Search
by Ingredient

Mother's Rum Dainties (Christmas)

StarStarStarStarStar

Submitted by Robert Ponce

No-bake rum balls made with crushed vanilla wafers, pecans, cocoa, powdered sugar, and real rum. A classic Christmas cookie tin staple rolled in powdered sugar.

YIELD

3 dozen

PREP

20 min

COOK

0 min

READY

20 min

These are the rum balls that show up in every Christmas cookie tin worth opening. Crushed vanilla wafers, finely chopped pecans, cocoa, powdered sugar, and corn syrup get bound together with real rum, then rolled into inch-wide balls and dusted in more powdered sugar.

No baking, no cooking, no heat at all. The corn syrup acts as the glue that holds the crumb mixture together while the rum provides the flavor punch and enough moisture to make the dough pliable. The cocoa gives each ball a subtle chocolate backbone that the rum and toasty pecans play against.

The mixture is aggressively sticky. Keep your palms and fingers dusted with powdered sugar while rolling or you’ll end up with a mess stuck to both hands instead of neat little balls. Work quickly and dust often.

Pro Tips

  • Crush the vanilla wafers in a plastic bag with a rolling pin; you want fine crumbs, not chunks
  • Chop the pecans very fine so they bind into the mixture rather than poking out of the balls
  • Chill after rolling so the balls firm up and the flavors meld overnight
  • Store in a tin box between layers of wax paper; they keep for weeks and actually improve with time as the rum mellows

Variations

  • Bourbon balls: Swap the rum for bourbon for a Kentucky-style version
  • Extra chocolate: Roll in cocoa powder instead of powdered sugar for a darker, more intense finish
  • Almond version: Replace pecans with finely chopped almonds and use amaretto instead of rum

Ingredients

1 237
3 45
TABLESPOONS ML CORN SYRUP, WHITE (KARO)
white *
2 ⅓ 35
TABLESPOONS ML COCOA POWDER
3 710
CUPS ML VANILLA WAFER
crushed *
1 237
CUP ML PECANS
chopped finely
¾ 21.7
OUNCE ML/G RUM

Directions

To make crumbs, put wafers in plastic bag and roll with rolling pin.

Pour into bowl and mix above ingredients, adding rum last.

Shape into balls about 1 inch in diameter.

Roll in powdered sugar and chill. This mixture is sticky, so keep finger and palms of hands dusted with 4x sugar while shaping cookies.

Store in tin box between layers of wax paper.

* not incl. in nutrient facts Arrow up button

Comments


 

 

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 65g (2.3 oz)
Amount per Serving
Calories 323 56% from fat
 % Daily Value *
Total Fat 20g 31%
Saturated Fat 2g 10%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 1mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 12g 12%
Dietary Fiber 4g 14%
Sugars g
Protein 6g
Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 1%
Calcium 2% Iron 6%
* based on a 2,000 calorie diet How is this calculated?
Low Cholesterol, Cholesterol-Free, Trans-fat Free, Good source of fiber, Sodium-Free, Low Sodium
 

Email this recipe