Ingredients:

• A box cake mix and ingredients to make the cake
• A can of frosting (any flavour of your choice)
• Cooking chocolate (white/brown/dark - any choice)
• Lollies, sprinkles, candies, sugars (anything for decorating)
• Lollipop sticks
• A Styrofoam block 

Method:

• To begin making cake pops, follow the direction on a box of cake mix. This is the easiest way to make cake pop and since there are so many flavoured cake mixes available the flavour of the cake is completely up to you. You can also make your own home made cake!
• Once you bake your cake, let it cool completely. 
• Crumble the cake into fine crumbs by either using your hands (cut off the cake edges first) or using a food processor (pulse it into fine crumbs). Move cake crumbs into a large mixing bowl. 
• Add a small amount of frosting (1 tbsp) to the cake crumbs and mix together using your hands. Keep adding frosting until the crumb mixture becomes the consistency of clay.
• Once you have created your cake dough, it's time to roll your cake balls. An ice-cream scoop works well. 
• Take a scoop of dough and roll the mixture into your hand to create a round ball.
• Set your cake balls onto a baking tray (lined with baking paper) and chill them in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes.
• Microwave cooking chocolate in a bowl and melt (stirring every 10 seconds), until the chocolate is smooth in consistency. If you are using white and dark chocolate add these to separate bowls before microwaving. 
• Remove cake balls from freezer and let them sit for a few minutes. 
• Dip the end of a lollipop stick into the melted chocolate and then gently push it into a cake ball until the stick is about half way through the cake ball. Set your cake balls in the fridge to chill for dipping. (You can also turn your cake ball upright and set it in your Styrofoam block). 
• Once chilled dip each cake ball straight down into the melted chocolate coating until the cake ball is completely covered with chocolate. Remove the cake pop from the melted chocolate by pulling it straight up. Turn the cake pop at an angle to gently tap off any excess coating. 
• Set your cake pops in your Styrofoam block and while the coating is still wet use sprinkles, candies, lollies, sugars and more to decorate your cake pops.

Hints and Tips:

• This recipe is great for children to get involved and help out. By crumbling the cake, creating balls and even decorating their own cake pops.
• Make a bouquet of cake pops (5 or 6) by placing them in a Styrofoam block and arrange them like flowers by using cellophane and ribbon.
• When adding frosting to cake crumbs to form the dough it's best to start off with a small amount then add more frosting when needed.
• This recipe makes an average of 30 cake pops but you can create more in this single batch depending on how big you roll your cake balls. The smaller the cake balls the more you'll create in a batch. 

The aim of this recipe is for children to participate in a simple cooking activity that they can complete themselves and not to be used as part of a child's regular diet or even to be served in a childcare setting menu. Please use your best judgement when making this recipe.

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