Do It Yourself Project: Winter Wonderland Brownie Pops

You could purchase these online, but why bother? These treats are so easy to make that after you try them once, you’ll be making them all the time! Use your favorite recipe or make it from the box – either way, you’ll have a tasty dessert that will keep your guests begging for more.

Though you could use standard white chocolate chips to cover these, I highly recommend you go for the Bake It Pretty candy melts mentioned below. The wafers melt so easily and to such a beautiful consistency that the whole process becomes incredibly simple – a big perk, particularly if you’re low on time or not all that handy in the kitchen.

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What You’ll Need

Pre-Baked Brownie Sheet
Canned Icing, Preferably Chocolate
Bake It Pretty’s White Chocolate Candy Melts, Two Bags
Bake It Pretty’s Light Blue Candy Melts
Bake It Pretty’s Non-Pareils in White
Long Lollipop Sticks
Makeshift or Actual Double Boiler
Parchment Paper

After baking the brownie sheet, set it aside until it is cool to the touch. Remove the brownie sheet from its pan and crumble it into a large mixing bowl. Add canned icing to the bowl of crumbs until the mixture is saturated enough that you can form balls out of the mixture, with the icing acting as a “glue”. Form the mixture onto a series of tightly compacted balls and place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.

When all the brownie balls have been formed, insert a lollipop stick into the center of each. Make sure that each stick is straight – adjust as needed and reform the ball if necessary. When all of the sticks are inserted, put the entire cookie sheet into the fridge and let chill for at least an hour. Chilling will help keep the cake and icing mixture together when you begin dipping. Do not take the sheet out until the last possible minute when you begin to dip them.

In a makeshift or actual double boiler, melt a bag of white candy wafers over low heat (microwave directions are available for this product too, but I prefer the control of doing it over a stove top) – if you turn the heat up too high, the melted candy will seize and be ruined, so be careful. As the candy wafers melt, prepare a second cookie sheet (or other flat surface) with parchment paper to put dipped pops on.

When you are ready to dip, take the original cookie sheet out of the fridge. Dip each pop until it is submerged (if necessary, tip the pot slightly so that the melted candy coating flows over the pop). Remove the pop and place on the clean parchment-covered cookie sheet. Don’t worry about any pooling that occurs – this can be cut away later. Continue until all of the brownie pops are covered, then place the cookie sheet back in the fridge and leave them there until the candy coating has set and until the last possible minute before you add the second coating.

When the candy coating has set, begin to melt the light blue candy melts with white candy melts (the mix should be approximately 25% blue, 75% white, but can be adjusted if you want to make the color lighter or darker). While waiting for the candy wafers to completely melt, open your bottle of non-pareil sprinkles. You’ll want to use the shaker end if there is one; if not, or if you want greater control of where the sprinkles fall, carefully pour the sprinkles onto a plate and sprinkle them manually.

When the candy has melted and the pops have set and are removed from the fridge, prepare to use the light blue candy mix as a “spread”. You can smear the top of the pops with the blue candy with an icing spatula if you want something smoother; I wanted a little more dimension to mine (giving the sprinkles a little more to cling to, as well) and used a standard dining fork to spread it on. Work quickly to smooth and spread the blue candy on the top of the brownie pop so that the original white layer doesn’t melt. You’ll also want to change the utensil you work with as it warms up as it will speed up how quickly that original layer melts.

As you add the blue layer to each pop, quickly sprinkle the top with the white non-pareils so that as the new layer cools, the sprinkles will set in it. How densely you apply the sprinkles is up to you, but don’t go so overboard that you no longer see the beautiful pop of blue! Repeat the candy and non-pareil treatment on each pop, then set them in the fridge to cool and set once again. When they do, you’re set!

Images by Michael Haug; prop styling by Kirki Schultz; food styling by Maddy Hague.