Oh yea.
These delicious, probably diet-ruining, bite size treats always seem deceptively easy to make, but there's a reason bakeries get away with charging $3+ for one tiny ball: they are bitch to make. Yea, you can use store-bought cake mix and store-bought icing and they'll still turn out yummy. But from there, cakeballs usually turn into an all day project that will quickly consume your entire kitchen and make you rethink your baking-related life choices.
These delicious, probably diet-ruining, bite size treats always seem deceptively easy to make, but there's a reason bakeries get away with charging $3+ for one tiny ball: they are bitch to make. Yea, you can use store-bought cake mix and store-bought icing and they'll still turn out yummy. But from there, cakeballs usually turn into an all day project that will quickly consume your entire kitchen and make you rethink your baking-related life choices.
So when I stumbled upon a gingerbread cake mix at Trader Joe's, I took it as a challenge. The sweet ginger-y-ness was calling my name and I was going to bake it into submission as the cakeball of my dreams.
I should mention now: I love ginger. Love it in asian food, love it in tea, love it in cocktails, love it in a spice mix, love it by itself. I have been known to justify a big, greasy lunch by sipping on some supposedly digestive-aiding ginger tea. With the candied ginger topping an already intense base, these particular cakeballs are not for the faint of heart.
I should mention now: I love ginger. Love it in asian food, love it in tea, love it in cocktails, love it in a spice mix, love it by itself. I have been known to justify a big, greasy lunch by sipping on some supposedly digestive-aiding ginger tea. With the candied ginger topping an already intense base, these particular cakeballs are not for the faint of heart.
GINGERBREAD CAKEBALLS WITH CANDIED GINGER & ORANGE PEEL
1 box gingerbread baking mix, plus any eggs/oil/water specified in the directions
1 jar cream cheese frosting
1 lb white chocolate candy coating
Candied ginger & orange peel topping (or sprinkles, nuts, etc for ginger-timid)
Candied ginger & orange peel topping (or sprinkles, nuts, etc for ginger-timid)
Prepare the cake mix as directed on the box, in a 9x13 cake pan. Let cool fully in the pan before removing. Cut the cake into sections to crumble into a large bowl - take two pieces of the cake and rub together until the whole cake is in fine crumbs.
Add about 3/4 of the frosting to the cake crumbs and mix until fully blended and doughy. The mix should form clumps when pressed together, but if it's too dry and crumbly add more frosting.
Roll the mix into 1" balls and place on a wax paper covered baking sheet. This is really messy - as the mix warms up it'll stick to your hands more, so you may want to refrigerate the mix halfway through and watch an episode of, say, Downton Abbey.
Once all the balls are prepared, refrigerate for several hours (while you power through the rest of Downton Abbey, obviously).
Now for the tedious part:
Prepare an area where you can arrange the cakeballs, bowl of candy coating, toppings, and another wax paper covered surface to place the complete balls on while the candy coating hardens. This gets messy and you need to work sort of quickly, so figure out a layout to keep everything efficient and within reach.
To prepare the candy coating, melt the chocolate as directed. I like to microwave the chocolate pieces in 30-second spurts, stirring in between, to ensure even melting without the risk of scorching the bottom.Once the chocolate is melted, dip one cakeball into the bowl (note on utensils for this below), coating completely. Tap your utensil against the bowl to to help excess coating drip off. place the fully coated ball onto the wax papered drying surface, and add toppings before the candy coating sets.
On the utensils for this: There are some great specialized "chocolate dipping forks" out there that may make this whole process a lot easier, but I haven't investigated yet. I somehow mastered the use of a toothpick and fork in tandem. Dip the toothpick in a little bit of chocolate, then poke the base of the ball (where it's gotten flat; the chocolate helps the toothpick from slipping out). As you pull the ball out, tip it over sideways onto the top of the fork so the "ugly part" is down, After letting the excess chocolate drain through the fork tines, use the toothpick to slide the ball off the fork and onto the drying surface, positioning it so the "ugly part" is down and the rest of the ball is smooth. I would have taken photos of this process, but my hands were literally covered in white chocolate.
SUCCESS. What feels better than dominating in the kitchen?
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