Ginger-Spiced Cake Truffles
with Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Maple Frosting & Salted Candied Pecans | 10 servings
- Wheat
- Milk
- Tree Nuts
Sugar and spice and everything nice, that’s what our cake truffles are made of. We give spice cake balls extra zing with fresh ginger, coat them with cinnamon sugar, then top each one with a tangy maple cream cheese frosting. Candied pecan clusters on top add a delightful crunch. These adorable one-bite desserts prove that good things come in small packages.
Ingredients
1 thumb
Ginger
15.25 ounce
Spice Cake Mix
(Contains: Wheat)
4 tablespoon
Sour Cream
(Contains: Milk)
2 teaspoon
Cinnamon
½ ounce
Pecans
(Contains: Tree Nuts)
¾ cup
PHILADELPHIA® Cream Cheese
(Contains: Milk)
4 tablespoon
Maple Syrup
Not included in your delivery
Salt
½ cup
Cooking Oil
¼ cup
Sugar
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
Adjust rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with oil. Peel and grate ginger until you have ¾ tsp.
In a large bowl, whisk together cake mix, sour cream, grated ginger, half the cinnamon, 1 cup water, ½ cup oil, and ½ tsp salt until smooth. Pour batter into prepared dish. Bake until cooked through and edges are lightly browned, 25-30 minutes. Wash out bowl.
Meanwhile, heat a small, preferably nonstick, pan over medium-high heat. Add pecans, 1½ TBSP sugar, ½ tsp salt, and 2 TBSP water. Cook, stirring, until pecans are sticky and coated, 3-5 minutes. Transfer to a plate to cool.
Place Philadelphia cream cheese in a medium, microwave-safe bowl; microwave until soft, 20-30 seconds. Stir in maple syrup, then whisk until fluffy, 30-60 seconds. Open a large zip-close bag; place inside a tall glass and add frosting. Remove bag from glass; squeeze to remove excess air and push frosting to one corner, then seal.
Separate cooled pecans into small clusters (2-3 pieces each). In a small bowl, combine ¼ cup sugar and remaining cinnamon.
Let cake cool 5 minutes after baking. Leaving browned edges in dish, scoop cake into clean bowl used for batter. Once cool enough to handle, scoop out 1 packed TBSP cake; squeeze until a smooth dough forms. Roll into a 1-inch ball, then toss in cinnamon sugar to coat. Repeat with remaining cake. TIP: If truffle mixture is falling apart, add water 1 TBSP at a time.
Snip a corner of the frosting bag. (TIP: Start with a tiny hole, then snip again if needed. A small hole will make frosting easier.) Squeeze about 1 tsp frosting over each truffle. Top with 1-2 pecan clusters (save any extras for snacking) and serve.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Sep 2026- Flavor: When it comes together, the spiced cake, maple cream cheese frosting, and candied pecans make a genuinely delicious combination; some wanted more ginger and spice in the cake itself.
- Ease of prep: Rolling the cake into balls is time-consuming and fussier than expected — budget at least an hour, and refrigerating the cake before rolling makes shaping much easier.
- Suggestions: Reduce the salt in the candied pecans significantly (use a pinch rather than ½ tsp), and add powdered sugar to the frosting to thicken it and keep it from running off the truffles.
- Leftovers: These do not store well — the texture becomes gummy in the fridge, so plan to serve them the same day they're made.
Reviews from our home cooks
I made this as a cake instead of truffles. I sprinkled the cinnamon & sugar on top of the icing and had the nuts on the side to add if desired. That was the only change I made. It was great and very flavorful.
A little more work than I was expecting but they taste so good! I am not a baker but I did it!
Really tasty, a bit time consuming to make, but a crowd pleaser!
Easy to make. Would have been nice if a bag for the icing was provided
Tasted amazing and come out looking just like the picture. They were a huge hit at our new years eve party.
Worked out great! I added all of the ginger I was given...pretty and delish! Cant wait to serve them tomorrow!
Tasted great! All of the syrup made the cream cheese too runny though- even with more whipping and cooling. Added more creamcheese I had on hand and a little sifted flour.
Like little bites of gingerbread. The ginger was completely shriveled and unusable. The icing was too runny. But these were cute and tasty
Pecan clusters were great! Cake itself was fine, but when condensed into balls to make cake truffles, it almost tasted like eating raw cake because of the texture. Tried to allow time to set in fridge to see if that helped, and it was slightly better. Overall not bad, but maybe could use more ginger and other spices? Thank you!
The serving size was smaller in my head when i ordered. This would be awesome to order in a smaller size. Great flavor though!!
