sweet inspiration & fun baking ideas

Pure genius.

OOOHHH…….everything you make makes my mouth water. I LOVE your blog!!!! You are so so talented!!!

these are FABULOUS! i’ve been obsessing over them for weeks now.

question: i want to make them for a birthday shindig on the 1st, and right now i have 3-day weekend ahead of me, and a very busy week. how long would you say i could keep them? like if i made them monday, refridge? ziplock? tupperware until saturday?

would that be too long?

Made these for my husbands graduation and everyone went crazy over these…I will say mine didn’t turn out as pretty but they were delicious! Definitely will make these over and over again! Thanks BakerElla!

lauberdauber – I’m glad you’re having fun with them.

Glenda – you can also just wash your hands in between.Having them a tiny bit damp helps.

Damselfly – thanks

chantilly lace – glad you like it!

pineapple – I think they’ll be fine. You can refrigerate or keep in an airtight container for several days. You can also make the cake one day and then do the other steps the next.

Cherry Blossoms – they’ll get prettier as you go.

I made these last night and they turned out soooo cute!! Thank you!! You give wonderful instructions, keep the ideas coming!

Your work is amazing! I’m so jealous :) Planning to make the cupcake bites one day, when I actually have an occasion to make them for. Maybe my cousin’s engagement party…
Loving the sprinkles you use–can you tell me where you purchase them from? The colors aren’t like any I’ve seen anywhere!

Rebecca – YAY! Glad you like them.

dorothy – I love those sprinkles too. They are found in the grocery store (Kroger) ice cream condiment section. The brand is Mr. Sprinkles but you may have trouble finding them in these colors. I think they just recently switched to a “no artificial color” formula which is just not the same. I hope they keep making these because they are perfect for the cupcake pops and bites.

Thanks! I made them for a Memorial Day BBQue yesterday and everybody was more than ‘probably’ impressed. They aren’t as great as yours…but not bad for a first timer. You can see them here http://meganthemotormouth.blogspot.com/2008/05/cousins-closets-cows-and-cupcakes.html

LOVE the cupcake pops – I have given out your blog to soooo many people who want to try to make them too! My daughter took them to NYC last week for a Sex and the City party and they were a HIT! Now onto your cupcake bites – look a little easier??? I’m ordering the molds right now…thanks!!!

Megan Dinsdale – Really great job!

kbwhat – I’m jealous! that sounds like so much fun.

so i took the plunge!
they are all nestled carefully in my fridge for the party on sunday. i got giant chinese takeout boxes to decorate and give them out in (three birthday babies getting 20 cupcakes each).

so much fun! though, mine aren’t as pretty as yours, obviously.

mini cupcakes

What a great photo set. I’m impressed!

So, you already have 113 people telling you how fabulous these are, but count me #114. I’m not sure how I haven’t discovered your blog sooner, but I’ve already spent WAY too much time procrastinating and browsing your site. :)

Oh, I finally made these adorable minis and they are fabulous! Thanks for sharing.

Sharon – Glad to have you.

Laura – you’re welcome!

My sister and I just finished making these using strawberry cake mix and cream cheese frosting. Thanks for the very helpful tutorial!!!

Dorothy (Lafayette, Louisiana)
http://fuzzykoalacakecompany.blogspot.com/

Oh My Gosh. This blog’s making me só hungry!! =)

Love,
Chinouk
http://www.chinouk.net

Very cute Dorothy

Chinouk – good, it’s working.

I made these even easier: I’m not sure if anybody’s tried this but I made oreo truffles instead of cake truffles (no baking involved). I’m not good at dipping the truffle balls but just dipping the tops of the cupcakes was so easy! Love them! Thanks for the ideas!

Hi,
I made these last night and thought they were not that great…I want to know if the cake mixture should be a mushy/soft truffle like consistancy? and will the cupcake fall off of the stick when you bite into the hard chocolate and cake?
Thanks for any input to help me make these GREAT!!!
Bernice

Vicky – I’ve made the oreo truffles, too. You can certainly do either. Or the peanut butter balls.

Neicey – the cake mixture will be very moist. You are mixing cake and frosting, so it will not be dry. Also, once you bite and compromise the chocolate that is essentially holding everything together, it may come apart from the stick. But they only last about two bites anyway, so it should not be too bad. Just hold your hand under to catch anything. If you don’t like it that they come away from the stick, then try this version. This post explains how you can make the same idea just without a lollipop stick. Hope that helps some.

Hi, I finally made them. They are so yummy and I wanted to add my picture of my finish cupcake pops. I will be making them for my Brother’s wedding. 300+. Wish me luck.

I just had a quick question. Does the inside harden up the next day? Or does it stay kind of soft? And just they be stored in the fridge or just in the air tight container on the counter. I’ll be making this in Hawaii for my brother’s wedding in September. Very hot.

Kapu – Wow… 300. The most I’ve done at one time is 200 or so. Good luck.

If you have air conditioning inside, it should be just fine. It will stay moist inside for several days in an airtight container on the counter. But for such a big event, you may want to do a test batch beforehand.

These were so much EASIER to make!!! And I figured out a way to make them as cupcake pops. I took a turkey skewer (knew it was good for something besides cleaning my steaming wand on my coffee maker) and heated it over a candle – I then made a hole in the bottom of the chocolate with the heated tip of the skewer. I then placed the lollipop stick in it and – then you have a cupcake pop…They are great – check out my pictures on my blog at stickycakes.

That’s clever. I’ll have to remember that one.

Thank you so much! These were a hit at my husband & son’s karate studio! I made them with carrot cake/cream cheese frosting & triple chocolate fudge cake/cream cheese frosting. I’m not sure if all candy melts are white chocolate but the ones I used were and everyone loved them. I just had a question, how do you prevent fingerprints on the bottoms when dipping the tops? Thanks again!

First off, you may just need to let them dry longer. I usually don’t have a problem with that. But if you still do, try these candy making gloves. You can get them here or at craft stores.

http://www.cakeartpartystore.com/store/e-StoreOperations_viewItem.asp?idProduct=24379

Check out my first attempt:
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-photo_1239421.html

I’m a fan!

Thanks Bakerella!

Oh Sarah – I’m not a member, I can’t see your pics.

Hi sarah,
I am not a member either so I can’t view your cupcakes. Is there another way?
Bernice

I’m not sure how I found your site. But I kiss you. I kiss you for your awesome cupcake recipes!

Thanks for the kisses lotta!

I just made these for a little stamping party. They were very cute. Thanks!

Oh, and here’s a link to my end results.

Nicely done Celia!

Hi!

I am so looking forward to trying these out for an upcoming baby shower. One question – How deep should the candy cup mold be? I bought one (Wilton) and it looks pretty shallow – but maybe it should be?

Will definitely let you know how it goes. Thanks!

will this work with buttercream icing?

Sarah, Sean, and Caroline Connors – they are about 3/4 inch deep.

Anonymous – sure would.

Hi there. I am a big fan and long time reader. I am commenting on this post for a specific question. Can you tell me what color(s) you used to make this purple? I am planning to make these for our Relay for Life and I LOVE the shade of this purple!!! Thanks for any specific tips you can offer on the color.

Holly – I used the make n mold brand. They come in a lot of colors.

http://www.makenmold.com/ItemDetail.aspx?cmd=local&item=6516

Awesome! Those are PERFECT! Thanks so much for the link.

Just stumbled across your site yesterday – LOVE IT! Went on a shopping trip today to start making some of your stuff… I’m starting with the Cupcake Bites Made Easy. What frosting flavor do you suggest mixing with chocolate cake? If I want to keep a few days, should I store them in the fridge or at room temp? I look forward to following your blog!

Holly – you’re welcome.

baybedaul – cream cheese frosting, or chocolate frosting … whatever you ususally like with choc cake.

And they’ll last for several days in an airtight container on the counter.

Great recipe. I know this post is pretty delayed but here goes…
I made these for a friend but did have any candy molds, so I used Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups for the base; for those of you concerned about the peanut butter taste with red velvet…it’s still delicious! If you’re still concerned just go with a chocolate cake mix.
This worked very well; I would just recommend freezing the Reese’s before hand, to make them easier to handle; otherwise they get a little melty. Also, use a little bit of icing as glue to stick the cake ball to the Reese’s cup and pop in the freezer for a few; this will help prevent the top falling off when dipping.

Thanks anonymous. I’m sure I would love them with chocolate cake.

Your pops are wonderful! I experimented with some this week. Well, let’s just say mine are not really balls but bumpy balls, lol. Also, about the blue cake, The Wilton paste will change the taste if you use a lot of it. Try to use as little as possible to get the right color. hth.

They might be lumpy, but I bet they still taste yummy.

Hi Bakerella! I LOVE these! I made these cupcake bites for a party we threw and they were awesome!!! They were a HUGE hit! Thanks so much!

you’re welcome. glad they were a hit.

I haven’t tried these yet, I’ve got all the stuff to make them. The last time I tried, my ratios were off and it ended up being way to sticky and gooey, (I made home made cream cheese icing instead of store bought so I had way more icing than I had cake!) BUT never fail, I will try again! Love the candy mold idea!!! Much better than the cookie cutter thing that was a complete mess on my end! BUT here is my question…after you roll the batter in balls and let them harden do you push them into the chocolate cavity round or do you roll them more oblong so they can fit better? Similar to your technique with the cookie cutter effect. Thanks!!
angelabarton@mac.com

angelabarton – If you are using the molds, you don’t have to let them get firm. You can go ahead and push them into the chocolate that is in the mold. Then let the chocolate harden in the freezer for a few minutes. The size should be smaller than the mold size so the chocolate will slide up the sides when you push the ball in. And the ball can stay in a round shape. Hope that makes sense.

Hi there, from your number 1 Australian fan!

I am having difficulty finding tinned cream cheese frosting, do you know of a similar product which produces the same results in this recipe?

Hello!! okay so i tried these cupcake bites at a friends baby shower and they were soooo good! and i have recently baught all the ingredients to them for my niece’s upcoming birthday party! which is october 11..i was planning on making these cupcakes this weekend october 4 or 5 and i was wanting to know if the cupcakes will still be good and taste fresh if i freeze them until the 11 and then thaw them out before the party? im so worried they are goin to go bad or taste frostbit…please please please let me know what i should do! ive never made them so i wanted to to make them this weekend just incase i mess up you know and i would still have time to make another batch! please help!! thnak you sooo soo much!

These are so precious! I’m not much of a candy-maker, but they are just so cute, I’m going to have to try them. I just saw your little Cuppies over on CakeSpy – TOO CUTE!!

Katy Potaty – Hi there in Australia!!!
you can use any frosting you like. Canned or homemade. You will need approx. 2 cups. So atart out adding most of it and then mix. You may not need all of it. Just enough to make the mixture able to hold its shape and still be moldable.

Sweetrebel712 – I think they will be alright frozen, but to be honest I’m doing my first real test right now and I won’t know until I take them out. Which will be after your party. They do last for a several days in an airtight container. So why don’t you practice them this weekend. Freeze them. And then take them out Thursday morning to thaw. If they don’t taste right, you would still have time to bake a cake on Thurs evening and then do the dipping and decorating on Friday Evening before the party.

Hope that helps.

Sandy Smith – I’m no candy-maker either, so go for it!

These are soooo cute. My children will love them. I’m making them for our next family party. Thanks.

this is sooo kool…so if i wer 2 make the top part of the cupcake can i just use food coloring in white chocolate? i luv it <3

Cathy at Wives with Knives – Hope you have fun!

pinkcimmanon – you have to use special food coloring for candy. The regular ones contain water and will mess up your chocolate. You can find pre-colored candy melts in craft stores, though.

I made these tonight, so sweet and adorable! I made only a few to try it out. How do you get yours looking so smooth on the tops? mine were quite messy and I couldn’t really dip them in the candy, I had to more or less “frost” them….

These are wonderful and the directions are so easy to follow! I finally joined the Bakerella club and made these bites for a friend’s birthday party. Everyone loved them! I’m looking forward to making these again and experimenting with different flavor combinations. I’m thinking spice cake with cream cheese frosting for the holidays, maybe orange topped for Thanksgiving.

Thanks again for being so generous to share!

My cupcake truffles on flickr:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3158/2944533517_abff8d9008_m.jpg

pandabearz – It comes with practice, but I bet the frosting look makes them seem more real.

Cheryl – Sounds fun. Glad you enjoy them.

Bakerella!! you’re SUCH an inspiration. I finally made these tonight (it was surprisingly fast to make 50 of ‘em). Your directions were spectacularly easy to follow. (And I FINALLY found Almond Bark at Walmart of all places–they only carry it during the holidays, I guess). I’m sending 25 of the ‘bites to work with the wunderhusband, and taking 25 to my job! Thanks for all your lovely ideas and sweet, funny blogs!

Yay! Yay! and Yay!

You should stock up on the bark. It lasts a while.

I have tried twice to make these, but i seem to have a problem getting them out of the mold with out destroying the cakes. And that makes it very difficult to do the top part. Any suggestions?

kels –
1.Make sure you are using the plastic molds for candy making… not silicone or metal

2. Place them in the freezer for a few minutes to speed up the drying time.

Remove and just twist the hard plastic sheet/mold so that it helps them break away from the sides. Then holding by the cake, just pull them out carefully. Or turn the sheet over and let them fall out.

Hello. This is my first time to your blog and i cannot wait to make these mini cupcake candy bites! I think my two lil’ girl will love helping me! Looks like so much fun.

I look forward to seeing whatelse you post! hugs, Ellen

She’ll definitely love helping you eat them.

My sister in law buys these all the time!! So I tried to make them, and they are really mushy. I did them while the cake was warm, maybe I need to wait until cool? Or not use the whole can of frosting? I used carrot make mix and cream cheese frosting. was great, but kinda mushy.
Any suggestions?

ps I love love love your site. I studied it for two days before trying them. Your site and creativity is awesome. and I love the cool photography, my other hobby!

Thought I’d pop in and give you a link to my cake balls. My second attempt anyway. The first time was an utter disaster – which was totally my fault. But the second time was much better and I wanted to tell you they were pretty, and they were delicious!
I made these for my daughter’s 4yo. birthday party and they were enjoyed so much that I’ve now been sequestered to make them again for Thanksgiving. :)

Here’s the link:
http://darkbetweenthestars.blogspot.com/2008/11/if-at-first-you-dont-succeed.html

Thanks for sharing your recipes! I love eating cute food.

80smom – I think you’ll be fine. Try less frosting and let the cake cool completely before you crumble.
Also, I think they taste the best a day or two after you make them.

Jodie – You did a good job. I agree cute food is more fun to eat. Check back soon and see some I’ve done for Thanksgiving.

Hi! I love all your recipes and I’ve seen you with Martha Stewart – super awesome.
I can’t wait to try these Cupcake Bites.
The only thing is, what exactly are candy melts?
I’m from Australia and I’ve never heard of them. Can you buy them here and if not do you know of a replacement I could use that they sell here in Australia??

Candy melts are colored or flavored candy coating that come in the shape of small discs. You can see them here from amazon.com

http://astore.amazon.com/bakerella-20?%5Fencoding=UTF8&node=11

In a pinch, you can try substituting regular choclate morsels or baking choclate. You may need to add a couple of drops of veg oil to make it smoother.

The melts/wafers/discs are good because they don't melt to the touch like the morsels do.

i love you ideas they look so good

I am so upset! I am trying to make these for a party tonight and I have somehow ruined them. I’m not sure what I did wrong either. I baked the cake last night and it cooled overnight. I crumbled it up in the food processor and just now mixed the cream cheese frosting in. It is absolute GOO! And I am out of eggs so I can’t even try again!!!! How sad!

aliyah – thanks

Rebecca – you didn’t do anything wrong. The texture is VERY moist because of mixing the cake and frosting. If you think it’s too moist, go buy a cupcake at the store and mix in the cake part to equal it out. Or next time, add less frosting.

Don’t throw them out though. I think they’ll still be ok even if they are too moist. Once they are coated, on the second day they will be less moist inside.

Hope that helps some.

I just made these last night and OMGosh are they amazing! Bakerella…you are my hero! I made them for a baby shower for Saturday and the mommy-to-be wanted yellow cake and milk chocolate frosting, so I obliged. I used a store-bought yellow cake mix and then I made my own milk chocolate frosting for the inside. I will take pictures and add them to my blog after the shower — I can’t before or she will see them and they are are surprise!

That’s fantastic. Can’t wait to see.

Hey Bakerella!

Well..I’ve been making these cupcake Bites for a while now. :) I just thought I’d let you know that they’ve been a HUGE hit with all my friends, family and just about anyone I’ve given them to!

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_XD665FVrwEI/SU3BOzL0A4I/AAAAAAAABH4/2Tf_T_GdteY/s1600-h/Dec+20+%232.JPG

Here is a photo of one of my batches I made for my teachers at school. They really are fabulous and I admire your creativity SO much!!

I do have one question though. How do you dip the chocolate on top without getting a sort of extra little chocolate chip like top? I can’t seem to get rid of it…but when I tried to smooth it out, it ruined the chocolate.

I plan on making these later this month for a friend’s birthday and as I was looking for a candy mold I found one by Wilton.

Now their peanut butter candy molds is much shallower than the ones you are using. How would that affect the cupcakes I would be making?
Would I have to make the rolled out batter smaller?

I tried to make these yesterday and needless to say..it was a disaster. I used Red Velvet Cake, Betty Crocker’s cream cheese icing to make the balls. Then I used milk chocolate to make the cups and pink candy melts for the top of the cupcakes. For some reason, they did not taste good at all. I was so disappointed. I am a sweets lover especially chocolate. Any ideas as to what may have gone wrong???? They look so nice and I would love for them to taste as good as they look.

Samie – try swirling your hand in a circular motion. It will help the chocolate settle and smooth out.

Stacey – probably. Try Hobby Lobby, too. the ones I use are similar to miniature peanut butter cup proportions. Not flat like the regular reeses peanut butter cups.
I have a link in this post to some on amazon that you can look at.

MasonScrapMom –

Sorry they didn’t turn out like you hoped. Give them another try, though. I think they taste best on the second or third day. And if that doesn’t work, consider adding less frosting next time. Maybe they are too moist for you. It might just be the texture.

What brands of chocolate were you using? That might be another factor. Mercken’s is pretty good for the melts.

And then, it’s possible that you just don’t like the combination.

But, if you like the cake and frosting and chocolate, then it stands to reason you should like the balls.

I just looked up Hobby Lobby online and sadly it isn’t within my state.

I saw the ones you showed on amazon and I wish I could find those around here. I could buy the ones you showed me but I don’t feel like it’s worth just to buy a candy mold online.

I think the best chance I have is with the Wilton ones. The craft stores I’ve been to are Joanns and Michaels and they only carry that brand. Thanks for the help though. I’ll be making these weekend, I hope they turn out well!

Thanks for the darling idea. It was a big hit at my daughter’s first Birthday! http://mmmcbride.blogspot.com/2009/01/party-time.html

Stacey – Good luck.

Mitzi – Great pops! And the photos are so cute.

I was looking for a long time the recipe of mice chocolate that Im was test, and your recipe of bites is the recipe of mice! =0
OMG, you are my heroine!!!!!
thanks for the recipe and thousand kisses from you……

Enedina – glad to help

Im going to try these for my next party!!

Go for it Mara!

I made these today(well, over a few days, but today they were finished) using devils food cake and they taste great, but the appearance leaves much to be desired. I think I’ll try the ones on a stick next time..seems easier for dipping and such instead of getting my hands practically covered in it. I partly made these now because my daughter’s first birthday party is in a couple weeks and I was debating between cupcake bites and cake balls and I think I’ll stick with the cake balls for now. I’m actually going to do red velvet with white chocolate and draw on cow spots and maybe a purple “A” for Addison. Hopefully those will turn out a little more attractive! ((I think I might do the sticks on those so I don’t have to get my hands so close with the dipping!! Thanks for all the awesome ideas, I can’t wait to see what you come up with next!

Natasha – You can buy black candy writers to help you make the cow spots.

I already bought some after originally seeing your post with the smiley face ones, so I guess now it’s just a matter of seeing how well I can pull it off! :) I actually looked around to see if you had already made cow ones that I could look at for inspiration, but the closest I saw looked like pigs as far as I could tell. Way cute, though! Oh and I sent the cupcake bites to work with my boyfriend and the 4 people working that night ate the entire batch(except about 10 I reserved for home). Apparently, they sat around the break room table analyzing them and trying to figure out what was inside them. Also, he’s been instructed that I have to make them again. One person even said I should start a catering business and sell them! In other words, glowing reviews!!..despite mine are much uglier! If I stop procrastinating and take a picture before the last few are gone, I’ll post it so you can see how mine look. :) Thanks again!!

I am just in LOVE with these, you are a genius! I didn’t have a peanut butter cup mold, but I did have some candy cups on hand, as I use them for homemade caramels. So I lined a my mini-muffin tin with them and proceeded as instructed, they turned out great! I did have to dip the tops twice, but I’m sure that’s due to how I shaped the cake balls. Here are some pics:http://choosingsimplicity.wordpress.com/2009/04/05/mini-cupcake-cake-truffle-bites/

Natasha – that’s awesome.

choosingsimplicity – they are really pretty. good job.

Quick question-do these need to stay refrigerated? I wanted to send some in the mail, but don;’t want to give them food poisoning!

nope. the cake is cooked and the frosting from the can, is fine. go for it.

I recently made these for a birthday party and they turned out so great. I made the cake balls that Thursday and Friday had two friends help with the chocolate part. This def made it go by faster and was lots of fun, so if you have some bakey friends get an assembly line going and crank them out.

Cake tip- I lined the pan with parchment paper since the cake was gonna get smashed and the sides did not matter. This turned out great and provided a super easy way to carry and dump the cake into the mixer.

Balls- I used a cookie dough baller to get a 1 in. ball and then broke that in half to make small balls. I actually got like 70 but it was a good size for the Wilton pb cup molds.

Packaging- The BD Girl got a takeout box for herself, and we brought the rest in a shirt box lined with tissue paper.

Pics!!
http://jill-in-the-city.blogspot.com/2009/04/friday-april-10-2009.html
and
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_5JO0z7TUqlE/SeKKrICxjOI/AAAAAAAAE_A/MIFxMXT0zXc/s1600-h/IMG_5313.JPG

Thanks, Bakerella! We are huge fans.

Thanks for this version, they are way easier than stuffing the cake balls into the cookie cutter. I just made a bunch for a friend’s birthday and they were the cutest. And I ate about a million of them. No joke. My butt is not happy with you (nor me) but my mouth is.

http://dandelionsandfireflies.blogspot.com/2009/04/cupcake-bites.html