Noodlie-Oodlie: yummy

So, it was that time again. Time to make something tasty, chocolatey and completely indulgent. Well honestly, it's always that time! I just like to have an excuse to give in. The birthday of a friend is the perfect excuse!
Like everyone else out there, I've seen a lot of cake pops and variations of them. They are cute and wonderfully bite-sized, well....at least they are supposed to be. But if something is worth one bite, shouldn't there be at least two? I think yes. Whenever I do anything I always tend to do it a little bigger and a little different. My cakes end up larger than expected, my projects undeniably take at least twice as much time as I think they should, etc. So why would my cake balls be any different? Well, they weren't
I've been wanting to try cake balls/pops for some time now, but this was my first. But why do plain old cake balls, why not mix things up a bit. What could I add to something so yummy and tasty ad small-well something else yummy and tasty and small-truffles! ((confession: I have never before made truffles either))

mmmm, look at that chocolatey naughtiness!

First time for everything right?! And while I'm in the mood to try out new concoctions, why not introduce the two together to create the ultimate Frankenstein of decadence!! dun--dun--DUN, may I introduce to you for the first time ever: Truffle stuffed cake balls!!!!
So I miscalculated the amount of chocolate I would need to cover these little bites (not surprising seeing as it was my first time) and that is why these are 'drizzled' rather than 'dunked'.-Still yummy though!

red velvety goodness

This really is just the combination of two treats, making one ultimate morsel. I will say this though-these seriously took me ALL DAY to do. Not only were there many steps and quite a bit of waiting time between steps, but the three littles kept interrupting and needing me for one thing or another-sheesh, have they no respect for the creative baking process?!? ;-) Well, that and they knew there was chocolate to be tasted in different forms through out the day!
Ok then, lets get to this shall we? You kind of need to start from the outside and work your way in, then back out. Start with the basic cake pop, which is just a cake mix. I went with the classic red velvet (if I ever attempt these again I will opt for ultimate fudge or some such nonsense-just because). Bake your cake as directed on the box and let it cool completely.
    While your cake is cooling its a good idea to make your truffle filling, seeing as it has to set up in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
      Basic Truffle Recipe
   8-10oz dark chocolate chips/chunks
     8-10oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
                         1 can sweetened condensed milk (14oz)
     flavored extract of your choice---optional

Put your chocolates and condensed milk into a double boiler and stir that gooey yumminess!
Once its all melted and smooth you can add a few drops of whatever flavored extract you choose. I just couldn't decide so I split the batch between two bowls and did both orange extract and vanilla butter nut.....yum! Cover the bowl ad put it in the fridge to set-at least two hours.

Now comes that waiting time I was telling you about. Be productive, fold laundry, plan meals, vacuum...Or not. I drank coffee and checked my facebook. Then, being the ultimate of lazy-heated up some mini raviolis for lunch for the munchkins, they were happy and it was easy-yay for Saturdays!
Ok, back to the project. Once your truffle filling has set up, take small spoonfuls and roll them into little balls, lots and lots of little balls. ((another confession:I forgot I had two bowls of filling and only rolled one into balls!! It's yummy eaten by itself too though!)) So once you have neat little rows of balls you'll need to melt your chocolate covering-I chose white baker's chocolate, it looks pretty.
Once again, heat your chocolate using a double boiler and then remove from the heat to keep it from scorching! Pour it into a bowl or cup for easy dunking. Drop each ball in the chocolate and roll it around a bit to coat the whole thing. If you use a fork, the extra chocolate will just drip right though back into your dunking bowl. Lay the covered balls onto waxed paper to harden/dry.
While these little gems set up lets get back to the cake! By now it hopefully will have cooled. Rip chunks of that cake and crumble it to smithereens! It's really quite satisfying. If I had been feeling braver today I may have even let the kids in on the fun, but I was making a big enough mess o my own! Once your whole cake is crumbled dump a tub of frosting in the bowl. Any kind will do. Mix, stir, smoosh it all together until the contents of your bowl resemble a cake paste. It is sticky, remember that.

left over truffles!

Now comes the messy part. Make sure your truffles have set up completely before this next step(you may want to put them in the fridge/freezer for a short time if they are not.) Take a blob of cakey paste in the palm of your hand and flatten it a little, place one truffle in the middle and begin to form the cake around the truffle, continue to roll it into a ball. Thats it! The basic truffle stuffed cake ball! Continue until all your cake goo is used up. Once you have formed your cake balls set them in the freezer for about 20 minutes-ish, until they feel firm to the touch. Meanwhile begin to melt more chocolate coating.-once again, in the double boiler. The same way you covered the truffles, do so to the cake balls. They are larger and softer so be gentle and don't rough them up too much! Like I mentioned earlier, I miscalculated the chocolate to cover these, so I really can't say how much you'd need for an entire batch....or even how large a batch turns out to be! I ended up with 22 cake balls from one cake mix, but I had twice as many truffles-and that was only using half the batch of filling! I kind of feel like the mis-matched hot dog vs hot dog bun problem. Always more of one than the other, but hey-truffles are good without being hugged by cake, and truffle filling is good without being made into balls...so I say, who cares! experiment, maybe you'll come up with some amazing and weird use for the extra yummies!


mmm, truffle-stuffed cake ball and a hot cuppa tea!

So, if anyone else out there decides to attempt this insanity please post pictures of your creations! And any improvements as well! It will most likely be quite some time before I undertake such a task again, but if I do, I will plan ahead and make the truffles the day before to give them more time to set up......and more time for me to devour them.