Graduation Cake Pops Gold (Printable version)

Delightful pops decorated in school hues and finished with sparkling gold sprinkles for celebrations.

# What You'll Need:

→ Cake

01 - 1 box vanilla or chocolate cake mix with required ingredients (eggs, oil, water as listed on package)

→ Frosting

02 - 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
03 - 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
04 - 1 tablespoon whole milk
05 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
06 - Pinch of salt

→ Coating and Decoration

07 - 16 ounces candy melts in two school colors
08 - 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening or coconut oil, optional
09 - Gold sprinkles or edible gold glitter
10 - 24 lollipop sticks
11 - Styrofoam block for drying

# Directions:

01 - Prepare cake mix according to package instructions. Allow to cool completely before proceeding.
02 - Beat softened butter until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, then milk, vanilla extract, and salt. Continue beating until smooth and fluffy.
03 - Crumble cooled cake into large bowl. Mix in 1/2 to 3/4 cup frosting incrementally until mixture holds together without being overly moist.
04 - Roll mixture into 24 evenly sized balls, approximately 1 tablespoon each. Arrange on parchment-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate minimum 1 hour or freeze for 30 minutes.
05 - Melt small amount of candy melts. Dip end of each lollipop stick into melted coating, then insert halfway into each cake ball to secure.
06 - Melt candy melts in separate bowls according to package directions. Stir in shortening if desired for smoother consistency. Dip each cake pop into chosen school color, gently tapping off excess coating.
07 - While coating remains wet, sprinkle gold sprinkles or edible gold glitter generously over each pop. Stand upright in Styrofoam block to set.
08 - Allow candy coating to harden completely before serving or packaging. Store in airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days or refrigerate up to 1 week.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • They're impressive enough to make people think you spent hours, but honestly, they come together faster than you'd expect.
  • School colors mean zero guessing—you just pick your two favorite hues and watch the magic happen.
  • Gold sprinkles make everything feel like a celebration, and these genuinely look fancy sitting in a box.
  • Once you nail the technique, you can make them for any occasion, not just graduation.
02 -
  • If your frosting-to-cake ratio is off, your pops will either crumble apart during dipping or feel like you're biting into pure frosting—find that sweet spot by starting conservative and adding frosting slowly.
  • Chilled cake balls are non-negotiable; I thought I could skip this step once and ended up with a melted mess dripping into my candy melts.
  • Candy melts set faster than you'd expect, so work efficiently once they're melted or they'll become too thick to dip smoothly.
03 -
  • Make the frosting the day before so it's genuinely softened and ready to go—softened butter makes everything smoother and faster.
  • If you accidentally overbake the cake, it actually works better for pops because drier cake holds together more easily when mixed with frosting.
  • Keep your Styrofoam block in a cool spot away from direct heat or sunlight while pops are setting, otherwise the candy coating softens and pops start to lean.
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