cheesecake lollipops

a friend of mine was having a DIY wedding and asked a few of her friends and family to make desserts for take-home dessert favor bags. the requirements were that whatever we choose to make must be delicious, individual, and easy for take away. i decided to make some cookies as well as chocolate covered cheesecake pops. i figured they were cute, fairly easy to make and i could tie a little ribbon on it corresponding to their wedding colors.

graham cracker crumbs

a really ugly looking cheesecake. i purposely baked it a little longer than normal because i wanted them to be really firm for when it came time to roll. the extra ugly comes from tearing up all of the top portions that had browned. 

cheesecake lollipops


ingredients for cheesecake:
-40 oz. cream cheese, softened
-12 oz. sugar
-5 large eggs, plus 2 yolks
-2 oz milk
-3 tbs flour

directions for cheesecake:
1. preheat oven to 325 degrees F
2. in a large mixing bowl, with an electric mixer mix cream cheese so that it's smooth
3. cream in sugar, eggs plus yolks, milk and flour
4. pour into a heat safe glass 9"x13" casserole dish
5. put into a water bath in the oven
6. bake until just barely firm in the middle (this took foooooorever. i think it was something like nearly two hours)
7. allow to cool
8. put in fridge and let sit until completely cold and firm (preferably overnight) 


ingredients for pops:
- cheesecake, chilled
-graham cracker crumbs
- chocolate candy melts or chocolate of choice
- lollipop sticks

directions for pops:
1. take about a tablespoonful of cheesecake and roll in your hands to make a ball
2. roll around in the graham cracker crumbs to coat all over
3. stick a lollipop stick into the bottom
4. place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper
5. repeat 1-4 until you've used up all of your cheesecake
6. put lollipops in freezer until completely firm (at least 1hr. i did it overnight)
7. melt candy melts or chocolate in a bowl deep enough to dip the cheesecake balls in all the way
8. dip each ball into the chocolate and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper OR find a foam block to stick them in ball side up.
9. wrap in plastic wraps and tie off with a ribbon

***i made 150 or so cheesecake lollipops for the wedding. they're delicious and fun, but i'll  warn you now....it takes a bit of time to complete. i did this over the course of two or so days. i baked three cheesecakes and crushed 1 1/2 boxes of honey graham crackers. rolling 150 little cheesecake balls in your hands is quite a feat. the cheesecake likes to stick to your hands. oh and don't even think about skipping the freezing stage. if you don't freeze them onto the sticks they will fall off the sticks when it comes time to dip them in the chocolate and you'll lose a bunch of them in the chocolate pool.