These football cake balls are easy to make, delicious, and perfect for tailgating, game day, a football party, and the Super Bowl!
Related: Super Bowl, Football Desserts Board
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Table of Contents: Football Cake Balls
Ingredients To Make Football Cake Balls
This recipe calls for the following ingredients:
- Chocolate cake mix (+ ingredients)
- Chocolate frosting
- Dark chocolate candy wafers
- White cookie icing
Equipment To Make Football Cake Balls
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring cups
- Spatula
- Cake pans
- Cookie scoop
- Baking tray
- Wire rack
- Parchment paper
- Green mini cupcake lines (optional)
How To Make Football Cake Balls
- Bake And Cool The Cake
- Prepare The Cake Mixture
- Form The Mini Footballs
- Dip The Football Cake Balls In Chocolate
- Add The Laces
Step 1: Bake And Cool The Cake
Feel free to use a cake mix or your favorite cake recipe.
I opted for a cake mix to save time.
Step 2: Prepare The Cake Mixture
Once the cake has cooled, it’s time to crumble it up in a large mixing bowl. I used my hands, but you could also use a mixer or large forks.
Note: Some recipes recommend that you crumble up the cake while it’s still warm, but I had no problem breaking it up after I chilled it in the fridge.
Next, add a container of frosting and mix well.
Chill the dough for 30 mins in the freezer, so that the cake doesn’t stick to your hands in the next steps.
Step 3: Form The Mini Footballs
First, line a baking tray with parchment paper. Make sure the baking tray fits in your freezer, otherwise use something smaller such as dinner plates.
Next, using a cookie scoop, drop balls of dough onto the baking tray. Don’t worry about forming the football shapes yet.
Once you’ve filled the tray, place the tray in the freezer for 30 minutes.
Next, shape the spheres into mini footballs.
Place the footballs onto a wire rack positioned on top of a baking tray.
Step 4: Dip The Football Cake Balls In Chocolate
Melt the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl, being careful not to overheat the chocolate.
Fill the cookie scoop with melted chocolate and pour the chocolate onto the cake ball.
Repeat for remaining cake balls.
Step 5: Add The Laces
Once the chocolate has hardened, at the laces.
I think it’s easiest to use cookie icing for this step, but you could also use white chocolate.
Football Cake Ball Recipe Notes
How To Store Cake Pops
Store football cake balls in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 days.
Planning for Quantity
One cake mix and one container of frosting make about 40 cake balls. If you don’t need 40 cake balls, you have a couple of options:
- Split the recipe in half by baking the cake in two separate 8″ cake pans and make a football cake with the other half.
- Freezer the cake balls (see notes below).
How To Freeze Cake Balls
Cake balls (prep chocolate coating) freeze well! To freeze cake balls, place the cake balls in a freezer bag right before the step when you cover them with chocolate (after you chill the dough in the freezer).
It’s important to chill the cake balls before placing them in the freezer bag so they don’t get stuck together or lose their shape.
Note, I have not attempted to freeze chocolate-covered cake balls. However, if you give this a try, I would love to know how it goes!
Substitution Options
Pick any combination of cake and frosting! In the past, I have used chocolate cake with peanut butter icing. Vanilla and vanilla would also be tasty
Tips For Melting Chocolate
Chocolate can easily burn and dry out very quickly in the microwave. To avoid this, only microwave in short intervals and stir thoroughly before microwaving again.
Notes For Using A Homemade Cake Recipe
This is completely doable! However, keep in mind, you may need to adjust the quantity of frosting.
I Want To Hear From You!
Share your feedback in the comments section below!
Also, if you made these football cake balls, I’d love to see them!
Tag me on Instagram at: @lifestyledbysam_
Football Cake Balls
Equipment
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring cups
- Spatula
- Cake pans
- Cookie scoop
- Baking tray or dinner plate
- Wire rack
- Parchment paper
- Green mini cupcake liners optional
Ingredients
- 1 box chocolate cake mix (+ cake ingredients)
- 1 container frosting
- 4 cups chocolate candy wafers
- white cookie icing
Instructions
Bake And Cool The Cake
- Bake and cool the cake of your choice. I used a chooclate cake mix to save time.1 box chocolate cake mix (+ cake ingredients)
Prepare The Cake Mixture
- Once the cake has cooled, crumble it up in a large mixing bowl.
- Next, add a container of frosting and mix well.1 container frosting
- Chill the dough for 30 mins in the freezer, so that the cake doesn't stick to your hands in the next steps.
Form The Mini Footballs
- First, line a baking tray (or dinner plate) with parchment paper. (Make sure whatever you use fits in your freezer.)
- Next, using a cookie scoop, drop balls of dough onto the baking tray. Don't worry about forming the football shapes yet.
- Once you've filled the tray, place the tray in the freezer for 30 minutes.
- Next, shape the spheres into mini footballs.
- Place the footballs onto a wire rack positioned on top of a baking tray.
Dip The Football Cake Balls In Chocolate
- Next, add the chocolate to the large bowl and melt according to the package instructions, or follow these guidelines:Microwave on high for 45 seconds, then stir thoroughly.Microwave on high for 30 seconds, then stir thoroughly.Continue microwaving in 15 to 30-second intervals, stirring thoroughly, until all the chocolate has just about melted. (The remaining few pieces should melt on their own, and it’s a good way to ensure you don’t overheat the chocolate).4 cups chocolate candy wafers
- Fill the cookie scoop with melted chocolate and pour the chocolate onto the cake ball.
- Repeat for remaining cake balls.
Add The Laces
- Once the chocolate has hardened, at the laces using the white cookie icing (or white chocolate).white cookie icing
- Enjoy!
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