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Sunday, May 22, 2011

Dressed to Impress


I don't generally care for food fads. The frozen yogurt craze of a few years ago didn't faze me; I had already ended my relationship with TCBY before the hype even began. Cupcakes, while beautiful, never really appealed to me (I was always more of a brownie person, myself). But I think I may have found one that suits my tastes. Waste is one of the most grievous sins in my book, whether that is in the form of energy (beyond one's bodily power), time, food, or whatever. Well, a person happens to have a half dozen cupcakes meant for a potluck that she didn't attend, and doesn't plan on consuming all the baked goodness, what else is there to do but compost the lot? Ok, you could make a trifle, but the newest baked good craze may offer an even more impressive-looking solution.

Cake pops. Yes, the mini cake-on-a-stick coated in something wonderfully sugary made it onto the food blog scene a little over three years ago now (thank you Bakerella). They provide the perfect outlet for extra or stale cake, really only require frosty or something else gooey and sugary, and keep fairly well as they are coated in a chocolate exterior. But kids, you haven't made it to the big league until some bigwig like Starbucks takes you under its wing. For cake pops, their time in the spotlight has finally come. (but I wouldn't recommend the commercial version with a laundry list of ingredients over a simple homemade batch).
How did my first attempt at this fun bit-sized treats go? My coworkers seemed thoroughly impressed and enjoyed them immensely. If ever I want a showy dessert that's not too difficult (and very transportable), these may be my new go-to.

Choco-PB Cake Pop
1 boring whole wheat cake, crumbled
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup soy milk
1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup chocolate chips or 4 oz dark chocolate
crushed peanuts to garnish

1. Heat soymilk and sugar over medium-high heat until sugar starts to caramelize. It should start to boil, bubble, and rise in the pan. (you can also use 1 cup sweetened condensed milk if not vegan and in a pinch for time). Turn off heat and then add immediate to your peanut butter. Combine thoroughly.
2. Now you can mix that peanut buttery goodness with your cake crumbs until the goo has been evenly distributed. Let cool in fridge. Then for little balls about 1 inch in diameter. Stick on wax paper on a baking sheet and put back in the fridge.
3. Melt chocolate in a double broiler (will keep it melty the entire time you are dipping) or in the microwave. I had trouble coating already skewered cake balls, so you can always dip them first like you would truffles and then put the lollipop stick in. Sprinkle with nuts.
4. Place back in the refrigerator for about an hour until completely hardened, and then store in the fridge until consumed!

For more vegan cake poppage, check out Vegan Culinary Crusade, Veronica's Cornucopia, and Diet, Desserts, and Dogs. Also, while I'm not sure how slightly indulgent this recipe is, it's going up on the Slightly Indulgent Tuesday page at Simply Sugar & Gluten Free!

Are there any food fads that you fancy? Any that you refuse to take part in?

1 comment:

Victoria said...

That is really cool that you used the peanut butter mixture instead of frosting - probably made them less sugar-bomb like and more delicious.