Salted Caramel Cake Pops

Last year, my dear hubby introduced me to the salted caramel mocha from Starbucks, and I became obsessed! 

More recently, my sister introduced me to the salted caramel cake pops and I couldn't believe how amazing they were. I found myself craving them, but they're kind of expensive, so I wanted to try to learn to make them myself.

Alas, here is my version of the salted caramel cake pops, inspired by starbucks.

1 box chocolate fudge cake mix

2-3 tbsps chocolate frosting

1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

1/4 cup caramel melts

kosher salt

optional:

heavy cream

butter

Make the cake mix according to directions. Bake & allow to cool completely before you begin creating the balls. Break cake up into tiny pieces into a large bowl (this should be super easy since the cake is fresh and moist). Add frosting a tablespoon at a time. Less is more. You don't want the balls to be so moist and sticky that they don't stay together. Once you have a nice, firm consistency  let the mixture rest for 10-15 minutes. Roll mixture into 1 to 1 1/2 inch balls and place on a wax paper covered sheet tray. Once all balls are formed, place in the refrigerator for 30-45 minutes in order to firm. [Optional: dip sucker sticks in melted chocolate before inserting into the middle of the balls.] 

After balls have hardened, put chocolate chips in the microwave in 30 second intervals until completely melted. Dip each ball with the chocolate and tap to get rid of excess chocolate. Allow to dry [10-15 minutes]. Melt white chocolate in microwave in 30 second intervals until completely melted. Melt caramels the same way. I found that the caramels didn't get as soft as I wanted, so I added a tbsp of butter and a tbsp of heavy cream and microwaved until it was a smooth consistency. Put a dollop of white chocolate on each pop. Then put a dollop of caramel on top of that. Add a sprinkle of kosher salt and refrigerate for 30-45 minutes.

They aren't perfect, but they taste like heaven. I promise, they're so good, you won't regret the time it takes to make! Plus, take these to a party and you'll really impress your friends!

During this process, though, I did find a few things that I want to change next time. Instead of chocolate chips, I want to use candy melts. From what I hear, the consistency is a lot thinner and would be easier to work with. I also want to create my own caramel frosting to use in the mixture rather than chocolate frosting to add more of a caramel flavoring. Lastly, I'm going to use coarse sea salt in place of kosher salt. My hubby said these didn't have enough salt on them to truly be called salted caramel. So there you have it!

Do you have any fun ideas or tips for cake pops?