Healthy Fruit Cake Pops
I remember when cake pops first came out and were all the rave! And they were relatively easy to make, although perhaps just a tad time-consuming- at least in my inexperienced baking days. You’d simply bake a boxed cake, crumble the cake with your favorite store-bought frosting, roll them into balls, and decorate them on a lollipop stick. Today, we’re going to do the same thing- only we’re going to make these vegan cake pops a lot healthier, less time-consuming, and make them allergy-friendly while we’re at it. OH! And of course, we’re going to be adding REAL Stemilt Fruit Cherries. So let’s just ROLL right to it!
No-Bake Vegan Cake Pops
First, we’re going to make the no-bake cherry vanilla “cake”. No-bake treats certainly don’t get the praise they deserve. Uncooked and unbaked foods actually retain way more nutritional value, offering your body the highest possible form of vitamins and minerals from the foods used in the recipe, especially when using plant-based ingredients like I’m using in these vegan cake pops. Raw foods also digest quicker, leaving less chance you’ll experience indigestion, they help maintain a healthy acidic level in our digestive systems, and help to keep our immune systems in working order. We’re also keeping the cherries raw in this recipe which means they get to keep 100% of their nutritional value, some that might otherwise get lost in the baking process. Cherries are rich in vitamin C, potassium, fiber, and even contain 2 grams of protein! They contain antioxidants to help with inflammation and our immune system.
I find that in traditional cake pops, combining the baked cake with the frosting almost makes the cake pops taste like they are no-bake anyway, so we’re skipping the whole baking part and moving right to rolling. I like to do this the night before to not only split up the time in making these cake pops but also to allow the pops to set up so they will stay on the stick while decorating.
Making Cake Pops Gluten-Free
The no-bake cake is made with a combination of almond and coconut flour, making them safe to eat raw, and not only gluten-free and vegan but also grain-free! Instead of loading these cake pops up with refined sugars, we’re letting the sweetness of the cherries shine and adding some maple syrup so the actual pops stay naturally sweetened.
Next, roll the cherry cake batter into balls, using a heaping 1 tablespoon of batter per ball. Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill them. Then the next day you will decorate the pops a couple at a time, ensuring they stay firm. I used all dairy-free white chocolate, but can use a combination of white chocolate and dark chocolate to coat the cake pops to mix it up if you’d like.
Now, here’s a little trick I learned to help the cake ball stick on the lollipop stick: dip the lollipop stick into the melted chocolate before placing it into the cake ball and then dip the entire cake pop in the chocolate coating, it works best to use a 2-cup measuring cup. Be sure to lightly tap the stick and turn the pop around to get off any excess, dripping chocolate. To have these cake pops keep their perfectly round shape after dipping, simply poke holes in a box with one of the lollipop sticks and allow the pops to try standing straight up. The drying process will only take about 5 minutes, so if you’re decorating with sprinkles, and I would highly recommend sprinkles, be sure to do so when the outer coating is still wet. And that’s it my friends! A little bit of time and patience, a lot of love and great cherries make these healthy homemade cake pops come to life!
I hope you enjoy these fruit vegan cake pops, if you make them, don’t forget to tag us @stemiltfruit and @healthylittlevittles on Instagram or Facebook! Also, remember to come back and review the recipe!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups Stemilt Cherries, pitted
- 3 cups almond flour
- 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
- 1 1/2 coconut flour
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup nut/seed butter
- 2/3 cup maple syrup
- 2 cups dark/white chocolate, melted
- Sprinkles
These No Bake Cherry Cake Pops are healthier, less time-consuming, and allergy-friendly than other types of cake pops and feature our World Famous cherries.
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Instructions
- Wash and pit the cherries first. In a food processor pulse the cherries a couple of times to break them up and then add the almond flour, flaxseed meal, coconut flour, cinnamon, vanilla, sunflower seed butter, and maple syrup and pulse until well combined and a batter forms.
- Measure a heaping tablespoon of cake mixture and roll it into a ball. Place balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, repeat until all the batter is gone, and chill for 2 hours in the refrigerator or overnight.
- Get a box ready with lollipop stick-sized holes poked in it. Melt the chocolate of choice in a 2-cup liquid measuring cup (best for dunking!) in the microwave for about a minute. Remove only 2-3 cake balls from the refrigerator at a time. Dip a lollipop stick about 1/2 inch into the chocolate, then insert it into the center of the cake ball. Only push it about halfway through the cake ball. Dip the cake ball into the chocolate coating until it is completely covered. Make sure the coating covers the base of the cake ball where it meets the lollipop stick. Allow excess coating to drop off, be patient with this step, then decorate with sprinkles and place upright into the box you prepared with holes in it. Repeat with remaining cake balls, only working with some out of the refrigerator at a time.
- Let the cake pops sit for about 15 minutes. Store the cake pops in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Nutritional Information
Per Serving
