Red Velvet Bourbon Cake Balls - Red velvet cake balls spiked with bourbon, dipped in white chocolate and decorated with sprinkles. Makes a delicious and festive Valentine’s Day dessert.
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Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and these Red Velvet Bourbon Cake Balls would make the perfect addition. Whip them up for that special someone in your life. Heart sprinkles add that special charm.
Although these treats are perfect for Valentine’s Day, they would be perfect for any occasion as they’re super easy to customize. Use red and green sprinkles for Christmas, autumn sprinkles for Thanksgiving, or leave them plain for birthday parties. The possibilities are endless with these indulgent treats AKA truffles!
HOW TO MAKE RED VELVET BOURBON CAKE BALLS
To make these boozy cake balls, you'll need:
- Flour
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Vegetable oil
- Sugar
- Buttermilk
- Egg white
- Red food coloring
- Vanilla extract
- White vinegar
- Cream cheese
- Powdered sugar
- Almond bark or white chocolate
- Sprinkles
- Bourbon whiskey (I used Maker's Mark)
Gather all of your ingredients and measure them out. Preheat your oven to 350℉. Then, place 4 cupcake liners on the outside edge of your muffin tin.
In a bowl, beat together the canola oil, sugar, buttermilk, egg white, red dye, vinegar and vanilla using an electric mixer.
Then, follow the steps below to continue making this deliciously indulgent treat!
- Add the flour, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder to the wet ingredients and mix well.
- Divide the batter between the four cupcake liners.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes, cool on a wire rack and crumble them into crumbs.
- Mix the cupcake crumbs, softened cream cheese, and powdered sugar together in a large bowl.
- Scoop out heaping tablespoons of the mixture and shape into balls.
- Place the balls on a plate and refrigerate for 4 hours.
Melt the white chocolate or almond bark and use a fork to turn and coat the entire ball. You could even use a dipping tool like this one to make the job even easier!
Place your cake balls wax paper, add sprinkles, and let them sit until the chocolate hardens.
CAN CAKE BALLS BE MADE INTO CAKE POPS?
Absolutely! These red velvet bourbon cake balls would be super cute as cake pops. Simply place a lollipop stick in the center before you dip them in the melted bark to make cake pops.
CAN I USE A RED VELVET BOX CAKE MIX?
People will argue that homemade is always better, but if you want to save time you can use a Red Velvet box cake mix instead. I often use box mixes when I'm in a hurry.
You could also use another cake mix if you don’t like red velvet. Vanilla would be just as good.
CAN I MAKE THESE NON-ALCOHOLIC?
Yes, of course. Just omit the bourbon to make these kid-friendly!
HOW TO STORE LEFTOVER CAKE BALLS
The great thing about cake balls is that they don’t need to be refrigerated. You can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
Additionally, you can freeze the cake balls if you would like to keep them for up to 2-months. Simply place them in a large freezer Ziploc bag.
MORE CAKE RECIPES YOU'LL LOVE
- Champagne Cake Pops
- Oreo Cake Batter Pops
- Caramel Fudge Mug Cake
- Air Fryer Lava Cakes
- Flourless Chocolate Cake
- Homemade Carrot Cake
- Vanilla Wacky Cake
- Cinnamon Roll Poke Cake
Red Velvet Bourbon Cake Balls
Ingredients
For the Cake
- ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon flour
- 2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- ⅛ teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons buttermilk
- 1 egg white
- 1 teaspoon red food coloring
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon white vinegar
- 2-3 tablespoons bourbon whiskey (I used Maker's Mark)
For Preparing the Cake Balls
- 3 ounces cream cheese (softened)
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 12 ounces almond bark (or white chocolate, for coating)
- Sprinkles of your choice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit.
- In a cupcake tin, place 4 cupcake liners on the outside edge.
- In a bowl, beat together the canola oil, sugar, buttermilk, egg white, red dye, vinegar, vanilla and bourbon using an electric mixer.
- Then add the flour, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder to the wet ingredients and mix well.
- Divide the batter between the four cupcake liners.
- Bake at 350° Fahrenheit for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely on a wire rack.
- When cool, crumble the cupcakes into crumbs.
- In a bowl, mix the cake crumbs, softened cream cheese, and powdered sugar.
- Scoop heaping tablespoon of the mixture into your hands and then roll into ball. Continue until you're out of the cake mixture.
- Place the balls on a plate and refrigerate at least 4 hours.
- To make the coating, chop the almond bark into 1" chunks and place in a bowl.
- Microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between until melted.
- Dip each ball into the coating quickly, using a fork to turn.
- Place them on wax paper and add sprinkles. Let them sit until coating hardens.
Notes
- If you want to save a bit of time, feel free to use red velvet box cake mix.
- You can substitute red velvet cake mix for vanilla cake mix.
- Omit the bourbon to make this recipe kid-friendly.
- Store leftover cake balls in an airtight container at room temperature for about a week.
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