Mardi Gras Cinnamon Pecan Vanilla Cake Pops

Celebrate the Carnival season with these easy and beautiful Mardi Gras-inspired cake pops. These fun cake pops are an unexpected twist on a classic King cake featuring the traditional flavors of cinnamon, vanilla, and pecan and topped with festive purple, green, and yellow decorations. This tasty and colorful bite-sized treat is sure to be a hit at your Mardi Gras party.

Makes about 4 dozen

Ingredients

Cinnamon Pecan Vanilla Cake Balls

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 cup light brown sugar

• 1½ tsp baking powder

• ½ tsp baking soda

• ½ tsp salt

• 1 3.4-ounce box instant vanilla pudding mix

• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened

• ¼ cup vegetable or canola oil

• 3 large eggs

• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract

• 1 cup full-fat sour cream

• 1 cup pecans, chopped and lightly toasted

• ¼ cup granulated sugar

• 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon

• Candy melts and sprinkles for decorating

• Vegetable shortening, optional

Directions

Cinnamon Pecan Vanilla Cake Balls

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray the top and bottom of a cake pop pan with nonstick cooking spray. Also spray the outside of the top pan (side with the holes) with nonstick cooking spray. (The batter will come out of the holes, so spraying the outside will make removal easier.)

2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and pudding mix until combined.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, oil, eggs, vanilla, and sour cream and mix until combined.

4. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and beat until incorporated. The batter will be quite thick.

5. Gently fold in the toasted pecans.

6. In a separate small bowl, mix the granulated sugar with the cinnamon. Gently fold the cinnamon sugar into the cake batter. Do not mix thoroughly, but instead leave swirls of cinnamon sugar in the batter.

7. Transfer the batter into a piping bag or plastic bag with a corner snipped off. Start in the center of the bottom pan and fill each cavity with the batter. Fill each cavity just to the top, but do not pile up or overflow. When the bottom pan is full, cover with the top pan and secure with silicone clips.

8. Bake for 22-25 minutes. Remove any overflowed cake off the top of the pan. Remove the top pan by inserting a butter knife under the lid and lift so you can grab it. Allow the cake balls to cool in the pan for about 2 minutes. Then remove the cake balls and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

Decorating

1. Melt the candy melts in the microwave according to the directions on the package. Adding 1 tablespoon of shortening will help thin the candy melts and make dipping the cake pops easier.

2. Dip a lollipop stick into the melted candy about 1-inch. Then push the candy coated end of the stick into a cake ball. This will help the stick to adhere to the cake. Repeat with the remaining cake balls. Allow the candy to harden on the sticks before coating the outside of the cake balls.

3. Dip the cake pops into the melted candy, coating each ball completely, and allow any excess candy to drip off. Decorate with sprinkles as desired and place the cake pop sticks into a lollipop stand of craft foam and allow to dry.

Here's another fun treat to celebrate Mardi Gras:

King Cake Pecan Cheesecake Bars