In two previous posts, I shared my excitement at some incredible Wilton baking supplies I received and my first attempt at making cake pops , in which I created adorable princesses, tigers and lions .  I used many of those supplies again, today, to create some cake pops for the Wilton Pops in a Post contest.  I love the Wilton Chocolate Pro Melting Pot.  Not only does it melt chocolate and candy melts without scorching, it has a warmer that keeps the candy melted and perfect as you work on longer projects.  I definitely put it to good use, today.

Wilton Chocolate Pro Melting Pot

To begin making cake pops, I used a yellow cake mix, a box of instant butterscotch pudding, 4 eggs, 1 cup of water and 1/3 cup of vegetable oil.  I mixed them all together, poured the batter into a greased 9×13 cake pan and baked it in a 350° oven for 35 minutes.

Once the cake cooled, I crumbled the entire cake into a large bowl.

Crumbled 9x13 cake.

I mixed an 8 0z block of cream cheese, 1 stick of butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1/4 cup of milk and enough powdered sugar (around 2 lbs.) to make a creamy icing.

Homemade Icing

I measured 1 cup of the icing and mixed it into the cake crumbs.

Add 1 cup frosting to cake crumbs.

Once the crumbs and icing were thoroughly mixed, I shaped the resulting “dough” into 36 balls about the size of walnuts.  I chilled the spheres overnight.

Roll cake balls and chill.

The next day, I melted white Wilton Candy Melts and dipped the ends of pop sticks into the candy.

Dip the end of pop sticks into candy melt.

Then I inserted the prepared sticks into the rolled cake and icing balls.  At this point, I refrigerated the pops again, in order to decide what form my cake pops were going to take.  I knew that I would need a unique and original design to enter into the Wilton Pops in a Post contest.

Insert dipped sticks into cake balls. Chill to set.

One of our daughters will be married, in April, and so I first decided to play around with some flower ideas.  I made two.  One of them was so embarrassing, I can’t bring myself to show it to you.  The second, a daisy, turned out okay, but wasn’t really contest-worthy.  I used fondant to make the petals and a half-cakeball for the center.  I affixed the pop stick to the back of the daisy with fondant and candy melt, but in reality the pop was too heavy for that.  The stick would have done better, inserted directly into the cake.

Daisy Cake Pop.

After having spent quite a bit of time on the first two flowers, I decided to take a break and just make something cute from Wilton’s “Pops: Sweets on a Stick” book.  This cute little chick was quick and easy and re-motivated me to try and come up with something for the contest.

Chick Cake Pop

I finally came up with an idea that I hoped would work; and so I started snipping miniature marshmallows into quarters.

Mini Marshmallows snipped into quarters.

I dipped the edge of each marshmallow quarter into white Wilton Candy Melts and then “glued” them to a cake pop.

Dip Marshmallow bits in Wilton Candy Melts.

I applied the quartered marshmallows, until the entire cake pop surface was covered.

Apply dipped marshmallow bits to cake pop.

Once all the marshmallow bits were secured to the cake pop, I dipped the entire pop into the white Wilton Candy Melts.

Dip marshmallow covered cake pop in Wilton Candy Melts.

I placed the dipped pop into a block of floral foam to set up, while I started forming a sheep head from white Wilton Fondant.  I rolled a ball and then shaped the head, adding flattened tear-drop ears.  I broke a toothpick in half, dipped it into the candy melts and inserted it into the back of the sculpted sheep head.  (Be sure to remove that toothpick before eating. )  I poked a hole into the sheep body with another toothpick, at the place where I wanted to attach the head.  Then I applied a small amount of candy melt to the back of the sheep head and “glued it to the body, inserting the toothpick into the hole I had made.

Shape sheep's head from fondant.

I also “glued” whole miniature marshmallows over the entire surface of another cake pop, and dipped it in white Wilton Candy Melts that I had tinted green with gel food coloring.  With the addition of some pink candy flower sprinkles, it became a shrub.  In total, I made four sheep; three with white faces, one with brown.

A flock of Cake Pop Sheep.

Once the heads were applied to the sheep bodies, I carefully dipped the heads into either Wilton white candy melts or Wilton melting chocolate, to give them the smooth finish I wanted.  I used tiny purple candy sprinkles from Wilton, for the sheep eyes, affixing them with a tiny dot of white candy melt.

Sheep gathered in the fold.

I’m not giving up on creating some flower cake pops in the future, but for tonight, I am pleased to have these butterscotch, marshmallow sheep cake pops to enter in the contest.

Sheep Cake Pops from another angle.

These would be so much fun at a kid’s birthday party or even at an Easter celebration.  I love the way the marshmallows created the “woolly” coats on my yummy Cake Pop Sheep.  So, now we wait for Wilton to select their 10 favorite pop creations.  If I am fortunate enough to be counted in that number, I will be asking for your votes in the final.

Cake Pop Sheep for the Pops in a Post Contest.

Thanks so much for putting up with all my “pops posts” as I learn this fun new baking skill.  It should be noted that besides just being downright cute, cake pops are delicious!  I’m hoping as the contest continues, you’ll see lots of designs and ideas that may inspire you to create your own.  Wilton has an impressive array of supplies to make you a master cake pop chef!

A huge thank you goes out to Wilton, who provided a fantastic kit, that included many of the items I used to complete these pops. I have entered their pops in a post contest for a chance at the $500 first prize or one of 9 $100 second prizes.