Cake ballz !

Ok, I have been making a lot of cake balls lately.  I was turned on to them by a co-worker and decided to make them my "bring to a party"  food for the endless parties of summer.

What are cake balls, you ask?   They are delicious little dense,  moist balls of cake, almost truffle-like in texture, coated in chocolate and impossible to resist !

Here is the simplest and easiest ingredient list for cake balls :

1 box cake mix, baked as instructed, typically with water, eggs and oil.

1 can frosting

chocolate bark candy coating (or any meltable chocolate)

Bake and cool the cake, shape doesn't matter so I just use the trusty "9" X "13" pan.

Crumble the cake into tiny bits in a large bowl, I break it in chunks then use the hand mixer to finish it off.

Mix in frosting, one tablespoon at a time, until the cake will form a ball when rolled together.  Typically anywhere from 1/2- 3/4 of a can of frosting is enough.

Roll walnut sized balls of cake, lay them on a wax paper covered tray.

Freeze them for at least 30 minutes.

Melt your chocolate bark in the microwave according to the package instructions.

Take the cake balls from the freezer and coat them in the chocolate, two forks work pretty well.

Lay them on a wax paper covered tray.

If you are decorating them with sprinkles do it as you dip them since the bark will harden quickly on the cold cake.

They are done, keep them in the fridge and you are good to go !

This is the easiest way to make them, but you can take this to a higher level by using a good homemade cake and frosting and quality chocolate to coat them.  It is your call and your friends that you have to please.

The best thing about cake balls is that  the variations are endless.  You can use any flavor cake with any frosting flavor you want.  You can decorate them with sprinkles, or coconut flakes, or crushed nuts, or a drizzle of a contrasting color chocolate.   You can mix in a little fruit filling  with the frosting. You can leave out the frosting and use a creamy liquor like Bailey's Irish Cream to make an adult version.  Stick a lollipop stick into them and make cake pops.

You are only limited by your imagination here.

Here are some of my favorite combos :

spice cake with cream cheese frosting

chocolate cake with chocolate fudge frosting

white cake with Bailey's Irish Cream

What do I want to try ?

banana cake with cream cheese frosting 

key lime cake with some tequila ! ( Can you say margarita-ville ) 

chocolate cake with raspberry

You get the idea ...