Vanilla Frosting Recipe

Cute, creative cake pop concoctions explode in popularity

1 boxed cake mix, baked

¾ can vanilla frosting

Disposable food preparation gloves

3 (1-lb.) packages white chocolate candy coating

1 package of 50 cake pop sticks

1 cake pop stand (available at craft stores)

1 pastry bag

Multicolored candy corn

1 small bag pastel-colored M&Ms

In a large bowl, break up cake into fine crumbs, eliminating chunks. Add frosting; cream together until mixture reaches a Play-Dohlike consistency.

Using your gloved hands, mold batter into small, cone-shaped balls. Place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper and cover with plastic wrap. Chill for 2 hours in refrigerator.

Melt candy coating, one package at a time, in microwave according to package directions. If coating is too thick, add 3 tablespoons shortening per package and reheat in microwave to achieve a thinner consistency.

Taking a few cake balls out of the refrigerator at a time, dip the end of an empty cake pop stick into melted coating, and then pierce the center of the narrowest end of cake ball, pushing no more than half way through.

Holding stick with pop facing down, dip pop into melted coating. Remove pop slowly and lift upward, allowing excess coating to drip down toward stick. Rotate pop as coating drips to achieve even coating and cover bare spots. Set in cake pop stand.

Add melted coating to pastry bag. Using coating like glue, squeeze a thin layer on top of cake pops and arrange candy corns to make flower petals. Squeeze more coating on middle of petals and top with M&Ms.

Makes 48 cake pops.

Per cake pop: 249 calories, 12 g total fat (6 g saturated), 7 mg cholesterol, 35 g carbohydrates, 115 mg sodium, trace dietary fiber.

Recipe from Celia Thompson, instructor at the Culinary Center of Kansas City in Overland Park, Kan.

Cake pops - dipped and decorated golf ball-size rounds of cake on a stick - are popping up at school functions and weddings, birthday parties and baby showers.

Cake pops are featured in books, classes and YouTube videos.

Even Starbucks sells them.

Blogger Angie Dudley of Atlanta, better known as Bakerella (bakerella.com), popularized cake pops. In her New York Times best-seller "Cake Pops: Tips, Tricks and Recipes for More Than 40 Irresistible Mini Treats," Bakerella explains how to craft cake pops that look like robots, puppies and ghosts.

The classic cake pop is a supersweet, mushy mouthful. It is made of crumbled cake and frosting creamed together, chilled and then dipped in melted candy coating and decorated.

Honey Cake (& a Vanilla Frosting Recipe) - Over the Kitchen Counter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Dissolve coffee in arm water and cool. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and orange rind together and set aside. In electric mixer beat honey with eggs, sugar and vegetable oil until light. Dissolve soda in cooled coffee, add orange juice. Blend in dry ingredients to egg mixture alternating with liquid mixture. Spread dough in greased 10" tube pan. Bake until top springs back and tester comes out clean, about 55 mins. Let stand 10 mins. before removing to rack to cool completely. Frost as desired.

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