CAKE RECIPE

• 1/2 cup all purpose flour

• 1/2 cup white granulated sugar

• 3 Tbsp. cocoa powder

• 1/4 tsp. baking soda

• 1/8 tsp. salt

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

• 1 egg

• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

• 1/4 cup hot water

• 2 cups candy melts (red, yellow, blue)

• 1/4 cup green candy melts

FROSTING

• 3 Tbsp. unsalted softened butter

• 6 Tbsp. confectioners sugar

• 1/4 cup cocoa powder

• 1-3 Tbsp. milk

• 1 tsp. vanilla

DIRECTIONS

• In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk everything together then set aside.

• In a separate bowl whisk together the oil, egg and vanilla. Then add this to the dry ingredients. Add in your hot water as you mix. Continue to mix with your whisk until your batter is smooth.

• Pour the batter evenly into a greased pan and bake for 25-30 minutes. Use a toothpick or knife to check the center of the cake to check if it’s done. Once your cake has finished baking, let it cool completely.

• While your cake is cooling we can make the frosting. Add your softened butter into a bowl and whisk until creamy. Add in the confectioners sugar, cocoa powder and vanilla sugar. Add in your milk as you continue to whisk. Whisk until smooth and fluffy.

• Once your cake has cooled completely crumble it up making sure there are no large lumps. Add in your frosting and mix it all together using a fork. I like to mix this together using a fork because it combines everything well and continues to crumble the cake more as you go.

• Scoop your cake into 1 hefty Tbsp. balls and roll them together. Be careful not to over work your cake pops because they will not roll together nicely if they are over handled. Just gently roll them and press together until they form a nice ball. Continue scooping and rolling until all of your cake is gone.

• Take your cake pop sticks and while supporting the cake pop on its sides, push the stick into the ball until they all have one. Place your cake pops in the freezer for at least one hour.

• Once your cake pops have chilled for at least an hour, put your candy melts in a microwave safe bowl and heat until it is completely melted. One at a time, dip your cake pops into the candy melts and gently tap your cake pop stick on the side of the bowl to remove excess coating. I used an offset spatula for my Mars cakepops and went in a circular motion around it to give it texture. As for my planet Earth cakepops, I dipped them in the blue candy melts and let is set for about 10 minutes before using my offset spatula to add on the green land effects.

• Remember that you can use a solid color for the Mars cakepops if you’d like. I used a mix of red and yellow candy melts to give it more detail. Make these your own and be creative!

• Put your cakepops in the freezer for 15-20 minutes before serving and enjoy!