This cake pops recipe is a copycat of Starbucks’ birthday cake pop. If you’ve ever been to Starbucks you most likely saw their famous pink “birthday cake pops” through the glass of sweet goodies or on their official menu. This little treat is a combination of vanilla cake, frosting, and pink candy coating. If you’re planning to make these bite-sized treats for a party, be sure to try my easy red velvet cake pops (VIDEO) or my no-bake oreo cake pops (VIDEO)!
This easy to follow video tutorial will help you learn all the tips and tricks on how to make the best copycat Starbucks Birthday Cake Pops right at home. Or you can always refer to my ultimate cake pop guide for more tips!
This recipe was originally posted on Apr 30, 2015, we’ve tweaked it a bit since then.
How to Make Cake Pop Recipe
- Bake the vanilla cake, let it cool and remove the outer brownish layer with a knife.
- Crumble the cake into small pieces and mix it with the frosting.
- Form the crumbs into cake balls. Dip the end of a cake pop stick into melted candy melts and insert the stick halfway through each cake ball.
- Freeze the vanilla cake pops for 15 minutes.
- Pour melted candy melts into a tall narrow cup and dip each cake pop into the candy melts. Then tap off excess candy and sprinkle with nonpareils.
- Place the finished vanilla cake pops into a block of styrofoam so that it can cool and stiffen.
What is a Cake Pop
- A cake pop is pretty much a baked cake that is crumbled into fine pieces, then it is mixed with frosting. After that, it is compressed into a cake ball. Then it is placed on a stick and dipped in melted candy melts.
TIPS to make perfect Starbucks cake pops
- A good way to know if the frosting and cake crumbs are well combined is by compressing a handful and checking to make sure there’s no more marbled frosting visible.
- Remove and discard the outer layer of the baked cake. It tends to be drier than the rest of the cake, therefore it can cause the cake ball to fall apart.
How to melt Wilton candy melts
- If your candy coating is too thick after melting, add some kind of shortening such as Crisco or coconut oil to thin it out.
TIPS on dipping the cake pops
- When you dip the cake pop into the candy coating, don’t swirl the cake pop around. Instead bring it straight down, dip, and slowly bring it back up, so it doesn’t break apart.
- After the cake pops have been dipped into the melted candy, quickly tap the hand that’s holding the cake pop to help release any excess candy melt.
Ingredients to make cake pops
- white cake mix (requires eggs, water, and oil)
- vanilla frosting
- candy melts
- Crisco shortening
Equipment for cake pops
- cake pop sticks
- cake pop former 11/4 inch in diameter (or small cookie scoop)
- sprinkles
- Styrofoam
How to store cake pops
Store the cake pops at room temperature in an airtight container. Refrigerating will cause condensation to form over the cake pop.
Full Recipe Instructions
Vanilla Cake Pops
Ingredients
- 24 cake pop sticks
- cake pop former 11/4 inch in diameter or small cookie scoop
- deep narrow cup
- white sprinkles
- Styrofoam
- Cake:
- 1 box Pillsbury classic white cake mix
- 2 tbsp Pillsbury creamy supreme vanilla frosting
- Candy coating:
- 1 12 oz bag Wilton candy melts
- 1 1/2 tsp Crisco shortening
Instructions
- Bake the cake according to the package and let it cool down to room temperature.
- Cut the cake into 4 pieces and peel away the browned outside layer of the cake. I peel off the outer layer because it tends to be too dry to form the cake pop.
- In a large bowl, crumble the cake with your hands. Add 2 tbsp of frosting to the crumbled cake and mix with a spoon or your hands.
- Shape the cake into balls and place them into the cake pop former. Make sure the cake ball is a little bit bigger than the size of the press. Once the cake ball is pressed tightly, remove extra cake from the sides and roll the ball with your hands to smooth any imperfections.
- Melt about 1/4 cup of candy melts in a small bowl. Heat in 30 second intervals to avoid overheating the candy.
- Dip the tip of each cake pop stick into the melted candy and poke it into to ball about half way through. Place each cake pop onto a baking sheet and transfer to the freezer for about 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, melt the rest of the candy in a bowl. Make sure you melt them in 30 second intervals with mixing in between. Once it’s melted well, add 1 1/2 tsp Crisco shortening and mix well with a whisk or fork. Then pour the melted candy into a tall narrow cup.
- Once the cake pops have been in the freezer for 20 min, dip each into the cup and tilt to the sides slowly to make sure the entire cake pop is covered. Then slowly pull up the cake pop. (Don’t swirl the cake pop) Hold the cake pop in one hand and tap your wrist so that all the extra melted candy drips off.
- Sprinkle the pop right away so that the sprinkles stick to it before the candy hardens.
- Place in a Styrofoam block and let it stand for about an hour.
Notes
Nutrition
Ps: We’ve updated some of the photos in this recipe, here are some of our old images.
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Angelica says
Hello! So i was thinking about adding some fresh strawberries. Do you think id be able to and still keep the recipe?
simplyhomecooked says
Hey Angelica, I’m not sure about adding fresh strawberries. The extra moisture might make the cake pops fall apart.
Nicole says
Hey! Trying to do this now and it’s not going so well. The problem occurs when I have to form them into balls. No matter how much I tried they wouldn’t make a good round shape. They kept falling apart in my hands. What do I do?
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Nicole, try adding more frosting. Sounds like the cake pop mix is too dry.
Laura says
What is the secret to melting the blue Wilton discs? Mine turned to play dough!
simplyhomecooked says
Hmm that’s interesting Laura. maybe try heating in smaller intervals? It may have just gotten too hot.
Ana says
I do it again and it works perfectly thanks
simplyhomecooked says
Oh good! Thank you for letting me know Ana 🙂
Ana says
I tried it and it fall off the stick want can I do ???
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Ana, did you compress the dough well enough? Or maybe the cake pop stick wasn’t in far enough? Did the melted candy seem to heavy? If so, try to thin it or more with shortening. Hope that helps.
Alex says
I want to make these for my daughter’s upcoming bday party. After letting them sit for an hour, can I wrap them in cellophane? Or how else would you store them? Would you just leave them out until the next day?
simplyhomecooked says
Hello Alex, I would leave them out in room temperature.
Ann says
Can you use a cake pop maker with this recipe? I have the babycakes one.
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Ann, the cake pop maker requires you to bake the cake pops in the maker. In my recipe, I bake the cake separately, crumble it up and mix it with frosting. So a cake pop maker will not work with this recipe.
Jessica says
Could you use coconut oil instead of Crisco?
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Jessica, I’ve never tried it with coconut oil, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work.
Jodie says
I tried liquid coconut oil and it didn’t work quite as well and left them a little dull…good luck hope it works for you
simplyhomecooked says
I’ve never tried it with coconut oil… Good to know, thank you.
Mariah says
I also used coconut oil and mine came out fabulous. I actually added a bit more to try and soften up the chocolate even more and it still held up lovely. I did use white chocolate chips instead of candy chips though. Maybe they have less fat to start with anyway? I did not melt mine to liquid before adding like the other reviewer did, I melted the chips and then stirred in the solid coconut oil until it melted in with the chocolate. Hope that helps.
simplyhomecooked says
Mariah that sounds delicious! Thank you for leaving feedback.
Vanessa says
Can you freeze them? I want to make some ahead of time for my daughters birthday party.
simplyhomecooked says
I’ve never frozen them before but I’ve heard that the best way to freeze already decorated cake pops is by wrapping each cake pop in parchment paper and placing them into an airtight container. Make sure to thaw them in the refrigerator once you take them out of the freezer.
Meghann says
Just tried your recipe and followed instructions. However, I did not time how long they were in the freezer-but it wasn’t MUCH longer than 20 minutes. After costing them with chocolate and putting them in styrofoam to dry-they started to crack around the outside. So not sure if was a temp thing or what-but they will do for what I’m using them for. Hopefully next time I can figure out why and it won’t happen again!
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Meghann it sounds like it might have been the hot melted candy and frozen cake pops caused the candy coating to crack. Was the melted candy really hot when you dipped the cake pops?
angie says
mine cracked too. i don’t thinks it was that hot. should i take out the balls for a few minutes before heating up the candy for the coating?
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Angie, try leaving the cake pops out for a few minutes before dipping them. I think that should help with preventing the cracking.
Celine says
Hi Simply Home cooked
I have a question for you? My cake pops were falling apart and Im pretty sure I followed all directions. Anything I can do so they don’t fall apart? Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated ☺
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Celine, did you compress the dough well enough? Or maybe the cake pop stick wasn’t in far enough? Did the melted candy seem to heavy? If so, try to thin it or more with shortening. Hope that helps.
Jessica says
Silly question, but can I use any flavor of cake mix for the cake pops? I personally prefer chocolate cake.
simplyhomecooked says
I’ve never tried it with any other cake mix, but I’m sure chocolate cake mix should work too.
Jennifer says
Can you use any cake mix??
simplyhomecooked says
I’ve never tried it with any other cake mix, but I suppose it should work.
Candice says
This looks great as part of a valentines gift for my sons teacher. ???? how long do the pops stay good for? Don’t want to wait till the last minute to make. Learned that lesson at Christ with sugar cookies. ????
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Candice, I usually make these cake pops the day before I bring them to a party. Just make sure not to keep them in refrigerator after they are done. The condensation will make them wet. I keep them in room temperature 🙂
Candice says
Thanks so much!! I think I will bake the cake a couple of days before then make the balls the day before. Never enough time in the day.. Working mom problems. Lol ????
Glenda Smith says
Thank you SO much for responding. The melted candy did seem to thick because at first I didn’t think I melted it long enough so I put it back in the microwave for 30 more seconds. I will do both ideas & hopefully I will get it right this time. I will let you know how I come out.lol
simplyhomecooked says
Thank you, I really hope they turn out well! 🙂
Jeniss says
Rather than dipping the cake pop, try resting the top of the cake in the melt and spooning it on instead. It will be far less likely to slide off the stick that way as the cake won’t get trapped in the melt.
Glenda Smith says
Hi! I am trying to make cake pops for my daughter’s 16th birthday in February. I did a test run last night & they didn’t turn out so good.lol
I did everything your recipe said but when I was dipping my pops in the candy melt the sticks were coming out of the pops as I slowly pulled to take them out. My cake balls was SO GOOD!! Lol But thats not what I wanted. I’m determine to get this right. Please help me!
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Glenda, did the melted candy seem too thick? If yes, try adding a little more shortening to thin it out. If the issue was in the cake pop alone, try keeping it in the freezer longer.
Glenda Smith says
Hi! I just wanted to give you an update on my cake pops. My daughters 16th birthday was February 20th. I made the pops for her winter wonderland theme party. I did what you told me to & they came out perfectly. Everyone LOVED them. Thank you so much for helping me get it right : )
simplyhomecooked says
Glenda thank you so much for taking the time to leave feedback. I’m so glad your cake pops turned out well! 🙂
Emilie says
I made these tonight and had the same problem. EPIC fail 🙁
simplyhomecooked says
I’m sorry to here that Emilie, what exactly went wrong? Maybe I can help.
Emilie says
I used the exact same cake mix you did and removed the top layer and the bottom and sides but the cake balls didn’t form well. They were very crumbly. I was able to still put the sticks in them but then when I dipped into the candy melt, they fell apart. I guess I should have added more Crisco to thin it out. I probably won’t try making these again but I appreciate your offer to help!
simplyhomecooked says
Adding more crisco to the candy melts would have helped a lot. I’m sorry this recipe didn’t work out well. I hope you give some of my other dessert recipes a try!
Cecilia says
What does the crisco exactly do?
simplyhomecooked says
The crisco thins out the candy coating making it easier to dip the cake pop.
??? says
Instead of crisco to thin the candy melts you could use paramount crystals they work so much better
simplyhomecooked says
I’ll have to give that a try.
Alice says
Thank you so much for your help! I just got the cake ball former from Amazon! Did you get your styrofoam block from Michael’s?
simplyhomecooked says
No problem Alice 🙂 I think I actually used some styrofoam I had left from a package I ordered. I know Michael’s has styrofoam, but I’m not sure about the exact sizes though.
Alice says
Hi, thanks for the reply. One more question, what purpose does dipping the tip of each cake pop stick into the melted candy serve? So glad to have found your recipe and I am looking forward to making these!
simplyhomecooked says
Dipping the stick into the melted candy helps secure the stick to the cake pop. That is why I put them in the freezer before doing the initial dipping. It serves almost like a hard glue in a way. Hope that helps.
Riffat says
Can I use milk in the cake to moisten it instead of frosting
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Riffat, I don’t think using milk is a very good idea. It might make it too much.
Liv says
Hello again , I was given candy melts in trays from Safeway, they are white so I think they are vanilla flavored?, they are not Wilton but will they still work? Thanks, going to try this recipe tomorrow!
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Liv, sorry for the delayed response. How did those candy melts work out for you?
Liv says
The melts from Safeway are not the best, the taste is a little odd but I am going to try Wilton melts this time, the recipe is great ! Thank you so much! I need to make 100 for a fundraiser and was wondering if I could freeze the cake pops?
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Liv, I’ve never frozen cake pops before. They seem to store better at room temperature.
Ginger says
I’m sure this is a an old post, but they should freeze fine. When Starbucks receives them and stores them they are frozen. It takes about 2 hours to defrost, usually they “pull pastries” the night before and let them that at room temp overnight. If you do find condensation, just fan them off for a bit and it will be fine.
simplyhomecooked says
Thanks for the tip, good to know 🙂
Alice says
Hello, I am so excited to try this birthday cakepop recipe as I am unfortunately addicted to Starbuck’s birthday cake pop (they are $3 where I live)! I have two questions:
1. Does the Crisco make the candy melt a little smoother and thus easier to coat?
2. What brand of cake pop former are you using?
I found one on Amazon that looks quite like yours: Cake pop former
Thanks!
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Alice, glad you came across my vanilla cake pop recipe. The Crisco really helps thin out the candy, making it a lot easier to coat. It gives it a nice smooth finish. I don’t remember the brand I used for the cake pop former, but the one you found on amazon looks pretty much identical to the one I use. And the size is the same as well. I can’t wait for you to try out this recipe. Enjoy!
Liv says
I am a vegetarian is there an alternate replacement for the crisco? Also can I just mold the dough into a ball with my hands instead of using a tool? Thanks
simplyhomecooked says
Hi Liv, you can substitute the crisco with coconut oil. Yes you can mold the ball with your hands but it might not have as smooth of shape as it would with the cake pop former.
Liv says
Thank you so much! Where would you get that ball shaper? Thanks, I am looking forward to trying this recipe!
simplyhomecooked says
You’re welcome Liv! I purchased it from amazon. If you look at the ingredient list, you will see cake pop former highlighted in blue. If you click on it, you will be directed to the cake pop former on amazon 🙂
Liv says
One more question, is there something else I could use instead of the Wilton candy melts? If not where would I get them? Thanks you so much!
simplyhomecooked says
So far I’ve had the best luck with Wilton candy melts. Most craft stores should have them (micheals, hobby lobby, and even Walmart should have them).
Liz says
Crisco is made of only vegetable oil, so isn’t it already vegetarian?
Kati says
Hi! I am getting ready to make a big batch of these cake pops- around 60! Does one batch of 20 use the entire package of candy melts or is there any left? Wondering if I should buy 2 or 3 bags. Thanks!! Can’t wait to try these!
simplyhomecooked says
Hey Kati, I would buy extra. It’s always better to have too much than too little 🙂 hope they turn out well!