Chocolate-Rum-Marzipan Cake Pops

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 500 g flour
• 200 g butter
• 250 g sugar
• 4 tbsp cocoa powder
• 5 tbsp rum
• 1 bottle of rum flavoring
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp, heaped baking powder
• 80 ml milk
• 1 pinch of salt
• ½ vanilla pod(s), the pulp
• 20 g vanilla sugar
• 180 ml milk
• 200 ml cream
• 20 ml rum
• 1 bottle of rum flavoring
• ½ vanilla pod(s)
• 40 g cornstarch, or chocolate pudding
• 4 egg yolks
• 3 tbsp vanilla sugar
• 300 g powdered sugar
• 350 g butter
• 3 tbsp jam (flavor as desired)
• 180 g cream (buttercream)
• 3 tbsp rum
• 3 bottles of rum flavoring
• 250 g chocolate (couverture) dark or dark chocolate
• 200 g marzipan paste
• 30 g powdered sugar
• ½ tsp rose water

Instructions

Working time approx. 2 hours; Rest time approx. 2 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 5 hours

Christmassy delicious little chocolate cakes on a stick, makes 40 pieces

Sponge cake: First, beat the room-temperature butter until fluffy, then add the sugar and vanilla sugar, continuing to beat. Add the eggs one at a time, beating each egg on high for 30 seconds. Mix the milk, rum, and rum flavoring. Sift the flour with the baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder, and add a spoonful at a time to the mixture, alternating with the milk and rum mixture. Work the batter quickly and spread it on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 180°C for about 20 minutes. Let cool. Buttercream: Take 8 tablespoons of milk and mix it with the cornstarch/custard powder, the remaining sugar, and the egg yolks until smooth. Bring the remaining milk, rum, and cream to a boil, whisking everything well until smooth. Stir 6-8 tablespoons of the hot liquid into the egg and starch mixture, one at a time, to prevent curdling. Now add everything to the hot milk and cream and bring to a boil for at least 1 minute, stirring constantly. Season to taste. If it’s still floury, add a little milk and bring back to a boil, stirring constantly. Pour the pudding into a bowl and cover directly on the surface with cling film to prevent a skin from forming. Cool completely and let it set. Once the pudding has cooled, cream the room-temperature butter and rum flavoring until fluffy, then add the powdered sugar, then the pudding a tablespoon at a time. Cake pops: Finely crumble the cake into a large mixing bowl (you can use all of the cakes! Unless it burns). Melt 150g of dark chocolate/couverture in a double boiler or in the microwave. Now, stirring constantly in the food processor, add the buttercream, chocolate, jam, rum, and flavoring a spoonful at a time until the mixture is homogenous and well-binding. Knead the marzipan with the powdered sugar and rose water, then roll into 40 small balls. Then take a marzipan ball and roll the cake mixture tightly around it to form balls, which you place on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Now put the balls in the fridge for at least an hour. Meanwhile, have lollipop sticks/wooden skewers ready. Melt dark chocolate in a double boiler or the microwave. Now dip a stick 2 cm into the melted chocolate and insert it about 2 cm deep into a ball. Be careful not to dig in too far, or the ball might break, but not too little either, or it will fall off. I recommend about 1/2 to a maximum of 3/4 deep, depending on which sticks you use. Then place it back on the baking tray with the stick facing up. Once the chocolate has set, put the CP in a bowl to save space. Now put the balls in the fridge for another hour. Meanwhile, keep the chocolate melted, have a base (Styrofoam or multi-layered cardboard) and decorations ready. Carefully dip the cooled balls into the dark chocolate. Dip it in from the side and slowly rotate until the ball is completely coated. Tap off any excess with a spoon, gently tapping the neck of the spoon against the stick so that the excess chocolate drips off. Place the stick on the base and decorate as desired, or wait until the coating is firm and decorate as desired. Tips: Instead of marzipan, you can also try using a nougat ball as the center.