How To Make A Healthy Cake Pop

June 2, 2011 16 Comments

Snack Girl is a mother of a first grader who is now reading. Yesterday, she decided to read the newspaper where there was a feature on something called "Cake Pops".

"Let's make cake pops today, Mommy!", said the cute little girl. That sounded fun until I read the description of how to make a cake pop. argh.

Cake Pops were created by a food blogger named "Bakerella" and her book is a bestseller. You bake a cake, crumble it, mix it with frosting, make little balls, refrigerate, stick the balls on popsicle sticks, dip into a melted candy coating, and refrigerate again.

Do I look like I can handle all those steps?

And then there was all the GEAR. I needed 4 inch lollipop sticks and a cake pop stand. What on earth is a cake pop stand? (and there is a "cake pop maker" that will bake little balls of cake for you in four minutes!)

So, I put on my "Snack Girl" cape and started innovating. First of all, I have this GREAT recipe for No Bake Brownie Balls that would work on a stick. No baking, crumbling, or mixing with frosting.

For the sticks, I am lucky that I live near a crafts store (people in the middle of nowhere make LOTS of crafts). They had 4-inch lollipop sticks (see below) for $1.99.

The cake pop stand was easy because I save styrofoam blocks because I can't bear to put them in a landfill. See here:

Finally, the candy coating would have to be dark chocolate. First, because I LOVE the stuff and, more importantly, I keep some in my house for emergencies.

My cake pop steps:

Make No Bake Brownie Balls
Stick them on a lollipop stick
Dip them in melted chocolate
Refrigerate

SO ridiculously easy and it worked! My kids loved them, though I will warn you that this is SUPER MESSY. A curtain in my house got a chocolate rub that it didn't need :)

I think it would be fun to dress it up with some M&Ms or jelly beans for a "party" cake pop.

They are very rich and lasted in my house for three nights as dessert.

Have you tried to make cake pops?

Healthy Cake Pop Recipe

1.6 from 24 reviews

(15 balls)

Print Pin

Ingredients

1 cup roasted almonds (no salt added)
15 pitted dates
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
2 tablespoons water
4 ounces dark chocolate
15 4-inch popsicle sticks
cake pop stand or styrofoam block

Instructions

Add almonds to food processor and pulse until ground. Add dates, cocoa powder, honey, and water. Mix until it just forms a sticky mass. Wash hands and attempt to make a ball with the dough (it may need more water to get to the perfect consistency).

Melt chocolate in small bowl in microwave. Stab ball with popsicle stick and dip in chocolate until covered. Place into cake pop stand and refrigerate for one hour. Enjoy!

Nutrition Facts

For one cake pop: 150 calories, 9.1 g fat, 16.7 g carbohydrates, 4.2 g protein, 3.7 g fiber, 4 Points+

Points values are calculated by Snack Girl and are provided for information only. See all Snack Girl Recipes

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16 Comments:

Oh I like this idea so much better than the frosting thing. Now I may actually make cake pops!

Deb @ knitstamatic

I usually skip the sticks, just one more thing to go wrong

sheri tallman

I like brownies much better anyways! :)

Cristina @ An Organic Wife

This is definitely one I'm going to try. FABULOUS idea for a healthier dessert!!!

Tammy Fischer

I have made Bakerella's Cake Pops, but I made the ones she doesn't put on a stick. same recipe, though. everyone at work loved them. They were incredibly rich and decadent, and absolutely adorable. They looked like little cupcakes d/t how I decorated them, which is exactly how she did on her website. okay, hers were definitely cuter; mine took some practice because it was really humid when I was making them, and they took longer to dip/set.... but they were really good if you want a not-low-cal-not-low-fat treat.

amy

I hope these Cake Pops taste better than they look!

Cathie

thanks for sharing and especially posting the points! at 4 points a pop, I'll think 100 times before making these :-)

Fran

What a great idea! I saw these cake pops the other night when I went to Starbucks with my mom. I thought they would be cute for a birthday party or to send to school for a birthday. But an even heathier version is great. You are so creative!

Stephanie

I was just researching these for my niece's baby shower! Perfect timing!

Melissa

Did you know Trader Joe's has ALMOND FLOUR? No need to do the food processor to make almond powder... then you can hand mix the rest.

Sue

My mom and sister has made "cake balls" which is the same thing without the sticks, and let me tell u, they were the most delicious dessert I have ever tasted. Seriously.

brandi

I've been seeing cake pops all over the place, and I just haven't understood the appeal. I like cake because it's light and, well, "cakey". When you mash it together with frosting and then smash it into a ball it's not really cake anymore. Plus, cake pops look like too much frosting for someone like me, that likes a relatively high ratio of cake:frosting. But this version looks much tastier, and easier to pull off. Thanks for the great idea!

stagirl

I love the website Bakerella, but all I do is marvel at the delicious pictures (I only made 1 recipe from there)
I made these with honey and a peanut butter 'cookie' (all it was, was peanut butter, an egg, and some baking powder/soda).

Kathy

I hope these Cake Pops taste better than they look!
Cathie 10 hours ago
****i agree with you cathie lol!

jennifer

My mom came for a visit and brought that article with her. At first I thought, "cool," but when I heard you mix it with frosting I almost gagged. Yuck - too sweet. And I don't really like frosting much. So this might be a great alternative.

Marcy K.

Thanks so much for this great idea! I have made the Bakerella Cake Pops too but only once because I really don't like the idea of using all that CANNED frosting. Blech! I have some dates in the pantry now so will be putting these on the "recipes to try" list for this summer which is rapidly growing!

Brenda @ Meal Planning Magic