How To Make Cake Pops Without Vanilla Extract

I’m still very new to going sugar free and it’s something that I am trying to embrace. Can I be honest? It’s been an incredibly fun journey. I will let you giggle at that because it sounds ridiculous at first thought. This is the girl who used to thrive over creating copycat treats into gluten, egg, and dairy-free goodies and loved spending time with my oven. I loved sugar. Loved sprinkling it over dough and loved working with it without reservation.

So what happens when someone like me is told to stop eating sugar? Sweat with panic. Sure, that happens in the first moment but then what? I get back into the kitchen and find awesome recreations of the recreations I once made, that’s what. This time, however, I’m learning how to do so with safe ingredients that don’t mess up my blood sugar levels and keeps my Candida at bay. I found it even more serendipitous when Angela from Canned Time invited me to be a part of a blogger event, “Family Favorite Desserts” where each blogger shares a favorite dessert that has been veganized. The catch? It has to be made with stevia. That is all I can have these days anyway, so perfect.

So enter my new relationship with stevia. I will say, it took me some time to not only get used to it but also learn how to use it properly but I truly believe that is where a good brand comes in handy. (NuNaturals has been by far my favorite tasting stevia I have tried). It takes adjusting and to be honest, this journey hasn’t been about eating sweet treats every day.

Starbucks Cake Pops Copycat (easy Birthday Vanilla Cake Pop Recipe)

I used to crave sweets around 3pm and then after dinner every day and would indulge that craving every time (I HAD to). Now that I have removed sugar from my diet, it has drastically decreased (which is insane considering, well…ME). So for those days I need something fun and sweet, these no-bake (almost raw) cake pops do the trick. Valentines-ready too!

This post is part of a guest post series at Canned Time, sponsored by NuNaturals Stevia. I was not compensated for this post though I was supplied with free product. All of my opinions are my own.

Based in Chicago with her husband and son, Cara is the creator behind the site Fork and Beans: A place where kids can have fun with their food.How was your weekend? We spent most of it celebrating my friend’s birthday. I made a whole mess of treats including chocolate zucchini cake (as cupcakes), these salted caramel dark chocolate cookies, and these peanut butter M&M cookies too—it’s been way too long since I made a batch of those in particular! The birthday girl loves chocolate and peanut butter and caramel so these 3 were a no brainer.

Homemade Cake Pops Recipe

There’s no batter time (get it? batter?) than a happy occasion to indulge in your favorite treats whether that’s a birthday, shower, wedding, you name it. My mom and sisters threw my baby shower last month and one of the treats they surprised me with was a HUGE display of cake pops. I love cake pops, but hardly ever take the time to make them. Though I did whip up a batch for both of my sisters’ bridal showers in the past few years.

The difference between these cake pops and others you may have tried is that these are 100% homemade. There’s no box cake mix or canned frosting, which results in a totally unique cake pop experience. You can actually TASTE the homemade. The love, the passion, and the care that goes into creating each adorable pop.

So anyway! I first began making homemade cake pops when I wroteSally’s Candy Addiction. In fact, this recipe is published in the book! I want to share it on the blog as well because I’ve gotten lots of questions about making from-scratch cake pops.

Vanilla Cake Pops From Scratch

Today we’ll go over all my tips, tricks, and secrets to crafting the peeeeerfect pop as well as the homemade vanilla cake and vanilla buttercream used inside. There’s lots of ground to cover so let’s pop right to it. (Can’t stop with my nerdiness right now.)

Since we’re leaving the box cake mix and canned frosting on the store shelves, we’ll need to take a little extra time to prep both from scratch. I always make the cake the night before, then finish the cake pops the next day. Here’s the general process:

Super basic recipes for both the vanilla cake and frosting, but I do encourage you to use the correct size pan for the cake. This cake is too large for a typical 9-inch cake pan. You’ll need to use a 9-inch springform pan since it rises quite high. Or you can use an 11×7-inch pan instead. A 10-inch springform pan would work as well.

Best Cake Without Vanilla Extract Recipes

Cake ingredients are straightforward. The basic crew like flour, butter, sugar, vanilla, milk. Same goes with the vanilla frosting: butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, milk (or cream). The difference between this and what you get out of a box is the taste. You can totally tell these cake pops are special and it’s because you started with from-scratch components. WORTH IT!

(Crumbling the cake into the frosting sounds super weird when you think about it and that’s exactly what cake pops are—super weird when you think about it. It’s cake and frosting mixed together to form a truffle-like ball. Pop a stick in it and dunk into coating. Yep, it’s weirdly delicious and awesome and you need to embrace it.)

It’s easier to roll the cake + frosting mixture into perfectly round balls if it’s cold. And what I do is roll the balls up right after the two are mixed together. They’re pretty misshapen because the cake + frosting mixture is super moist—and at room temperature. So then I chill the balls in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. After that, I give them another little roll to smooth out the sides. When they’re cold, they’re easier to smooth out and form perfectly round shapes.

Lemon Drop Cake Pops Recipe

Just like when we make Oreo balls, the cake balls need to be super chilled before dipping, so this trick gets both steps done!

Now let’s dunk. You can dip the cake balls into pure white chocolate, which is what I prefer for best taste, but that stuff is pretty expensive. And you need a good amount for all 40 cake pops! You can use candy melts/candy coating instead. I give both options in the recipe below along with notes for each choice.

Another trick: to ensure the cake ball stays secure on the lollipop stick, dip it slightly into the coating first. Then stick in the center of the cake ball. See photo above!

Chocolate Cake Pops (2 Ways!)

And another trick: the best way to allow the coating to dry and set—without ruining the perfectly round cake pop—is to place them right side up in a large styrofoam block or even a box. I used a box, as pictured below, for this batch. I just poked super tiny holes into it. Easy and cheap.

Cake pops are a genius celebration-worthy treat to make ahead of time because they freeze beautifully. I simply freeze them in a large zipped-top freezer bag after they’ve fully dried. They’re great for up to 6 weeks, then just let them thaw overnight in the fridge.

I have a few more tips for ya! I went over these in Sally’s Candy Addiction because they’re pretty important to review before you get started.

How To Make Cake Pops Without Sticks (with Pictures)

Sally McKenney is a professional food photographer, cookbook author, and baker. Her kitchen-tested recipes and thorough step-by-step tutorials give readers the knowledge and confidence to bake from scratch. Sally has been featured onThese Easy Eggless Homemade Cake Pops are a cute, bite-sized indulgence! They are easy to make and can be customized into any color or flavor to suit your special occasion. The recipe includes step-by-step photos and lots of tips.

I love making cake pops because they’re a total crowd pleaser! They are fun and festive bites that both kids and adults alike adore.

If you are wondering, cake pops are crumbled cake mixed with frosting and rolled or shaped into bite-size balls, which are then dipped in melted candy wafers (or chocolate) and served lollipop style on a stick.

Skinny Vanilla Cake Pops — The Skinny Fork

After the cake has completely cooled, it’s time to crumble it up and mix it with your frosting. As I mentioned before, I prefer to use store-bought frosting not only because it makes my life easier, but since we only need just a small amount, it is not worth it to complicate things.

Stick the decorated cake pop upright into a styrofoam block or box to finish the setting. The coating will be completely set within an hour or so.

Bake the cake the day before and let it cool overnight. Then just make the mix, coat, and decorate the following day.

Keto Cake Pops

Don’t add too much frosting, or your cake pops will turn out super wet and greasy. The crumbs must be barely moistened.

To ensure the cake ball stays secure on the lollipop stick, dip