Rum Ball Ruminations

My father has always been a rum ball enthusiast. When I was younger we would make biweekly pilgrimages to the Blacksmith House, the only bakery (at least to our knowledge) that made rum balls within a one hundred mile radius. I loved eating those dainty, moist treats sitting next to my father on our special park bench. Our tradition, however, only lasted a few years. By the time I reached third grade, the Blacksmith House had closed.

My father loved the rum balls from the Blacksmith House, but for him, nothing could compare to the rum balls that we ate in Quebec City. I don't remember the name or location of the bakery in Quebec City, but I do have fond recollections of their dense, chocolaty confections. Unlike our own local bakery, this particular bakery made very large rum balls, the size of my five year old fists. The pastries only contained a hint of rum and chunks of toasted walnuts. To this day my father will declare the Quebecois rum ball to be the most delicious in their category.

However, it has been many years since our family has made a journey to Quebec and my father has gone rum ball-less for many years. We've tried a few recipes, but we could never get the texture quite right (we realized that the bakeries used chocolate cake as a base, not cookie crumbs or wafers).

This Christmas, I decided to give my father the gift of rum balls. I looked far and wide for a recipe, and ended up creating my own. He claims that they were just as he remembers.

The measurements aren't exact here, so feel free to play around till you get the consistency and flavoring that you like.

Rum Balls

1 9x12 inch chocolate sheet cake (or the equivalent)

1/2 - 3/4 cup dark rum

2/3 cup liquid from a jar of apricot preserves

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts(optional)

chocolate sprinkles or chopped walnuts (for rolling the rum balls)

First, break the cake with your hands until it becomes a mountain of crumbs. Meanwhile, heat the cream in a sauce pan until it is just about to reach its boiling point. Add the rum and preserve liquid to the cake crumbs. Taste the mixture and add more rum or preserve liquid according to your taste. When the cream is warm, pour it over the chocolate chips and stir till the chocolate is melted. Add the chocolate mixture a little bit at a time to your cake crumbs (I barely used 1/4 of it, but if you are a chocolate fan, feel free to add more). If you are adding walnuts, do so at this point.

After the chocolate addition, the crumbs should be completely moistened, with a somewhat gooey texture. Taste the goo and adjust the flavors accordingly. Grab a a small handful of the mixture (it really depends on how large you want your rum balls to be) and roll it into a ball. Then roll the ball in the sprinkles or chopped walnuts. Place finished rum balls on a plate and refrigerate until ready to serve.

May your new year be as sensational as these rum balls!