Who would have thought I would have put a post on this blog for something like Cake Pops?  Well, here’s the thing.  My sweet, baby girl just had her first birthday.  (Where on earth does the time go!?)  So, I made these cake pops for her birthday party and they were loved by all.  I share these with you because they  are a slightly healthier version than the more popular one.  With theses, you don’t make a cake, crumble it, add that fattening, sugary cream cheese frosting and then roll them into balls.  Instead, you make a light cake batter (which has no oil or yolk in it . . . brilliant!) and actually bake the batter into balls.  This saves a ton of calories and they are still super delicious!  Keep in mind that they are still dipped in white chocolate which can add up if you eat a lot of these babies (there’s not really a great way to save calories on this step).

I snagged the recipe and idea from Gina’s Skinny Recipes.  I didn’t alter it one bit and they turned out perfectly (she has fabulous step-by-step pictures if you want to click on the link).  In order to bake these pops, you’ll need a cake pop baking pan.  I followed Gina’s advice and bought one from Target.  It turned out some beautiful, golden cake pops . . . just like she said.  She also has 48 ounces of white chocolate listed in her recipe, although you’ll never use all of that to coat your cake pops.  She mentioned this and found that she actually only used about 20 ounces of it (which is what is used to calculate the nutritional information).  That being said, I still opted to melt more than 20 ounces so that there would be room to actually dip the cake pop in the bowl/cup.

So, if you have a special occasion where you might want to make something that is sweet, trendy, and cute . . . without loading too many extra calories, I think these are a great idea.  I mean, I obviously think so because I made them for my baby’s birthday party.

I can’t believe she’s 1 year old already!  While the cake pops are delicious, I think I’ll take an extra snuggle with my darling girlie before I have one more cake pop.  She melts my heart (way more than any cake pop . . . or any treat for that matter ) ever could.

Lighter/Skinny Cake Pops
Recipe Source:  Gina’s Skinny Recipes

1 (16.5-ounce) packaged cake mix (I used white, Gina used yellow)
6 ounces plain fat-free Greek yogurt (I used Oikos)
1 cup water
2 large egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
baking spray
48 ounces Baker’s white chocolate (20 oz. calculated in n.i.)
sprinkles (optional)
48 lollipop sticks (I used paper straws)
styrofoam block

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly spray the cake pop pan with baking spray.

Combine all the cake ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat until combined.Place the batter into a pastry bag or large ziplock bag with the tip cut off.

Pipe the batter into the prepared cake pop pan and bake about 18 minutes (I rotated the pan after 10 minutes to be sure they baked evenly). Let it rest 5 minutes before opening the pan.

Place cake balls on a wire rack and repeat with remaining batter. Using a scissor, cutthe seam off the balls.

Refrigerate the cake balls for about 45 minutes, this helps the chocolate stick to the cake.

Melt some of the chocolate in the microwave according to package directions, careful not to burn the chocolate. Insert the tip of the stick into the melted chocolate, then into the cake ball (this helps hold the stick in place).

In batches, melt remaining chocolate. Dip the cake pops into the chocolate, let the excess drip off then place stick on a styrofoam block about a minute, then add sprinkles on top if using.

Makes 48-50 balls.

Nutritional Information (Per Cake Pop)
Calories:  102.5
Protein:  1.4g
Carbs:  15g
Fat:  4g
Fiber:  0g
Sugars:  7g