RUMBALLS

Rumballs are a Christmas staple in my house. Easy to make, delectable, and always a hit for giving away as presents or at Christmas parties. The chocolate ones are actually a family recipe of a friend. Our friends had ladies in their family make these rumballs for their wedding, years ago. I finally got a hold of the recipe, and it became a favored Christmas treat. They are little balls of heaven and rum, held together by chocolate and will.

Over the years I have developed a few ways to present the rumballs.

OPTIONS

1. OPTION 1 is letting the mix set in the refrigerator for 24 hours and then using a tablespoon or small cookie scooper, take a -scoop and form into a ball, then roll in sprinkles of choice, then place in mini-cupcake liner. Put on a cookie sheet and pop back in the freezer for 15 minutes, then remove to store in an airtight container, separating rows with parchment paper. Note that this method requires storing in the freezer as the rumballs will eventually soften at room temperature. These are like balls of rum held together by chocolate and hope. Delicious!
2. OPTION 2 is to scoop the filling into tiny pre-baked (and cooled) tart shells, decorating as desired, then set in the freezer for 15 minutes, then remove to store in an airtight container, separating rows with parchment paper. Note that this method requires storing in the freezer, as the rumball mix will eventually soften at room temperature. Like wee pies of rum and chocolate.
3. OPTION 3 is the style I did this year. I obtained a silicone chocolate truffle mold and used melting wafers to coat the inside of each ball (letting excess drip into a large bowl for reuse). Set in the fridge for 10 minutes to harden. You don’t want to have the rumball mix hard, so use it immediately after mixing (or if using the next day or two, pop into the microwave for about 30 seconds to get it “soupy,” so to speak). Put the mix into a piping bag, trim off the tip, and pipe into the molds. Very gently tap or wiggle the molds to flatten the mixture. Set in the fridge for 30 minutes to set. Remove and use more melted wafers (I like to put them in a small sandwich bag at this point, as a wee piping bag) to put the bottom sealing layer on. Again, gently tap or wiggle the molds to flatten the chocolate. Set in the fridge for 15 minutes. When you remove from the fridge, decorate as desired. Put into an airtight container, with rows separated by parchment paper. Store in a cool, dark, dry place (not the fridge). They will keep about 3 months this way. As of 2021, this is my favorite method and I found it made for a beautiful presentation. Also, it frees up freezer space for other goodies.

Print

Rumballs

Ingredients

• 1/2 c butter
• 1/2 c icing sugar
• 3/4 c chocolate chips semi-sweet
• 2 eggs beaten
• pinch of salt
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon cloves
• 1 teaspoon of allspice
• 1/2 c of dark or spiced rum
• 2 1/2 c oreo cookie crumbs or chocolate thins

Instructions

• In a large bowl, mix the the crumbs, spices, and salt.
• In a double boiler, melt the butter.
• Add icing sugar and whisk until combined.
• Add chocolate chips, let melt, whisk until combined.
• Add rum and whisk to combine.
• Remove from heat.
• Add to the crumb mixture, mixing well.
• In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs and then add to the crumb mixture.
• At this point, it is up to you which method you would like to use. Please see Options 1 to 3 in the body of the posting.

Notes

GINGERBREAD RUMBALLS:

For the gingerbread rumballs I substituted: The oreo crumbs with 2 1/2 c of thin ginger wafers ground small in a food processor and the chocolate chips with butterscotch chips.

NOTE: I found that they made for a nicer texture than the superfine oreo crumbs. It set quicker and didn’t melt as fast in the hands when rolling.