Cake Pop 911: Help! My cake pops are falling apart. What's happening?!?

Cake pops can be frustrating....They are very time consuming, and when they fall apart at any point during their creation, it can be downright disheartening! This recently happened to one of my wonderful students, and she reached out to me for help. If you're faced with broken cake pops, ask yourself the following 5 questions for quick troubleshooting:

1. Did I refrigerate my cake balls once they were formed?

After forming your cake balls, it's always a good idea to chill them in the refrigerator for about 5 minutes. This will stiffen them slightly and make them much easier to work with!

2. Did I dip my pop stick in my chocolate/candy melt before inserting them into my cake balls?

Always secure your pop sticks to your cake balls by dipping the sticks into your chocolate/candy melt before inserting into your cake ball!

3. Did I refrigerate my cake pops after the dipped stick pop sticks were inserted?

Refrigerating your cake pops for about 5 minutes once the dipped stick is inserted will further secure it to your cake ball. Another tip: Once the pops are removed from the refrigerator, allow them to sit for about 2 minutes before dipping them. This will lessen the occurrence of cracking due to thermal shock!

4. Did I dip my cake pop in a deep enough container of chocolate/candy melt?

Make sure that your chocolate/candy melt is in a container that is deep enough for you to simply dip your pop into and cover completely! Moving your stick around in the chocolate/candy melt while dipping will cause your cake pops to fall apart. Dip and manipulate as little as possible!

5. Am I tapping off the excess chocolate/candy melt properly?

Tapping the excess chocolate/candy melt from your cake pop must be done very, very gently. I recommend holding your cake pop angled over your dipping container and gentle tapping the stick against the container while slowly turning the pop stick. Turning the stick while tapping will keep you from putting too much stress one one particular side of the cake pop and reduce breakage!

Happy Baking!

Asia