If you need a Grinch dessert, these green Grinch Truffle Cake Balls are fun to make and even more fun to eat. This easy recipe uses boxed cake mix to make the chocolate cake in the Instant Pot (though you can use the oven if you prefer).
You'll make the most delicious cake balls from the Devil's Food Cake Mix and cream cheese frosting, then decorate them with a classic Grinch-green chocolate shell with a red heart sprinkle.
These little Grinch Cake Balls are a great project to make with kids, great for holiday parties and Christmas dessert tables, and awesome to give away to friends in a goodie bag!
The rich, fudgy chocolate cake pops in this recipe are absolutely delicious thanks to rich Devil's Food Cake and cream cheese frosting, and the chocolate coating that you bite through to get to the chocolate cake pops makes it all even tastier.
So let's get started!
Related recipe: Valentine's Day Cake Pops
Ingredients
- 1 box Devil’s Food Cake mix
- 3 large eggs
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil (or as much as is needed per the cake mix instructions) + extra for greasing the pan
- 1.5 cups water
- 4 tablespoons cream cheese frosting
- 12-16 white baking chocolate (see note below)
- Green food coloring
- 35 red heart sprinkles
Note: The amount of white chocolate you need will depend on the size and shape of your microwaveable dipping bowl and how thickly you coat the Grinch balls. You need at least ~12 oz (typically 3 bars of white baking chocolate) so you're able to dip easily and get a nice smooth coating, but I recommend having 4 on hand. You can always use the rest for other desserts!
Related recipe: Apple Toffee Cake from Scratch
You'll need the following equipment to bake the cake in the Instant Pot:
- An Instant Pot
- A springform cake pan that fits in the Instant Pot (or use any pan for baking in the oven) - this springform pan fits into a 6-quart and 8-quart Instant Pot!
- Aluminum foil
- Trivet for the Instant Pot
You'll also need:
- A large bowl
- Cookie sheet lined with parchment paper
- Microwave-safe bowl
- Various baking equipment - measuring spoons and cups, etc.
Related recipe: Twix Hot Cocoa Bombs
Instructions
Step 1: Prepare the cake batter according to the packaging (typically using 3 eggs and ⅓ cup vegetable oil).
Step 2: Lightly grease your springform cake pan with vegetable oil. Pour in the cake mix and cover with aluminum foil.
Looking for more Instant Pot desserts? Try this Instant Pot Crème Brulee Cheesecake!
Step 3: Add 1 ½ cups water to the inner pot of the Instant Pot. Place the trivet inside. Carefully place the cake pan on the trivet.
Step 4: Cook on the manual setting at high pressure for 50 minutes. Once the time is up, to a manual quick release (be careful with the steam!). Set the cake pan on a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
While the cake cools, check out this amazing holiday dessert made with just 3 ingredients: Eggnog Crème Brulee
Step 5: Once the cake is completely cool, place it in a large bowl and crumble it. That's right, break apart that gorgeous cake you just made!
Step 6: Add the frosting to the cake pieces and mix well.
Step 7: Use a cookie scoop or a small spoon to grab a small amount of the cake mixture. Roll it in the palm of your hands to form a ball. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and freeze for 15 minutes.
Step 8: Melt the baking chocolate in the microwave in 30-second increments until completely melted. Add a couple of drops of green food coloring to get your desired green color and stir.
Step 9: Remove the cake balls from the freezer, and dip each one into the green chocolate. Coat completely, and transfer back to the parchment paper to allow the chocolate to harden. Before it hardens, place one heart sprinkle on top of each truffle.
Step 10: Once the chocolate has hardened, enjoy those Grinch cake ball truffles!!
Related recipe: Chewy Triple Chocolate Cookies
Recipe variations:
→ If you like the combination of mint + chocolate, you can add a few drops of mint extract to the cooked cake mix or to the melted chocolate. You can even split the batch in half and make half minty, and have regular.
→ Feel free to skip the Grinch dessert theme and make these into Christmas Cake Pops! You can make a separate bowl of white or red chocolate coating, and use Christmas sprinkles or a drizzle of another color to decorate.
→ Red velvet cake mix would be absolutely delicious inside these Grinch cake pops.
Related recipe: Red Velvet Mug Cakes
Looking for more holiday baking ideas or food gifts?
If you enjoyed this recipe, let me know with a comment and a star rating below. And don't forget to share it on Facebook and save it on Pinterest for later!
Grinch Cake Pops (with Instant Pot Cake)
Ingredients
- 1 box Devil’s Food Cake mix
- 3 eggs
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil - + extra for greasing the pan
- 1.5 cups water - (for pressure cooking)
- 4 tablespoons cream cheese frosting
- 12-16 oz white baking chocolate - (see notes)
- green food coloring
- 35 red heart sprinkles
Special equipment
- An Instant Pot
- A springform cake pan that fits in the Instant Pot (or use any pan for baking in the oven)
- Aluminum trivet
- A large bowl
- Cookie sheet lined with parchment paper
- Microwave-safe bowl
Instructions
- Prepare the cake batter according to the packaging (typically using 3 eggs and ⅓ cup vegetable oil).
- Lightly grease your springform cake pan with vegetable oil. Pour in the cake mix and cover with aluminum foil.
- Add 1 ½ cups water to the inner pot of the Instant Pot. Place the trivet inside. Carefully place the cake pan on the trivet.
- Cook on the manual setting at high pressure for 50 minutes. Once the time is up, to a manual quick release (be careful with the steam!). Set the cake pan on a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
- Once the cake is completely cool, place it in a large bowl and crumble it. Add the frosting to the cake pieces and mix well.
- Use a cookie scoop or a small spoon to grab a small amount of the cake mixture. Roll it in the palm of your hands to form a ball. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and freeze for 15 minutes.
- Melt the baking chocolate in the microwave in 30-second increments until completely melted. Add a couple of drops of green food coloring to get your desired green color and stir.
- Remove the cake balls from the freezer, and dip each one into the green chocolate. Coat completely, and transfer back to the parchment paper to allow the chocolate to harden. Before it hardens, place one heart sprinkle on top of each truffle.
- Once the chocolate has hardened, enjoy those Grinch cake ball truffles!!
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information displayed is an estimate and not to be used as dietary or nutritional advice. Consult a nutritionist or dietician for nutritional info based on the exact ingredients you use.