Best Rum Balls Americas Test Kitchen Recipes

BEST RUM BALLS (AMERICA'S TEST KITCHEN)

Steps:

• Place the butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat. When melted, stir until smooth and set aside to cool until warm.
• Meanwhile, combine the wafers, sugar, cocoa, pecans and salt in a large mixing bowl. Note that any lumps can be worked out once the wet ingredients are added.
• Once the chocolate/butter mixture is cooled, transfer it to the bowl of a food processor (no need to wash it after grinding the wafers and nuts). Break the almond paste into small pieces and add it to the chocolate mixture. Process until smooth, about one minute. Add the sour cream and process until well combined, about 20 seconds. Transfer to the large bowl containing the dry ingredients. Add the rum and stir until the mixture is smooth and homogeneous, about two minutes. Refrigerate until firm, at least an hour and up to overnight.
• Form the mixture into one-inch balls and roll in chocolate sprinkles. Place on a parchment or wax paper-lined baking sheet and refrigerate until very firm, about one hour. Transfer to covered containers and allow flavors to mature for three days and up to two weeks. Remove from refrigerator about 20 minutes before serving.

RUM BALLS

Steps:

• Place vanilla cookies in a food processor and process into fine crumbs.
• Heat chocolate chips and corn syrup together in a saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring often, until chocolate is melted and smooth, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in rum and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Fold in cookie crumbs; dough will be sticky.
• Place saucepan in the refrigerator until dough is firm and easy to roll, about 15 minutes. Cover 2 plates with waxed paper; dust with confectioners' sugar.
• Roll dough into 1-inch balls and place on the prepared plates. Dust rum balls with confectioners' sugar. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Remove rum balls from refrigerator and transfer to a resealable bag, including the extra confectioners' sugar. Seal the bag and shake to coat the rum balls completely with confectioners' sugar.

RUM BALLS

Steps:

• Mix together wafer crumbs, pecans, confectioners' sugar and cocoa. Combine rum, honey and water; stir into crumb mixture. Shape into 1-in. balls. Roll in additional confectioners' sugar or wafer crumbs. Store in an airtight container.

MOLASSES SPICE COOKIES WITH DARK RUM GLAZE

Steps:

• Adjust an oven rack to the middle position. Heat oven to 375. Spread 1/2 cup sugar in a shallow dish for coating. Set aside. Whisk the flour, baking soda, spices, pepper and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
• Beat butter, brown sugar and remaining 1/3 cup sugar together in a large bowl using an elecctric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-6 inutes. Beat in egg yolk and vanilla until combined, about 30 seconds. Beat in the molasses until incorporated, about 30 seconds, scraping down the side of the bowl and bveater as needed.
• Reduce mixer speed to low. Slowly mix in the flour mixture until combined, about 30 seconds. (Dough will be soft.) Give the dough a final stir with a rubhger spatula to make sure it is combinewd.
• Using wet hands, roll 2 T. dough at a time into balls, then roll in the sugar to coat. Lay on two parchment-lined baking sheets, spaced about 2 inches apart. Bake, one sheet at a tim, until edges set and tops are cracked but centers are still soft and underdone. (Peek thru cracks to check centers.) It's about 10-12 minutes. Rotate the baking sheet halfway thru baking.
• Let cookies cool on sheet for 10 minutes. You can serve them at this point or transfer to a wire rack, cooling completely before putting on the rum glaze.
• To make glaze, just mix the confectioners sugar and rum together until smooth. Drizzle it over the cooled cookies. Let set for 10-15 minutes before serving.
• NOTE: if you want to make these w/o the rum glaze, you could also use a variation that has orange essence in it. Just add 1 t. grated orange zest to the dough when you add the molasses. Process 2/3 cup sugar with 2 t. grated orange zest in a food processor until fragrance, about 10 seconds. Use that for rolling instead of the plain white sugar.