My from-scratch brownie cake pops recipe is perfect for just about any celebration or holiday. Of course, the kids in attendance will love them, but I bet you find at least a couple of adults snacking on them, too! Who doesn’t love a moist, rich chocolate brownie? And when they’re served in cake pop form and dipped in luscious chocolate, no one can resist!
Cake pops are so much better when they’re homemade. The coffee shop versions are convenient for a quick snack, but they always seem to have that mass-produced taste to them. My brownie pop recipe is rich and absolutely delicious with that from-scratch chocolatey taste you only get when you make something in your own kitchen.
While traditional cake pops are the traditional tasty treat, brownie pops take the ‘on-a-stick’ snacks to a whole new level. The fudgy brownie center is even more moist than the original with a frosting that hardens to a gorgeous shine. You’ll adore this recipe!
What are brownie cake pops?
Brownie cake pops are small, round treats on a stick that combine the rich, chocolatey goodness of brownies with the fun, portable nature of cake pops. These treats typically start with a crumbled-up tray of baked brownies mixed with frosting to form a moist, dense batter. Then, the mixture is rolled into balls, inserted onto a popsicle or lollipop stick, then coated in chocolate frosting.
They look like miniature round chocolate truffles on sticks, often decorated with colorful sprinkles or drizzles. The taste is intensely chocolatey, with a dense and fudgy texture. The smell is heavenly, like a mix of cocoa and sweetness, just like the comforting scent of freshly baked brownies. Yum!
Why You’ll Love This Brownie Cake Pop Recipe
- So easy: Cake pops look difficult to make, but they really aren’t! The hardest part is stirring. So anyone can make these!
- SUPER fudgy: My homemade recipe is designed to have the most beautifully rich taste. They are so much richer than your average cake pop.
- Easy to customize: You can easily decorate these cake pops for any holiday or gathering. Drizzle your team’s colors for an after-the-game treat, shake on your little one’s favorite color of sprinkles for a birthday surprise… the ideas are truly endless.
Ingredients for Brownie Cake Pops
For the Brownie Batter
- Semisweet chocolate – A grated chocolate bar or chocolate chips are perfect for this recipe
- Butter – This recipe calls for melted butter. I use unsalted but salted will work fine, too.
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs – Best at room temperature. Just take them out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you start baking.
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour – A gluten-free flour blend will also work for this recipe.
- Cocoa powder
- Salt – If you use salted butter, you may want to reduce or omit the salt.
For the Frosting
- Cream cheese – You’ll need your cream cheese at room temperature, so take it out 30 minutes before you start making your frosting and let it sit on the counter.
- Butter – So your butter has time to soften, take it out of the fridge when you remove your cream cheese.
- Vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar
For the Decoration
- Chocolate candy melts – You can also use pure milk chocolate and chop it up fine.
- White chocolate – Optional decoration – a white chocolate bar will work well.
- Rainbow sprinkles – Optional decoration – any sprinkles will do!
Helpful Tools
Cooking spray
How to Make Brownie Cake Pops
Step 1: Bake the brownies.
Preheat the oven and spray an 8-inch cake pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
Melt the semisweet chocolate in the microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring between each. When only a few pieces of unmelted chocolate remain, stir with a small spoon and they should melt away.
In a mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to beat together the butter and sugar until it’s totally combined. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat again until the mixture looks light and fluffy.
Measure in the flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Mix just until combined!
Pro-tip: Don’t overmix! It will overdevelop the gluten in the flour and ruin the texture of your brownies. Stop mixing as soon as the ingredients come together.
Pour your batter into your cake pan and bake until the surface looks crackly. Test by sticking a knife in the center. It should come out clean when your brownies are done. Remove the pan from the oven and let it cool completely.
Step 2: Make the frosting.
When your cream cheese and butter is at room temperature, place it in a mixing bowl and beat it together until it’s light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and mix again. Finally, slowly add the powdered sugar about ½ cup at a time, beating for a few minutes between each addition. The mixture should be smooth and creamy.
Step 3: Make the cake pop balls.
When your brownies are cool, carefully trim off the hard edges (they’re too hard to use in your cake pop mixture), reserving as much of the soft brownies as possible.
Pro-tip: Don’t throw the brownie edges away! They’re still yummy and perfect for snacking once your cake pops are made!
Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper. Set aside.
Crumble the brownies into a mixing bowl. Use a spatula to scoop the frosting into the bowl with the crumbled brownies. Use the hand mixer to combine the brownies and the frosting. Make sure to break up all the larger chunks of brownie until you get a cohesive and smooth dough.
Roll the dough into balls and place them on the baking sheet.
Place your chocolate candy melts in a small bowl and microwave in 30 second bursts until fully melted, stirring between each. Dip a cake pop stick in the melted chocolate, then stick it into the rolled brownie balls.
Dip the brownie pop in the melted chocolate to fully coat, then gently tap to remove any access. Set the brownie cake pop in your cake pop holder. Repeat for each brownie pop.
While the chocolate coating sets, melt the white chocolate using the same technique as before. Use the end of a spoon to drizzle white chocolate over the brownie pops, then add sprinkles as desired.
Let the cake pops set for about 30 minutes and serve!
Ingredient Substitutions
Brownie Mix – You can certainly start with a brownie mix if you don’t want to make this recipe from scratch. I love the taste of this mix and I think it’s worth your time! But a brownie mix will work well. I like the Pillsbury brownie mix for this recipe. If you use something like Ghirardelli, you may need to bake it extra long since they tend to be gooier inside which won’t work as well for brownie pops.
Chocolate – If semisweet chocolate isn’t available, you can use dark chocolate or milk chocolate instead.
Butter – Margarine or a plant-based butter substitute will work just fine in this recipe.
Cream Cheese – A buttercream frosting will work for this recipe if you prefer not to make a cream cheese frosting.
All-purpose flour – Gluten-free flour blends or almond flour can replace all-purpose flour if you’re following a gluten-free diet.
Chocolate Candy Melts – Use pure milk or dark chocolate bars instead of candy melts if you want a richer flavor.
White chocolate – You can use colored candy melts, sprinkles, or other edible decorations as you’d like – or use nothing at all!
Recipe Variations
If you’re making brownie cake pops for a special occasion, it’s easy to decorate them to match the theme. Here are some suggestions:
Christmas Party – Drizzle red and green melted candy melts over top.
Birthday Party – Shake some birthday themed sprinkles onto the top of the wet chocolate before it sets. You can also use the guest-of-honor’s favorite color sprinkles.
Fall Party – Instead of semisweet chocolate, dip your brownie pops in white, yellow, and orange melted candy melts and add some autumn-themed sprinkles.
Easter Holiday Party – Form your brownie pops into egg shapes and coat in yellow, pink, and light blue candy melts. Drizzle white chocolate overtop.
School Party – Dip in white chocolate instead of semisweet, then decorate with sprinkles in your school colors.
Cake Pop Pro-Tips
- Make sure your brownies are fully cooled before you add your frosting or it can melt and make a mess of your dough.
- If your rolled brownie balls seem a bit gooey or too moist, set them in the fridge for 30-45 minutes to firm up before you dip them in the melted chocolate.
- To help keep your brownie cake pops uniform in size, you can use a 1 tablespoon measure or cookie scoop.
Storage Directions
At room temperature – Cake pops can typically be stored at room temperature in a cool, dry place for up to 2-3 days. Once they’re fully set, place them carefully in an airtight container so they don’t dry out.
In the refrigerator – The fridge is the best place to keep your cake pops if you want to enjoy them for a few extra days. Place them in an airtight container, separating each layer with parchment paper so they don’t stick together. They can last for up to a week when refrigerated.
Brownie pops can also easily pick up the flavors of other food stored in the fridge, so keeping them in an airtight container helps keep them tasing fresher.
In the freezer – Brownie cake pops freeze really well. First, individually wrap them in plastic wrap or sandwich bags. Then place them all in a large freezer bag or an airtight container. They’ll stay fresh for 1-2 months frozen.
When you’re ready to enjoy a frozen cake pop, allow it to thaw in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for a few hours and enjoy all over again!
FAQ
Can you make cake pops with brownie mix?
Yup! Just replace the homemade brownie recipe with a box mix. Make sure you bake it until it’s thoroughly cooked through.
What to do with leftover brownies?
You can make cake pops from leftover brownies, or you can use the cut off brownies from this recipe in other desserts. Crumble over ice cream or yogurt, or sprinkle them on top of a milkshake!
How do you get cake pops to stick together?
Cake pops stick together because of the frosting you add to the mixture. If you’ve added your frosting and your cake pops are still falling apart, it might be that the mixture is too cold. Leave the bowl on the counter for 30 minutes and try again. It also might be that the mixture is too warm! Try cooling them down in the fridge. You’ll have to experiment a little.
If the mixture is still falling apart, try adding a few tablespoons of soft cream cheese or frosting from a can.
Make sure you’ve used a hand mixer to help break up any larger chunks of brownie, too.
What is the coating on cake pops?
The coating on cake pops is typically melted chocolate or melted candy melts.
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Brownie Cake Pops
My from-scratch brownie cake pops recipe is perfect for just about any celebration or holiday. Who doesn’t love a moist, rich chocolate brownie? And when they’re served in cake pop form and dipped in luscious chocolate, no one can resist!
Equipment
Ingredients
Brownie batter:
- 8 oz semisweet chocolate
- ¾ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- 1 tsp salt
- cooking spray
Frosting:
- 125 g cream cheese room temperature
- ¾ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 cups chocolate candy melts or pure milk chocolate melted
- ¼ cup white chocolate melted
- rainbow sprinkles
Instructions
Make the brownies:
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Finely chop the semisweet chocolate and place in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for 30-second intervals until melted, stirring at each interval. Set aside.
- Combine the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until well combined. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until they look fluffy and creamy.
- Add the flour, cocoa powder and salt and mix until just combined. Be careful not to overmix – it will overdevelop the gluten in the flour and they will develop a cakey texture.
- Spray an 8-inch (round or square – both work!) cake pan with cooking spray. Alternatively, you could line it with parchment paper. Pour the batter into the cake pan and smooth the surface. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the surface looks crackly and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely in the pan, then remove it from the pan and set aside.
Make the frosting:
- Place the cream cheese and butter in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and mix until combined.
- Add the powdered sugar ½ cup at a time, then beat for 2-3 minutes, until smooth.
Assemble:
- Trim the crusts off the brownies. They are too firm to be used in the brownie pops, but super delicious, so save these for snacking! Crumble the rest of the brownies into a large bowl.
- Add the frosting to the bowl then mix with an electric mixer until well combined. You can use a spoon here, but the electric mixer will help break apart any larger pieces and create a smooth, cohesive dough.
- Roll the dough into balls and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Dip the cake pop sticks into the melted candy melts or milk chocolate and stick them into the balls. Place the baking sheet in the fridge for the chocolate to harden.
- Using the sticks as a handle, dunk the brownie pops into the melted chocolate and tap the stick on the edge of the bowl a couple times to allow any excess to drip off.
- Stick the brownie pops into a block of stryofoam or a cake pop holder. A deep glass filled with rice also works! Drizzle some white chocolate on top and top with sprinkles.
- Place the brownie pops in the fridge for the chocolate to set, about 30 minutes. Then enjoy!
Nutrition
Serving: 1gCalories: 347kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 4gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 10.5gCholesterol: 14mgSodium: 1662mgPotassium: 218mgFiber: 2.6gSugar: 36.4gCalcium: 49mgIron: 2mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Hi everyone! My name is Cayla Gallagher and I’m the creator of pankobunny!
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