Using your hands or a mixer, crumple cake in a bowl. Make sure the cake is at room temperature or it will melt your frosting.
Add 1/2 cup frosting and mix until incorporated.
If necessary, add additional frosting 1 tablespoon at a time and remix until desired constancy. The ideal filling will hold together when you pinch it, but not be gooey or sticky.
Dipping Method
Fill the cakesicle molds with cake filling and put in the freezer for 20-30 minutes to firm up.
When ready to dip, melt the chocolate melts according to the instructions on the package. It’s really important to have the right consistency of chocolate, so depending on the brand of chocolate melts you might need to add some vegetable shortening to thin it out. Start out with 1/2 - 1 tsp of shortening per 1/2 cup of melts.
You can test the chocolate consistency by dipping a knife or spoon in the chocolate – it should be thick enough to coat but thin enough that when you shake it any drips reincorporate back into itself.
Then, quickly dip the frozen cakesicle in the chocolate and shake to reincorporate any drips back into the chocolate. You can either put the popsicle stick into a styrofoam board to dry upright, or lay on parchment paper or a silicone mat to harden.
Spreading and Filling Method
And about a tablespoon of melted chocolate to the molds. The amount can vary depending on the size of your molds, but 1 tablespoon is a good place to start.
Using a spoon, pastry brush, or paint brush, spread the chocolate around the sides of the mold, making sure it is thick along the sides and the chocolate goes all the way to the top. If it’s too thin or doesn’t cover everywhere, the chocolate can crack when you try to remove the cakesicle.
Then, shake the mold to even out the chocolate. If there any air bubbles, pop them using a toothpick, scribe, or tip of a knife.
While the chocolate is still wet, add and remove the popsicle stick to the mold to clear out any chocolate.
Let the chocolate harden in the fridge for 5-10 minutes. If the chocolate isn't thick enough or is to thin around the sides, add another teaspoon or two of chocolate, spread around the edges and let harden in the fridge another 5 minutes.
Remove from fridge and add 2 tablespoons of cake filling to the molds. This amount can vary depending on the size of your molds. Be very gentle when adding the filling, if you push down too hard you can break the chocolate. You want to leave some room on the top to add the top coat of chocolate. If you have problem with the chocolate cracking, let the chocolate rest at room temperature for a few minutes before adding the filling.
After you've added the filling, gently push in the popsicle stick.
Add another tablespoon of chocolate to the cakesicle. If the chocolate cracked around the popsicle stick, be sure to add more warm chocolate around the stick and push it down where it cracked. The warm chocolate should re-firm up the cracking.
Using a knife, spoon, or cake spatula, drag the chocolate over the filling. Add more chocolate and re-scrape if needed.
Let the chocolate harden, and then gently remove the cakesicle from the mold.
Add any optional decorations and enjoy!
Notes
If you've never made cakesicles, I recommend reading through the entire post and FAQs as there is a lot of information that will be helpful for first-timers.
For this recipe, I used boxed cake mix and canned frosting, but you can use any cake and frosting you like! If using different recipes, you might need to alter the ratio of cake to frosting.
Using a box cake mix and canned frosting, I made about a dozen 2 x 3.5 inch cakesicles, but the amount will vary depending on the size of your cakesicle molds, the cake recipe you use, and the method you're using for covering them in chocolate.
You can also try the no-frosting method! This is an Instagram and social media hack of crumbling the cake when it's hot out of the oven and letting the steam bind the cake together.
If you don’t use some type of melting or dipping chocolate such as candy melts, I recommend tempering your chocolate.
You can not use regular or gel food coloring to color chocolate, you must use candy melts in the desired color or white chocolate and oil basedcandy colors.
These will last up to a day at room temperature and up to a week in the fridge.