Square Cake Balls
My sisters and I were at Michaels grabbing supplies to make cake balls (which I’ve already blogged about. twice.) That’s where we saw the Wilton square brownie pan. We were discussing how silly it would be to buy the pan just to make square brownies. Wouldn’t it be easier to just make brownies as usual in a pan and then cut them? Maybe people have issues cutting straight? The only reason we could think to actually make brownies in this pan would be to get the crusty goodness of the edges in every brownie. Then we decided we could use the pan to make square cake balls.
So on a whim, I bought the pan we had just been ridiculing. But it did make some nice looking square cake balls.
We cheated on these because we just used a cake that my family had bought to celebrate my birthday. For some reason none of us were in the mood for cake (maybe because my sister had made about 12 dozen cookies the night before), so we figured the ratio of cake to frosting would probably be about right for cake balls.
Here’s my beautiful cake. And, no it doesn’t belong on Cake Wrecks, that’s what they asked to be written on it. All of my siblings and I have nicknames for each other. Most of them are just the name followed by i-poo. So my nickname is Jenn-i-poo. Except you say it with a French sort of accent. Anyways, that’s my cake that we smashed up (with our hands!) to make the insides of the cake balls.
We then filled the square brownie pan with the cake mixture and popped it in the freezer to let the mix set. Then we popped the squares out and dipped them in almond bark and decorated with sprinkles. It was a fun afternoon in the kitchen. We sent most of these guys to work with my mom and her coworkers couldn’t believe they were homemade.
I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. 
Yum! These look FABULOUS!!
http://www.simplysweeter.blogspot.com
I’m so curious to see what homemade marshmallows taste like! They look pretty awesome in the pictures!
yum!!! i love homemade marshmallows!!! i like to chocolate dip 2 sides so they look like little ice cream sandwiches!
I wouldn’t even need chocolate and graham crackers to enjoy these. I could gobble them up all by their lonesome.
Hmm, I would think they’re really tricky but it sounds like I was wrong. I’m not the biggest marshmallow fan but I have a feeling that homemade taste way better!
Marshmallows have been on my shortlist for a while now. You just pushed me over the edge. I can just see some dipped in chocolate or rolled in toasted coconut and packaged up for the holidays! Question – where do you find the gelatin in the supermarket? In the baking aisle?
Rachel
http://theavidappetite.com
You can actually put the marshmallows in the fridge, and they will set up faster.
I don’t like store-bought marshmallows (unless they’re toasted), but the homemade ones just have such an incredible texture… and I love that you can flavor them however you want. I used to make 5-spice marshmallows at Flour. I really want to make them at home.
These look gorgeous! I might have to make some for hot chocolate season.
I
WANT
THESE
NOW.
Seriously. These look amazing!!
How many grams of gelatine are in each pack? I have a feeling different countries have different amounts…
I had a great cassis marshmallow at an afternoon tea recently and thought they were really hard to make.
I have yet to make homemade marshmallows….I need to get over that fear!
Silly question…
If I was making Rice Krispie Treats could I just mix the cereal in and then pour it all into a pan to set up?
I just thought they might taste better with the homemade marshmallow.
Thanks.
Rachel – The gelatin is near the Jello in my super market. It’s up on the top shelf.
Cupcake Kelly – My box of gelatin says 1 oz for 4 small envelopes. Does that help?
yipeiokyay – Sounds like it could work. You might want to throw some butter in too? Alton Brown did say you can use them to make Rice Krispies treats during the episode, but he implied that you do it after they have set up.
To everyone who has been afraid of making marshmallows – it’s seriously SO EASY. Do it!
I love love love making marshmallows! You can flavor them, too, so try out different extracts and flavorigns in them for an extra kick. Peppermint ones with mini chocolate chips on top are AWESOME
Okay, even tho I read your blog often, this is the first recipe I’ve actually tried. I’ve been dying to do homemade ‘mallows because the stay-puff ones taste like the gas they use to puff them up. 🙁 Mine are drying now, so no report on how they came out yet, but I have to agree – except for my nervousness working with hot candy (legacy of a drop of hot caramel on a bare foot that left a mark for years) – these were super-easy.
Question: my gelatin smelled kind of bad when it had sat in the water for a while, tho the smell seems to have gone away. Did this happen to you? Could my gelatin have been a little funky? (Can gelatin even go funky?). Thx!!
Virginia – I do remember the gelatin having a weird smell that does go away. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do. A friend told me that if you can’t wait the full 4-hours you can pop them in the fridge to speed up the process.