These holiday gingerbread cake pops make the holiday season pure magic. They bring joy and happiness with kids and adults alike and when you make them together with friends and family it is so much fun! These cake pops are moist, slightly sweet and spices of the gingerbread shine like a star.
Topped with white chocolate and sprinkles makes these a must-have for the holiday season. Mark my words, the annual gingerbread house will now have to share the spot light.
These holiday gingerbread cake pops are easy to prep ahead. They will need to set in the freezer for 45 minutes (up to 24 hours) before adding the white chocolate coating and sprinkles. So easy to prep ahead for kids or a gingerbread cake pop decorating party!
Bake the Gingerbread Cake
I used this 14.5 oz gingerbread cake box mix. You can also make homemade gingerbread cake from scratch or buy store bought cake – scrape off the icing. Keep in mind the recipe below uses a 9×9 cake size.
When baking the cake, make sure to do it a day before or at least several hours beforehand, it needs to be completely cool. If baked the day before, cover it with plastic wrap and store it on the counter at room temperature.
Important to Read for Success, the Cake to Frosting Ratio
I decided to make homemade frosting for this recipe. It is less sweet than store bought and we only need less than a cup of frosting for our 9×9 cake.
With a paddle attachment on a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, you can combine the ingredients below until you get a creamy fluffy consistency. Start with only a little milk and add more as you go. Keep in mind, powdered sugar and butter does not need a lot of liquid to turn itself into frosting.
In a large bowl, crumble the cake. Once the cake is crumbled, add in the frosting, start with about half (roughly 1/4 cup). Mix the frosting into the cake until it’s as evenly distributed as possible. Press the cake between your fingers to see if it holds together. If needed, add in more frosting a little at a time. You will need to adjust the cake to frosting ratio until the cake holds together. This will vary based on the cake and frosting you use.
A cake ball should hold together when pressed together between your fingers but not be too moist. Imagine you are building a sand castle, if the sand is too dry or too wet, the castle does not hold together.
If you have extra homemade frosting, go ahead and make these cinnamon roll waffles and top it with it!
Freeze your Cake Pops
Clear a space in the freezer! Once the cake balls are rolled, place the lollipop stick down in the center. Gently pinch the ball to secure onto the lollipop stick, keeping the roundness of the ball, place on a plate (like the picture above). Pop that full plate of cake balls in the freezer for 45 minutes – up to 24 hours if you want to prep ahead.
Dip the Gingerbread Cake Balls in White Chocolate
It’s best to use white chocolate candy melts/wafers (for a visual, something like these, you can usually find them in baking aisle of your grocery store or craft store. These candy melts not only melt easily in the microwave but they set super quickly and keep a hard shell on the cake ball.
I thought it would be super cute to only coat the top 2/3s of the cake pop and to leave the spicy holiday gingerbread peeking through the bottom. You do you.
Pro Tips
After making these for years, here are some lessons learned that will set you up for success.
Make sure the white chocolate is fully melted – follow the recipe below to heat safely in the microwave. Stir between every couple of dips to redistribute the heat. If if cools down too much, pop in the microwave for another 15-30 seconds.
Make sure your cake balls are secure on your lollipop stick – before freezing your cake pops, give them a quick pinch around the lollipop stick to ensure they freeze securely around. Don’t be afraid to use the melted chocolate as glue if they fall off after being frozen.
If dipping is too problematic or stressful, use a spoon – remember the name of the game is to have fun, so if dipping the cake pop down into the melted chocolate is not as easy as I make it look (video below), use a spoon to spoon it over and give the cake pop a quick spin to coat evenly. Any imperfections can easily be covered with holiday sprinkles.
Make sure to sprinkle immediately – Sprinkle immediately!!! The white chocolate sets quickly (yay!) but that means you need to decorate each as soon as the dipping or spooning the white chocolate is done before the coating sets.
Have a box ready – You will need a place to rest these pops as they dry. Yes, they dry quickly but not that quickly and they will need a place to stand to dry. If you dye easter eggs – same gist – you don’t want them to bump each other. A cardboard box is easy! You will need to slightly poke holes in the box with the point of your scissors. Be careful not to make the holes too big otherwise the lollipop stick will sink all the way down.
Holiday Gingerbread Cake Pops
Ingredients
- 18-20 Lollipop Sticks (4 in or 6 in)
- 1 14.5 oz Gingerbread Cake – baked and cooled See blog notes
Frosting
- ¼ cup Butter Room Temperature
- 1 cup Powdered Sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- ½ – 1 tbsp Milk
White Chocolate Coating
- 12 oz White Chocolate Melting Wafers See blog notes
- Holiday Sprinkles (optional)
Instructions
- Once your cake is cooled, make your frosting. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or hand mixer, in a bowl combine your butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and ½ tbsp of milk. Mix until it becomes a frosting consistency, add your other ½ tbsp of milk if necessary.
- In a large bowl using your hands or a spoon, crumble you cake into small pieces. Scoop in your frosting and combine. *See blog notes for ideal consistency
- Using a spoon or cookie ball scoop, scoop out your cake balls. Roll between your hands and gently place in the lollipop stick. *See blog notes additional tips
- Freeze for 45 minutes.
- In a microwavable safe bowl, melt your white chocolate for 60 seconds in the microwave. Stir and if you need additional time continue to melt in increments of 30 seconds, stirring in between until melted.
- Carefully dip 2/3 of your frozen cake pop into the melted chocolate, if using sprinkles, decorate and set aside to dry. *See blog notes additional tips
These Holiday Gingerbread Cake Pops look absolutely delightful! I love the festive twist on a classic treat. Can’t wait to try making them for my holiday gatherings! Thanks for sharing such a fun recipe, Nicole!
These gingerbread cake pops are absolutely adorable! I love how festive and cute they look. Can’t wait to try making them for the holidays—thanks for sharing such a fun recipe, Nicole!
These gingerbread cake pops are absolutely adorable! I love how festive they look, and the recipe seems so easy to follow. Can’t wait to try them out for my holiday party! Thank you for sharing this delightful treat!
Yay! I hope you like them. Happy holidays!
Made these during one of the kids cooking classes and they turned out delicious! Definitely poked too big of holes in the box so will do better about that next time.
What better reason to try again 🙂