Xander: I ate a pig? Was it cooked and called bacon or...Oh, my God! I ate a pig? I mean, the whole trichinosis issue aside, yuck!"
I got this great Cake Pops book from my friend, Jenna, for my birthday and I was just waiting for a reason to use it. And they have pigs!
Their directions are very easy to follow, even if you've never made cake pops before. As this is my second time to attempt them, I definitely fall into this category. My first try, I heated the chocolate too long and it caused the cake balls to dissolve. Effect? Gross texture issues.
Cake (baked and crumbled)
Frosting
Pink Melting Wafers (melted)
Pink Skittles
Watermelon Starburst (shaped into ears)
Black edible pen
Lollipop sticks
I could just say buy the book and follow their directions, but I'm nice. :)
I used Funfetti cake because who doesn't like funfetti! After the cake cools, you crumble it and then add about 3/4 can of frosting. Use the back of a spoon to mix the frosting and the cake. I used a cookie scoop for consistency and rolled out the balls.
Now for the hard part: Melt your chocolate. Dip the lollipop stick into the melted chocolate then place about halfway into the cake balls. It helps if the cake ball is cold. I usually keep them in the freezer and take them out one at a time so they don't start to fall apart. Now dip the lollipop cake ball into the melted chocolate and let drip to create a nice even coating. I immediately put on the pig nose and ears before it dries.
The book uses pink m&ms for the nose. I couldn't find any since it's not October yet (breast cancer awareness m&ms), so I got Berry Skittles and used the pink ones. I also made some out of the starburst I got for the ears and I REALLY liked those better! It actually stuck out and looked like a pig nose.
Like I said earlier, I used watermelon starburst (from Fave Reds package) to make the pig ears. The book uses pink chocolate covered sunflower seeds. Nothing against the book, but I thought it looks a little like devil horns, so I wanted to make them myself. It's pretty easy. Just work the starburst in your hands and roll it so it looks like the size of a tootsie roll, but longer. It made it easy to then cut ear sized pieces. Pinch and make into ear shapes.
After the cake balls dry, draw eyes and nostrils on the pig and voila! Pig Cake Balls.
Trials and errors: I had trouble (AGAIN) with the melting of the chocolate. I was trying to be quick and was heating it in the microwave. The trouble with apartment microwaves is the inconsistent heating. Boo. Next time I will either use my fondue pot (why not?) or a bowl over a pot of water (cheap double broiler). Anyway the chocolate melted and was creamy, but it wouldn't drip. I stopped heating it before a burned it like last time. I just used a spoon to cover the cake ball and tapped as much off as I could. Result: Not smooth piggies, but it still looked okay.
See below: Smooth(er) vs. textured
I would also remember to get some Styrofoam to have to stand the drying cake balls on. I had a travel lollipop container and it was a little messy getting them in the cardboard container before they were dry.
I also forgot that I did not have black edible pen, but a blue frosting pen. It worked, but I'd rather have had black and a pen that's easier to write on chocolate.
I also forgot that I did not have black edible pen, but a blue frosting pen. It worked, but I'd rather have had black and a pen that's easier to write on chocolate.
The potluck had a LOT of pineapple. In addition to that, there was ham, Hawaiian punch and spam. Spam? But the pigs were a nice touch! I had none left to take home! Have fun making your own piggies!
Be crafty,
Kris
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