Easy Christmas Rum Ball Recipe

“You little beauty! I wait all year for these Rum Balls!”

Michael the Tractor Man

Hey, Lovelies.

One of our family traditions is making Christmas Rum Balls. Some we keep for ourselves, but some we share as gifts with neighbours and friends, and with the people who have served and supported us throughout the year. I will drop some in to the Post Office, the butcher, the greengrocer, the baker, our favourite cafes, and the other businesses in our community whose services we use.

These rumballs are one of the fastest and easiest recipes I know, and oh my goodness, they are DELICIOUS!!! Fudgy and flavoursome, great texture, and not too sweet. I whipped up a batch yesterday in about twenty minutes from start to finish.

If you don’t like the taste of rum try brandy, Frangelico, Kahlua, Tia Maria or even Grand Marnier. Need it alcohol-free? Substitute rum flavoured essence, vanilla or hazelnut syrup or even a coffee essence.

If you live somewhere hot make sure to keep the finished rum balls in the fridge. In fact if it’s meltingly hot where you are you may need to chill the mixture first before rolling it.

Your biggest issue will be not eating too much of the mixture while you roll the balls. Think carefully about who you ask to help you with this task. (Could I possibly be implying that Ben eats his bodyweight while rolling rum balls, and I only ever end up with a fraction of what I thought the recipe would yield any time he helps? Yeah, maybe… 😊)

Happy making, lots of love and the joy of sharing, Nicole xx

Ingredients:

• 1.2kg of fruitcake 
• 2/3 cup (160ml) of dark rum
• 3 x 200g blocks of dark chocolate (Substituting milk chocolate will make the balls sweeter and less rich if you’d prefer that)
• 3 to 4 cups of unsweetened desiccated coconut (Note – you could substitute chocolate sprinkles for some or all of the coconut if you prefer)

Method:

1. Choose a large bowl. Break the cake into tiny crumbs in the bowl and then sprinkle the rum over the cake. Mix well and leave to stand for five minutes.
2. If you have a  microwave melt the chocolate by breaking the first 200g block of chocolate into pieces in a heatproof bowl. Melt on medium for one minute. Stir and then melt on medium for another 30 seconds. Stir and if all melted add chocolate to cake mixture. Stir well.
3. Repeat process for remaining two blocks of chocolate, melting and mixing one block at a time.
4. If you don’t have a microwave use a double boiler  – break all of the chocolate into a large bowl and place the bowl over simmering water. Stir until melted. Add the chocolate to the fruitcake mix in thirds, stirring well after each addition.
5. Take heaped teaspoons of mixture and roll into balls using your hands. If it’s boiling hot in your kitchen chill the mixture a little first to make it easier to roll. Toss the balls in coconut to cover. You should get upwards of 80 balls. (Results vary depending on how much you eat while making!)
6. Place on a tray or in a container in one layer and refrigerate until firm. After the balls are hard you can stack them on top of each other, but wait until they are set or they will lose their shape.

Here is the recipe and the taste test in pictures for you (and you’ll notice that Rufous Dog has managed to sneak into yet another food pic) 🙂

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