"Recipes from the Heart" is all about that special dish that you want to make time and time again. Every week, a food blogger or professional shares a recipe, and a little bit about why it's so important to them.
Brittney Lemoine is the founder of Babycakes by Brittney in Cottonport, Louisiana. She makes batches of cake balls out of her home and decorates them by hand. Clients request the nuggets of goodness for everything from birthday parties to christenings and baby showers.
Admit it, we've made you hungry. You want a delicious cake ball, and you want one now.
Chances are, if you've actually mustered up the courage to attempt to make a batch of these beauties, you've run into some problems: Squishy batter, runny, lumpy icing and decorations that look more disastrous than delectable. What's the secret?
Brittney Lemoine started making cake balls just for fun, from her home. After posting some pictures on Facebook, it wasn't long before friends starting requesting orders of their own. Along the way, she's picked up some great tips for getting cake balls that are not only edible, but actually look like something you want to eat.
"It takes a lot of work and a lot of patience," she says. "You've got to practice and find a technique that works for you."
BASIC RECIPES FOR CAKE BALLS:
- 1 box of cake mix (any kind)
- 1 can of frosting (whatever goes with the cake you used)
- 1 pkg of almond bark (white or chocolate)
- 1 tsp. oil
- sprinkles or other topping
- Bake cake as directed in 13x9 pan
- Remove from oven and crumble cake in pan. Stir in a can of frosting, completely coating all of the cake, and chill in pan for two hours in the refrigerator.
- Once chilled, form cake balls about an inch round, place on wax paper or freezer paper on a cookie sheet and freeze for 6 hours or overnight. (I use a small cookie scoop to get them all the same size.)
- Melt almond bark in microwave, then add 1 tsp. oil and stir well. Remove five or six cake balls from the freezer at a time (if they are out of the freezer for too long they will start to defrost). Using a toothpick, dip each ball into almond bark, shaking off the excess so you don't waste too much chocolate. Place on wax paper or freezer paper to dry.
TIPS:
Don't think you need to be artsy just to get nice-looking sweets. "You just have to get creative," Brittney says. "If you are topping with sprinkles or nuts, top each ball as you go, because they will dry too fast and the sprinkles will not stick. If you're drizzling chocolate on top, you can do that after they've all dried."
Be warned: Each batch makes between 40-50 cake balls. And that's a LOT.
Happy cake ball making!
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