Cake Bites and Duncan Hines

In the last 10 months or so, I became aware of a delightful dessert known as cake balls (also sometimes turned in to cake pops).  I first had them back in March at a party, loved them, and the girl who made them told me how easy they were to make.  Plus, once I became interested in the food truck scene here in Orlando, I discovered a great food truck that makes cake pops.  I had been meaning to try to make my own, however, I hadn't gotten around to it yet.
But behold!  As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I received coupons for free Duncan Hines products, including Comstock who makes delightful fruit and other pie fillings.  This provided me with the oppurtunity to make my very own cake balls, which I am calling Cake Bites. 
As you aware, the title of this blog is No Room For Dessert.  As I've mentioned in previous posts, this does not mean I'll never have dessert recipes.  So today, we've made room for dessert!
Below I am going to list out the recipe, as well as the tools you will need to make these cake balls.  The Duncan Hines cake mix (I used the Dark Chocolate Fudge variety) was so delicious and moist, a great product to work with.  The Comstock filling I used had great quality cherries and made a nice surprise within the Cake Bites.  The filling did not take over the flavor of the cake, rather it gave the Cake Bites a wonderful surprise cherry in each.  And I used the Duncan Hines Whipped Cream Cheese frosting to make the cake into balls.  I love cream cheese frosting, and I thought it would compliment the fudge cake and cherry filling (and it did!)
Duncan Hines was also kind enough to provide me with more free coupons that I was able to give away to my friends, family, and blog readers.  I gave a few of the coupons away to some family and friends at Thanksgiving, and I saved a coupon to give to one of my readers!  All you have to do is email me at nodessertpodcast@gmail.com, and you will be entered to win the coupon for a free Duncan Hines product!  Put Coupon Contest as the subject and put your name in the body of the email.  I will do a drawing on December 15th and will email the winner, as well as announce them in a post on this site that day.  Make sure you enter!!!
Now for the recipe!

Fudgey Cherry Surprise Cake Bites


Ingredients:

• 1 box of cake mix (18.25oz), preferably Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 1/3 cups water
• cooking spray (to grease baking dish)
• 10 oz of cherry fruit filling, preferably Comstock More Fruit Cherry (comes in a 21 oz can, I used half)
• 8 oz - 12oz of frosting, preferably Duncan Hines Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting (1/2 - 3/4 a can)
• Chocolate almond bark (24 oz package) (or other candy coating - you can also use chocolate chips melted with a tablespoon or two of vegetable shortening)
• Red sugar crystals (for decoration)

Tools:

• 13 x 9 baking dish (I used a glass pan)
• large mixing bowl
• hand mixer
• measuring cups
• glass bowl
• large saucepan
• baking sheet lined with wax or parchment paper

Ingredients

Making the Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge cake batter

Mixing the cake batter

Adding the Comstock cherry filling

Cake batter in the greased baking dish

Finished cake, cooling

Crumbled cake

Adding the frosting in to cake crumbles

Finished cake bite mixture

Cake bites after they're formed

Melted chocolate for dipping

Cake bites after dipping and decoration

Cake bites after chocolate dipping has set

Inside of cake bites

Directions:

Preheat your oven (according to temperature on cake mix box).
The first step is to prepare the cake batter according to the directions on the box.  This involves mixing together the eggs, water, oil, and cake mix.  Then add 1/2 the can of cherry pie filling and fold in to cake batter.  Pour batter in to your greased 13 x 9 baking dish and bake as directed. 
Take cake out to cool (I put mine on a cooling rack).  You can start making the balls while the cake is still warm, but NOT hot. 
Crumble the cake into a large mixing bowl.  Use a fork and your hands to crumble up the cake.  Mix in 1/2 the can of the cream cheese frosting, adding more if necessary (I did not need to use more than 1/2 the can).
Refrigerate the mixture for 15 minutes. 
Take cake mixture out and begin rolling into balls, slightly smaller than golf balls.  Continue until all the cake mix is formed into balls. 
Melt your almond bark according to package directions.  I used the double boiler method, where you simmer water in a sauce pan, then put the chocolate in the glass bowl on top of the saucepan, making sure the water does not touch the bowl.  The steam will melt the chocolate. 
Dip each ball in to the chocolate, completely coating the ball.  Place on the baking sheet, and immediately sprinkle with sugar crystals.  Repeat with every ball.
Let coating set in refrigerator for at least an hour.
This recipe makes between 40 and 50 cake bites. 

Enjoy!!!! And don't forget to email us so that you can be entered to win a free Duncan Hines product!!!