Bourbon Balls, Perfect for a sweet gift.

These crunchy bourbon balls are the perfect thing to make for any sweet occasion.

I’ve been thinking about making these for a while now. I originally was going to make some bourbon balls for Christmas, but I never got around to them. Then a couple of weeks ago, I made this fantastic Nutty Espresso Martini. I used some of this Black walnut liquor I have around in it, and I had forgotten how much I loved that bottle of goodness. I decided to make a batch of these babies to see what it would be like in a traditional bourbon ball. The liquor is made from bourbon, after all.

I am aware that the distillery, Whispering Pines that make this black walnut liqueur, is gone now. And most of you will not have a bottle of their walnut liqueur sitting around. Though I do know some friends in Colorado that I spied a bottle on their bar cart sitting around needing to be made into a batch of these wonderful bourbon balls. There are a bunch of nut liqueurs out there, and using a good bourbon (the traditional in bourbon balls!) is a great way to use this recipe. But I wanted to include using the black walnut liqueur in this recipe. There are several other walnut liqueurs out there, including one called Nero and one called Sidetrack that you can find. I am betting using Frangelico or Amaretto as all or part of the bourbon would also work.

I love playing with traditional recipes and making something new. I decided since it is Valentine’s Day, I would try using colored sprinkles instead of the classic powdered sugar and cocoa coating. I love the added crunch the sprinkles give to this decadent treat. Bourbon balls are traditionally made with pecans. But you could also use different nuts, such as walnuts almonds or hazelnuts. I’d love to know what you might come up with. The sprinkles I used can be found on Amazon if you are looking for them and can’t find them at your local store.

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Bourbon Balls

Prep Time

20 mins

 

Delicious confections of cookie crumbs, nuts, and bourbon, or walnut liquor. Coated in crunchy sprinkles. Perfect for any sweet occasion. These are very easy and quick to make.

Servings: 36 balls

Ingredients

• 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
• 2 cup vanilla wafers
• ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ¼ cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup or golden syrup
• 1/4 cup bourbon or black walnut bourbon liquor

Coating

• ½ cup powdered sugar
• ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

or

• ½ cup red and white sprinkles or any color for the season.

Instructions

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or Silpat set aside.
2. Add 1/4 cup cocoa powder and 1/4 cup powdered sugar, or the ½ cup sprinkles to a small bowl, set aside.
3. In a food processor, add vanilla wafers and crush until completely crumbled.
4. Add the pecans and process until finely and evenly chopped. You can process until very fine if you want no crunch of the pecans. But I like a bit of texture, so I leave them with visible but even small pieces.
5. Transfer crumbled pecan wafer mixture to a large bowl. Add 1/4 cup cocoa powder and 1/4 cup powdered sugar, then use a spoon to mix together until cocoa and wafer mixture are thoroughly combined. It’s ok if there are bits of powdered sugar visible, they will dissolve into the bourbon balls with the bourbon.
6. Mix in the light corn syrup (or golden syrup) and the bourbon and stir to combine. If needed, you can use your hands to knead the dough to finish mixing.
7. Using a 1 teaspoon cookie scoop or a spoon, scoop out dough and roll it between your hands to form a 1-inch ball. Drop the ball in the small bowl of cocoa sugar mixture or sprinkles and roll to coat. Place finished candy ball on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat this step until all dough has been used.

8. Place the baking sheet in the fridge so the bourbon balls can set. Or in the freezer.

9. For best results, keep candies refrigerated until ready to serve. You can reroll them in powdered sugar just before serving if the balls have absorbed the coating. But do not reroll in powdered sugar if using the sprinkles.