How to Make Copycat Starbucks Chocolate Cake Pops

Step 1 - Bake and cool the cake: Prepare and bake the chocolate cake mix according to the package directions in a 9x13 inch baking pan. Allow the cake to cool completely at room temperature — do not attempt to work with warm cake. A warm cake crumbles too loosely and produces cake balls that are soft, sticky, and impossible to roll smoothly. Full cooling takes approximately one hour at room temperature or thirty minutes if the pan is placed on a wire rack. The cake can be baked the night before and left covered at room temperature overnight, which makes the day-of assembly entirely hands-on work without any waiting.

Step 2 - Crumble and bind: Remove the cooled cake from the pan and break it into chunks directly into a large mixing bowl. Using your hands or a fork, crumble the cake into fine, uniform crumbs with no large lumps remaining — the finer and more uniform the crumbs, the smoother and more cohesive the finished ball surface will be. Add exactly two tablespoons of chocolate frosting to the crumbled cake and mix thoroughly with a fork or your hands until the mixture holds together when pressed firmly between your fingers and can be formed into a ball that maintains its shape without cracking. Resist adding more frosting — two tablespoons is the correct amount for this texture, and adding more produces a ball that is too soft to dip cleanly.

Step 3 - Roll and freeze the balls: Using a 1.5-tablespoon cookie scoop or your hands, portion the cake mixture into equal pieces and roll each between your palms into a smooth, firm ball. Place the finished balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet with space between each ball. Slide the baking sheet into the freezer and freeze for 15 to 20 minutes until the balls are cold and firm throughout — they should feel solid when gently squeezed, not soft or yielding. Do not freeze longer than 30 minutes or the balls will be too frozen for the dipping step.

Step 4 - Attach the sticks: Melt approximately a quarter cup of the candy melts in a microwave-safe bowl in 30-second intervals, stirring between each, until completely smooth. Remove the cake balls from the freezer. Dip the tip of each lollipop stick approximately half an inch into the melted chocolate, then insert the coated tip directly into the center of a cake ball, pushing it in approximately halfway through the ball. The melted chocolate on the stick tip acts as an adhesive that bonds the stick to the interior cake as it sets — a stick inserted into the ball without this chocolate dip will slide out when the finished cake pop is handled. Return the balls with their sticks to the freezer for five minutes to set the chocolate anchor.

Step 5 - Dip and decorate: Melt the remaining candy melts with the teaspoon of coconut oil in a deep, narrow glass in 30-second microwave intervals, stirring between each, until completely smooth and fluid. Remove the cake balls from the freezer and allow them to rest at room temperature for two minutes. Working quickly with three to four pops at a time, hold each pop by the stick and dip it straight down into the melted chocolate until fully submerged, then lift it straight up and gently tap your wrist — not the stick — to shake off the excess coating. Immediately scatter white nonpareil sprinkles over the wet coating before it sets. Insert the finished stick into the styrofoam block or cake pop stand and allow to set completely at room temperature for fifteen to twenty minutes until the coating is fully hardened and no longer tacky to the touch.