Carrot Cake Truffles

Happy First Day of Spring! (It’s so exciting to say that.) Yesterday I had another busy day in the kitchen, baking and creating and doing everything I could to ignore the snow outside. Tomorrow on IBC, I’m joining a few of my blogger friends to share a round-up of homemade Easter- and spring-inspired desserts. My dessert required me to make a few things in advance, so I have two additional recipes to share with you. (It will all make more sense tomorrow.) Let’s kick things off with these Carrot Cake Truffles!

Sidenote: I realize I’ve been a bit dessert crazy lately. For those of you who are looking for design and DIY, please bear with me. There are lots on the horizon, including exciting new projects. (That’s a hint!) Also, later this week I’ll be sharing two spring mantel decor ideas. Sound good? (To be honest, all of this dessert making isn’t helping with my diet, so I do need to switch gears.)

Okay, back to Carrot Cake Truffles. In essence, these are cake pops, but without the stick. That’s why I’m calling them truffles.

If you’ve never made cake pops, they are easy. All you need is cake, frosting, and candy melts/chocolate.

For this recipe, I baked a carrot cake from a box mix and made a batch of my cream cheese frosting. (You can find that recipe here.) Because I needed the frosting for a few other recipes, I made a full batch. However, you can make only a half or quarter recipe since you will only need about a cup of frosting for the truffles.

The cake gets crumbled and the frosting gets mixed in. Add just enough frosting so that you can roll the mixture into a ball. If you use too much, it will be overly sticky.

After that, the balls get dipped into melted candy and chocolate. (I did a mix of white candy melts and white chocolate for these.) I found this dipping tool at the craft store, but a fork will work equally well.

To decorate the truffles, I melted orange candy melts. (I actually used a combination of orange and yellow to get this color.) I added the candy melts to a piping bag, cut a small slit in the tip and drizzled it randomly over the top. Before the candy set, I topped each truffle with one of these cute candy sugar carrots. (I found mine at Walmart, but I’ve also seen them at Jo-Ann Fabrics and Crafts.)

Tip: If you struggle filling piping bags, put the bag into a tall glass (tip down), then fill. It’s so much easier. Promise.

And that’s it! Adorable Carrot Cake Truffles in no time! They make an exceptionally cute, delicious, and fun treat for Easter or spring. They also look adorable in this bunny egg holder I picked up at HomeGoods. Don’t you think?

Makes about 40 truffles

Here's what you will need:
1 prepared carrot cake (13x9" pan, no frosting)
1 cup cream cheese frosting (recipe here)
1 bag (12 ounces) pure white candy melts
1 bar (4 ounces) white chocolate baking bar, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable shorting (Crisco)
1 cup orange candy melts (I used a combination of orange and yellow.)
Carrot sugar candies, optional

In a large bowl, crumble the carrot cake with your hands. Using a spatula, stir in about 3/4 cup of the cream cheese frosting. Add more as needed. The mixture should stay together when rolled into a ball, but not be overly sticky.

Roll the cake mixture into 1-inch balls. Set the cake balls on a plate and refrigerate until cool, about 30 minutes.

In a medium bowl, add the white candy melts, white chocolate, and vegetable shortening. Microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring after each until melted.

Dip the cooled cake balls into the melted white chocolate mixture and coat completely. Set on wax paper and allow chocolate to set completely.

In a small microwave-safe bowl, melt the orange candy melts by microwaving them at 30-second intervals, stirring after each, until melted.

Add the melted orange candy melts to a piping bag or plastic baggie. (Use caution if using a plastic bag. If your melted candy is too warm, it can cause the bag to break.) Cut a small tip off one corner of the bag and drizzle the melted candy onto the coated cake balls. Top with a carrot sugar candy, if desired.

Once the candy coating is completely set, pack and store the truffles in an air-tight container.

Obviously, you can make these truffles in any cake flavor you’d like. However, I thought carrot cake was most appropriate for the season.

Be sure to swing back here tomorrow to check out how I’m using these truffles to create an even more spectacular dessert. See you then!

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