Why You Need An Egg Carton For Gourmet-Looking Cake Pops

Cake pops are a whimsical, visually appealing treat worth serving for special occasions or when you're in the mood for an elevated at-home dessert. If you're looking to venture into the realm of making your own, the process can seem quite intimidating. Next to procuring the necessary food ingredients and enough lollipop sticks, you'll need a convenient way for these miniature round cakes to dry in an upright position once dipped in melted candy. Luckily, all you need is an upside-down egg carton and a sharp tool to create the perfect solution.

If you're wondering how cake pops became an internet dessert sensation, graphic designer turned baker, Angie Dudley, invented and debuted these creative treats on her blog in 2008. Now close to 20 years later, you can regularly buy ready-made cake pops at major businesses like Starbucks, Target, and Walmart. While convenient, prepackaged cake pops don't stand a chance to the delicious texture and flavor of homemade confections. 

Even though creating your own batch of these eye-popping desserts includes various steps, deciphering what you need to get the job done will help streamline the baking and frosting process. Having a ready-made container for your cake pops to dry is essential and can be done in a flash thanks to certain recyclable materials. To make your own deliciously beautiful cake pops at home, follow a foolproof recipe and prepare a convenient holding container or egg carton accordingly.

Once you've successfully made a batch of homemade cake pops, you're ready to frost and decorate these fancy desserts. Yet, before dunking them into candy melts or chocolate, finagle a leftover egg carton to hold the finished product. The 18 to 24-count cartons work best since they'll hold more cake pops.

To make a workable drying container, flip over a closed, empty egg carton and poke tiny holes into each mound with a small knife or scissors. For more precision, try using a wooden skewer or toothpick. To ensure holes are big enough for cake pop sticks, upon poking through the base of your carton, roll the toothpick or skewer between your fingers. After preparing your carton, make sure you've secured ample room in your refrigerator to house the container for efficient drying.

If you don't have egg cartons lying around, you can certainly make a trip to the craft store for a foam or styrofoam block. For more resourceful options, try using an upside-down colander or cardboard box. For the latter, simply poke even holes through the top of an assembled box. Though these alternative solutions are useful in their own right, egg cartons have more functions when it comes to the storage and presentation of homemade cake pops.

Beyond serving as an effective drying solution, egg cartons can also be beneficial for the presentation and transportation of homemade cake pops. Paper pulp cartons can be dressed up in various ways to make a show-stopping presentation. If you're making these treats for a birthday party or event, plan ahead and paint your egg carton with complementary colors for the occasion. Consider adding stickers, gems, or extra materials to make the carton a beautiful display case for your cake pops.

Alternatively, if you have to transport your homemade treats, egg cartons also serve as handy short-term storage containers. Once your freshly made cake pops have dried, flip your carton right side up, cut off the lid, and fill the base with mini muffin liners. To store cake pops so they last as long as possible, you may want to wrap cake pops in plastic treat bags. You can then place individually packaged cake pops into each egg compartment with the stick side up.  

With one cake pop in each compartment, these whimsy desserts stay put and won't move around too much during transport. Instead of using paper liners, feel free to get creative by using colorful paper grass. When it comes to using egg cartons for cake pops, there's a variety of possibilities that lead to a delicious and useful outcome.