George Clooney and Rum Balls

My mother loved George Clooney almost as much as she loved rum balls.

Being a pragmatic person, Mimi knew the odds of meeting George were slim. Rum balls on the other hand were at least seasonally accessible.

The most labor intensive part of this recipe is rolling the rum balls. Be sure to make them a few days before you plan to serve them so they can age. The older rum balls get, the better they taste.

This recipe only calls for 2 Tablespoons of cocoa. I have seen other recipes that call for 1 Cup of cocoa, but they are too chocolately for me.

If you are making a double batch, use 2 12oz. boxes of Vanilla Wafers.

You could mix the vanilla wafers the day before, cover with plastic wrap overnight, and roll the rum balls in powdered sugar the next day.

YIELD: Not as many as you'd like.

Rum balls -- invite a friend to roll them out with you, especially if you are making a double batch

Crush the vanilla wafers in a food processor or Kitchen Aide mixer. If you don’t have a food processor, in batches, put the vanilla wafers in a zipped plastic bag and crush them rolling a rolling pin back and forth over the contents of the bag (use freezer bags if you have them).

Use a melon scoop to scoop out the rum ball dough.. it will help keep you from making the rum balls too large.

When you have finished rolling out your cookies, be sure to store the rum balls properly so they don't dry out.

Substitutions

Substitute any dry cookie for the vanilla wafers including graham crackers or shortbread cookies. Better yet, if you are ambitious, try baking vanilla wafers from scratch. 

To make non-alcoholic rum balls, substitute vanilla extract, apple or orange juice for the rum.

Instead of sprinkling confectioner’s sugar on your entire batch of rum balls, roll half the dough in pulverized pecans or walnuts. Or roll them in crystallized sugar, ideally without any food coloring since some people are allergic to artificial food coloring.

Vegan Rum Balls
For an alternative to the traditional rum ball recipe here's a recipe for Vegan Rum Balls with cashews, raisins and Medjool dates. Yum!

Cherry Cordial Rum Balls
You could also make Chocolate Cherry Cordial rumballs.