Cake Balls, Part 2 and 4th of July

Hi Everyone! Can you believe the 4th of July has come and gone? Where is this summer going?!! Slow down this crazy train!!

 

With that being said, hope you had a great holiday - whether spent with family, friends, or just relaxing on your own. We had a house full of folks yesterday, but were blessed with incredible weather so we were able to use our brand new patio to it's full advantage!

 

Earlier this week, I started a mini tutorial on making cake balls.  Today......ta da! I give you the thrilling conclusion.

 

Once you have formed & frozen your cake balls, you simply melt the candy per package directions (I use a cup, because it gives a nice, deep vessel for dipping.  Then you simply dip a cake ball in, give it a swirl to take off the excess and place on a cookie sheet (I usually use foil, parchment, or waxed paper to top my sheet to make for easy removal), and allow to cool.  Sometimes I add sprinkles on top, but after doing a few this time I preferred keeping them plain.  And that's it! Finito!  Always a hit at our parties.

 

 

 I also whipped up some of these super cute napkin rings made from chevron burlap ribbon - gah! I love these so much.  I saw a version on a blog and sadly, I don't remember which blogger came up with this awesome idea.  I apologize! (If it was you, please let me know and I will be sure to give you credit). I used an assortment of red, white, & blue napkins I had to make silverware bundles so our guests could do a quick grab & go and have everything they needed once they filled their plates up with food. I used an assortment of star buttons and buffalo coin buttons.

The awesome blogger who inspired my napkin rings is Lucy's Lampshade.  Please check out her blog here. Hers are actually much cuter than mine, as I was unable to find navy and red chevron ribbon.  She made hers to mimic the flag - awesome! Thanks for the idea Lucy!

We brought out our popcorn maker and set up our back bar with a beverage station with lemonade and white wine sangria. This is one of two serving bars we have in our new patio and I LOVE them. Love them, love them, love them.  Have I told you I love them - cuz I surely do!!! A quick story about the white based "Pottery Barn" dispenser.  The base is PB, but I found the Mason Jar style dispenser at World Market, on sale - with free shipping - for only $17.99, as opposed to PB's which was over three times the price.  I couldn't find a knock off base, but the PB one was $24.99, plus I had a $10 off coupon, so I was willing to get the real deal! This combo is one of my faves!  The beverage dispenser next to it is a little cutie that I picked up at Kirkland's a few years ago for way under $20.00 - it has the neatest wicker base.

And of course, food! Have to have lots of it to feed the hungry masses! The table runner is just 3 sheets of scrap book paper (20 cents each!).  We have glass over our kitchen table, so the paper stayed in place and looked really cute.  I especially like the toile in the center.  The mardi gras beads were from the parade earlier in the day - never know where  you will pick up some home décor! lol!

 

And now, reality.......after a big party comes the BIG MESS! Yikes!!!!!! But it was all worth it - everyone had a fabulous time, hanging out, playing bag toss, drinking cool drinks, and eating yummy food.

So, today, the morning after - I am busy putting away all the serving dishes and giving everything a good scrub.  It's a great day!!!

What are you up to this July 5th?

Thanks for stopping by,
Jane

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Anything Blue Friday @ The Dedicated House

July 4th Preparations

Hi everyone! I have been busy this week preparing for a July 4th party will be hosting.  So far, I am almost finished with some super cute burlap ribbon napkin rings - they are going to be adorable.  This morning I started making my now-famous-within-my-family cake balls.  They are super yum and are so versatile for any occasion.

 

 

Cake Balls

 

Bake your favorite sheet cake (I've used chocolate, red velvet, & white) - today, I used chocolate

 

Once your cake is baked and completely cool, you are going to crumble into fine crumbs.  You could use a food processor, but I simply use my hands - as it crumble easily.

 



 

Once it is crumbled, you will want to add a generous dollop of vanilla frosting.  I have used chocolate frosting, but it gets too sweet for my taste.  Stir until no trace of white remains.  

 

 

 

 

Once you are done mixing, your cake/frosting mixture will have the consistency of cookie dough.  I use a small ice cream scoop to ensure a uniform size of cake ball. So, simply start scooping and placing in a pan - I use the 9 x 13 pan I used to bake the cake in.  Cuts down on clean up!

 

 

 Once the cake balls are all formed, you can either leave them as is, but this time I found these fun lollipop sticks at Wal Mart, which will go great with my 4th of July theme! 

 Once all the sticks have been placed, put the pan in the freezer for a few hours to harden up. You can either proceed to the final step after the freezing process, or you may put them in a zip lock bag (after they are frozen) to store until you are ready.  In my case, I will not be doing the final step until the day before our party.
    


On Wednesday, I will be dipping them in red, white, & blue candy melts and adding patriotic sprinkles.  I will be back on Thursday to show you how it all turns out!

What are you up to for the fourth?

Thanks for stopping by,

Jane