Roly and Tag Cake Pops

Recipe by April Carter

INGREDIENTS

For the cake:

1. 150g plain flour
2. 25g cocoa powder
3. 1/2 teaspoon of salt
4. 60g unsalted butter
5. 150g caster sugar
6. 1 large egg
7. 120ml milk
8. 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
9. 1 1/2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

For the icing:

1.  80g icing sugar
2. 40g cream cheese

To make Tag cake pops:

1. 400g blue candy melts
2. 1-3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3. small amount of black, white, green, blue and red fondant
4. 20 x lollipop sticks

To make Roly cake pops:

1. 400g grey candy melts (or 400g white mixed with around 10 black candy melt buttons)
2. 1-3 tablespoons vegetable oil
3. 20 x 15cm plastic lollipop sticks
4. small amount of black, white, grey and red fondant

METHOD (Makes 20 cake pops)

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C / 160°C fan / gas mark 4 and line and grease a 20cm round deep cake tin. Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder and salt and set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the egg and beat again. Add half of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat until just combined. Add the milk, continuing to beat, and then add the remaining flour mixture, beating until just combined.
3. Finally, mix together the bicarbonate of soda and white wine vinegar and add to the cake mixture until just combined. Spoon into the lined cake tin and bake for 30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Set the cake aside to cool in the tin. Once cooled, break the cake up into crumbs by hand or using a food processor.
4. To make the icing, beat the icing sugar and cream cheese together until smooth. Mix into the cake crumbs by hand or using a food processor to form a dough. Roll the dough into 20 pieces (about 30g each) with an oval shape for Tag or a kidney shape for Roly, cover with clingfilm and chill for 2 hours, or until firm.
5. Meanwhile, shape features for Tag or Roly using the coloured fondant and the recipe photos as a guide. Once the cake shapes are firm and you are ready to decorate, remove them from the fridge (avoid dipping straight from the fridge as very cold cake shapes can crack the candy coating once they come up to room temperature).
6. Melt the candy melts by following the instructions on the packet and stir in the oil one tablespoon at a time until smooth and runny (you may not need all of it). Set aside to cool slightly.
7. Once the candy has cooled, dip the end of each stick into the candy, and insert halfway into each chilled cake shape. Then, dip each pop, gently tap off the excess and stand in a polystyrene block or glass to keep them upright. Decorate with Tag or Roly features using some extra melted candy if the pops have already set. Set aside to dry and wrap in cellophane bags. Store covered in the fridge and serve at room temperature.