coating is still wet, sprinkle with festive decorations of your choice.
- Let the Cake Pops Set. Return the coated cake pops to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Allow them to set at room temperature or in the refrigerator until the chocolate coating is completely hardened.
- Serve. Arrange the cake pops in a decorative display or serve as desired. They make a festive treat for any holiday gathering or special occasion.
Variations:
There are simple ways to change this Christmas tree cake pops recipe. Give one more of these a try if you want a few variations:
Cake flavor: use red velvet cake or chocolate cake batter for the base of these festive treats
Shapes: you can find so many different shapes to make these. Reindeer are cute with their pretzel antlers and red candy nose.
Texture: either add in some large chunks of chocolate or sprinkles to add a little pop to the cake bites. Or dust the outsides with more toppings like crushed Oreos or white sanding sugar.
Frequently Asked Questions about making the best cake pops:
If you do not have enough of the homemade frosting in the cake mix, the ball will fall apart since that is what holds the cake mixture together and give the cake mix the added sweetness.
Yes. You will want to let the cake pops sit in the freezer for at least 30 minutes to allow the cake batter mixture to firm up to be able to hold against the chocolate coating.
You can use chocolate chips instead of the melting wafers. However, you will need to add a little bit of vegetable oil to the chocolate to get it thin enough to dip and not break the ball of cake batter.
Storage Instructions:
Fridge: Once the chocolate coating is completely set, place the cake pops in an airtight container and store it for the next day or up to 7 days in the fridge.
Freezer: To keep the cake pops good for even longer you can place them in a freezer-safe bag and place them in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Other dessert recipes:
- Cake Mix Christmas Cookies
- No-Bake Ritz Cracker Thin Mint Cookies Recipe
- Mini Oreo Cheesecakes Recipe
- Hot Fudge Chocolate Poke Cake
Christmas Cake Pops
Ingredients
For the Vanilla Cake:
- 1 15-ounce box vanilla cake mix
- other ingredients called for on the box including water/oil/eggs
For the frosting:
- 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ⅔ cup powdered sugar
- 3 Tablespoons cream cheese
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the coating:
- 18 ounces white chocolate melting wafers
- Festive sprinkles or other desired decorations
Equipment
Instructions
Prepare the Vanilla Cake
- Preheat the Oven. Set the oven to the temperature indicated on the vanilla cake mix box.
- Mix the Batter. Follow the directions on the cake mix box, combining the cake mix with the required water, oil, and eggs.
- Bake the Cake. Pour the batter into a greased 9×13-inch baking pan or as directed. Bake according to the box instructions, typically until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (about 30 minutes).
- Cool. Allow the cake to cool completely before moving on to the next step.
Make the Frosting
- Cream the Butter. In a medium bowl, beat 5 tablespoons of unsalted butter with an electric mixer until it becomes creamy. Gradually incorporate powdered sugar, beating continuously until the mixture is smooth.
- Add cream cheese and pure vanilla extract. Beat until the frosting is light and fluffy.
- Prepare the Cake Pop Mixture
- Crumble the Cake. Once the cake is completely cool, crumble it into a large bowl using hands or a fork. Aim for fine, even crumbs.
- Combine with Frosting. Mix the crumbled cake with the prepared frosting. Stir until the mixture is well-combined and has a moist, dough-like consistency that holds together when pressed.
Form the Cake Pops
- Shape the Cake Balls. Roll the cake mixture into 1-inch balls and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Melt a small portion of the white chocolate melting wafers according to the package instructions. Dip the tip of each cake pop stick into the melted chocolate and then insert it into the center of a cake ball. This will help anchor the stick in place.
- Chill. Place the cake pops in the freezer for at least 30 minutes to allow them to firm up.
Coat the Cake Pops
- Melt the Chocolate. Melt the remaining white chocolate melting wafers as per the package instructions.
- Dip and Coat. Dip each chilled cake pop into the melted chocolate, ensuring it is completely covered. Gently tap the stick on the side of the bowl to remove any excess chocolate.
- Decorate. While the coating is still wet, sprinkle with festive decorations of your choice.
- Let the Cake Pops Set. Return the coated cake pops to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Allow them to set at room temperature or in the refrigerator until the chocolate coating is completely hardened.
- Serve. Arrange the cake pops in a decorative display or serve as desired. They make a festive treat for any holiday gathering or special occasion.
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?We’d love to hear your thoughts! Leave a review or a question in the comment section below the post.
