Sparkleberry Sweets

These little fire engine cake pops were very time-consuming but worth it. I only found one picture online for inspiration so I’m posting a few pics detailing the steps I took in case anyone else out there gets a request for fire engine cake pops.  Happy second birthday Sean!

P.S.  My dad is a firefighter and pointed out to me that the sirens should actually be red and white but I didn’t have white rainbow chips and I thought blue added a nice contrast.  :)

I don’t normally post pictures of my plain old cake pops. I usually like to post the interesting new project pops that I make, but these are the first ones in my new cake pop stand from KC Bakes. So great!

Chocolate Oatmeal Balls

You’ve probably already seen these little chocolate oatmeal balls but if you haven’t made them yet, do it. So quick and absolutely delicious. I’m not much of a recipe developer. I’m a pretty loyal Cooks Illustrated fan. However with these, I customized a bit. My version was inspired by The Lean Green Bean and Food of Bliss.

1 1/2 c rolled oats
1/2 c dried cranberries
1/2 c chopped pecans
3 tbsp shredded coconut + more for rolling
Stir together the above dry ingredients in a medium bowl

1/4 c agave nectar
1/2 c peanut butter
1/2 c semisweet chocolate chips
Microwave the above wet ingredients in a small bowl at 50% power about 45-60 seconds or until semi melted. Stir together until fully melted. 

Pour the chocolate mixture into the oats mixture and stir until combined. Roll into 1” balls and place on a wax-paper lined baking sheet. I rolled some in coconut for fun. Just roll the ball again in your hands after you roll in the coconut so it sticks.

I also wanted to try cake-popping some. I knew it would be a challenge to get the stick to stay put so I stuck it into the ball to make a hole, then dipped the stick in chocolate and put it back in the hole. Then I had to let them set in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes before dipping. In the end, the stickless, half-dipped balls were my favorite. Just melt some chocolate in a small bowl in the microwave and dip the finished balls half way in. Let them set up on your wax-paper-lined baking sheet and then store them in a zip top bag in the fridge. My batch made 18 and they didn’t last long!

**A friend tried to make these and had a few questions so I’m updating this post with a couple tips for how I do it:

• I use a cookie scoop and smoosh it on the side of my bowl to scoop out each ball. Then I smash everything together back and forth in my hands a couple times before I attempt an actual “roll” motion. 
• I use Jif creamy peanut butter
• Semisweet chocolate chips are perfect to mix with the peanut butter and agave nectar but I like milk chocolate chips to dip the finished balls
• And yes, my hands get dirty!