Project: 4th of July Oreo Pops

 One of the projects I wrote about in a prior post was 4th of July Oreo Pops.  These looked cute, fun, and like a great project for my niece and me to try out together.

Ingredients:

• 1 pkg DOUBLE STUFFED oreo cookies (I did not use double-stuffed...more on that later)
• white chocolate or almond bark for melting
• 1 set of lolly-pop sticks
• patriotic-colored sprinkles

My wonderful husband ran to the cake and candy store and purchased the lolly-pop sticks at $.75 for 25 sticks and the patriotic sprinkles for $1.50.  The oreos and white chocolate totaled about $5 so the entire project was less than $8.  We watched the parade from our front yard and didn't buy any fireworks, so this was the sum total of our 4th expenses.  Not too shabby!

Step 1: Melt the chocolate
I don't have a double broiler, so I heat water in a sauce pan and place a glass bowl above so the chocolate can melt without getting scorched.

Step 2: Separate the Oreos
This was the perfect job for my neice.  She separated the oreos and placed the cookies inside-up on a piece of waxed paper.  Some of them didn't turn out as perfect as the ones pictured...they may or may not have been eaten immediately.

Step 3: Attach the Sticks
To secure the sticks to the oreo, dip the end of the stick in the melted chocolate.

Press the chocolate-covered end of the stick into the frosted oreo cookie.

Cover with the other cookie.

LET DRY!

Step 4: Dip the Pops in Chocolate
For some reason, I never could get the white chocolate chips to melt entirely.  The consistency was very thick and chunky.  I popped it in the microwave to see if that would help, and this is what happened:

Powdery chunks of burnt chocolate that stank.  Fortunately I had chocolate almond bark in the pantry. It wasn't quite as patriotic, but it did melt like it was supposed to!

ONCE THE POPS HAVE DRIED AND ARE SECURELY IN PLACE, dip them into the chocolate covering both sides.  Sprinkle both sides with the patriotic sprinkles and place on waxed paper to dry.  Let dry completely and place in the freezer, if needed.

Step 5: EAT!
I recommend eating these on 4th of July night, after a dinner cooked on the grill and with homemade ice cream.  YUMMY!

Take Aways:

• For some reason, these white chocolate chips did not melt.  I don't know how many times I've melted almond bark using my make-shift double-broiler, but it's been quite a bit and I have never had this problem.  Grr.  Next time I'll stick with almond bark.
• Double-stuffed oreos would have made the process of getting the sticks to stick into the frosting MUCH easier.  Because we used the regular stuffed, the icing wasn't as deep as the stick was thick.  This meant that when you topped it with the other side of the oreo, it didn't sit squarely.  We lost a few when we dipped them into the chocolate because they weren't securely fastened.
• I placed these in the freezer just to help them set up after we made them.  I should have gotten them out 15 minutes or so before we ate.  As it was they were too hard to bite straight out of the freezer.  Note to self for next time!