Description
Delight in these festive Pumpkin Spice Cake Balls, a perfect bite-sized treat combining moist pumpkin-spiced cake with creamy cream cheese frosting, dipped in vibrant orange candy melts and decorated with green frosting vines. Ideal for fall celebrations and Halloween parties, these easy-to-make cake balls offer a sweet and spiced flavor with a delightful textural contrast.
Ingredients
Scale
Cake Batter
- 1 Box Yellow Cake Mix or Spice Cake Mix (omit cinnamon if using spice cake mix)
- 1 cup Water
- ½ cup Vegetable or Canola Oil
- 3 Large Eggs
- 1 cup Libby’s Canned Pumpkin Purée
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
Frosting
- 1 Can Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
Coating and Decoration
- 24 ounces Orange Candy Melts (or white almond bark with orange food coloring or icing gel)
- 1 Tube Green Frosting
- Lollipop Sticks
Instructions
- Preheat and Prepare: Preheat your oven to 325℉ (163℃). Lightly grease a 13″ x 9″ baking pan with nonstick cooking spray to ensure the cake releases easily after baking.
- Make the Batter: In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, water, vegetable oil, eggs, pumpkin purée, ground cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Mix thoroughly until the batter is smooth and free of lumps.
- Bake the Cake: Pour the batter evenly into the prepared baking pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 22-24 minutes, or until the top springs back when lightly touched or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool and Crumble: Allow the cake to cool completely. Once cooled, crumble the cake into fine crumbs in a large bowl.
- Add Frosting: Add the entire can of whipped cream cheese frosting to the crumbled cake and mix well. The mixture should resemble the consistency of cookie dough—moist and pliable enough to hold its shape without cracking.
- Form Cake Balls: Use a small cookie scoop or spoon to portion the mixture and roll it gently between your palms to form evenly sized balls. Place the formed balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Chill the Balls: Freeze the cake balls for 1 hour or refrigerate for 2 hours until firm enough to handle.
- Prepare Candy Melt Sticks: Melt about ½ cup of the orange candy melts in the microwave according to package instructions. Dip the tip of each lollipop stick about ½ inch into the melted candy and insert it halfway into each chilled cake ball. If the balls crack or are too soft, return them to the freezer to firm up.
- Dip Cake Balls: Place the cake balls with sticks back in the freezer while melting the remaining candy melts. Once melted, dip each cake ball fully into the candy melts, allowing excess coating to drip off. If balls loosen or fall off sticks, chill again in the freezer to firm.
- Decorate: Once the candy coating has hardened, use green frosting in a piping bag or resealable bag with a small corner cut to pipe vines and leaves onto each cake ball, creating a pumpkin effect.
Notes
- Ensure the right cake-to-frosting ratio for a dough-like consistency that holds shape without cracking or being too dry.
- Dip lollipop sticks first in melted candy coating to help secure them firmly in the cake balls.
- Chill cake balls with sticks before dipping to prevent them from falling off during coating.
- If the candy melts are too thick, thin by adding 1-2 tablespoons of shortening or vegetable oil for smoother dipping.
- Work in batches to keep candy melts melted and cake balls firm.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Cake Ball
- Calories: 150
- Sugar: 16g
- Sodium: 170mg
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 21g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 25mg
