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Do you feel like being creative and skipping the Bakery this Holiday? If so,  there’s a plethera of great 4th of July dessert ideas from Pinterest, the Food Network and various other web-sites at your fingertips.  The DIY craze is not limited to home projects!  You can learn the tools to create store bought looking desserts, with a twist,  all by yourself.   “Prepare to Impress”  or should I say “Beware to Impress” your friends.  Once you start making all these professional looking treats you’ll be on Dessert Duty for life!

We thought it would be fun to share some explosive 4th of July recipes you can SURPRISE your guests with.

It’s a Party In Your Mouth

The 4th of July Sparkler Cakelette

from SHE KNOWS

Here’s what you need:

1 box white cake mix

4 egg whites

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup water

1 cup sour cream

Red and blue food coloring

3 packages Pop Rocks candy

Black licorice ropes

White frosting (less than 1/4 cup)

Here’s what you do:

Mix white cake mix, egg whites, oil, water and sour cream for three to four minutes on medium speed. Split cake batter into three equal amounts, adding red and blue food coloring to two of the portions. Coat three, 4 x 9-inch bread pans with cooking spray and lightly flour the bottoms. Add the three batters to the pans and bake at 350 degrees F for 18-23 minutes. Allow them to cool and remove from pans.

Using a 1-1/2-inch round cookie cutter, cut circles from each of the baked cakes. (I got 10 out of each cake, but you might be able to get more if you try.)

Using a serrated knife, carefully trim off the browned, baked bottoms of each cake circle.

Using a jumbo straw or plastic tube (one-half or three-quarters-inch in diameter), remove the centers of the cake circles. Be sure to save the red and blue centers to use as plugs for later.

Add Pop Rocks down the hollow centers of the stacked cakes. Put a portion of the blue cake plugs back into the tops, covering the center filled with Pop Rocks.

Cut licorice rope pieces approximately 1-1/2 inches long and insert them into the centers of the blue cakes.

Click here for more pictures and advice from She Knows.

 

Pop Rocks Marshmellow Pops

From The Decorated Cookie

I absolutely love this web-site; they have so many cool dessert ideas.  I’m dying to try a few of the recipes.  I came across this one on my hunt for something EASY and fun to bring to a Holiday Party.  This one is easy for sure and still has the element of surprise.

Here’s What you’ll Need:

marshmallows

straws or lollipop sticks

light corn syrup

paint brush

Pop Rocks

Styrofoam block or wax paper

 Here’s What you Do:

Skewer a marshmallow with a straw or stick. Paint a thin layer of light corn syrup around the outside of the marshmallow. Sprinkle Pop Rocks over the painted area (I sprinkled over a bowl so I could save the excess, and because Pop Rocks are costlier than sprinkles, I wasn’t too generous with the sprinkling). Prop in a Styrofoam block to dry or prop upside down on a piece of wax paper.