Cocoa Rum Balls

 
from A Coalcracker In The Kitchen

The recipe, and instructions, below are all from a post from A CoalCracker In the Kitchen, Lori Fogg. After her death, her blog was removed from the internet. This is a saved version of her Recipe & Notes.

Ingredients

• 1 (12 ounce) package vanilla wafers, crushed
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped, toasted walnuts or pecans
  
• 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1/2 cup light rum (or bourbon)
• 3 Tablespoons light corn syrup
• Finely grated coconut, cocoa powder or confectioners sugar for rolling, as needed.

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine vanilla wafer crumbs, chopped nuts, 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, and cocoa. Mix in rum and corn syrup. Roll dough into 1 inch balls; roll in coconut, cocoa or confectioners’ sugar.
2. Store rum balls in an airtight container for 5 to 7 days to develop flavor. Roll again in confectioners’ sugar before serving, if using.

More from Lori:

These cocoa rum balls are best if made days ahead of serving; I let them mature at least one week so they develope a rich flavor. I enjoy them rolled in very finely grated coconut, but they are wonderful rolled in Cocoa, nuts, or confectioners sugar. If rolling them in confectioners sugar, re-roll them when ready to serve. Store in an airtight container or in a zip-top bag.

These make wonderful, affordable holiday or hostess gifts . Simply place each cocoa rum ball in a small paper candy cup, then in a candy window box.

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Index Of Coalcracker Recipes on This Blog
https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2023/12/a-coalcraker-in-kitchen.html

From Lori's now archived blog:
What is a “Coalcracker” and what the heck are you doing in the kitchen?
“Coalcracker“: Affectionate term for a resident of Northeastern Pennsylvania, but particularly of the Anthracite (coal) Region (Scranton to the Lehigh Valley to Schuylkill County).

With the expansion of the mining and railroad industries. English, Welsh, Irish and German (the “Dutch” (Deutsch) in Pennsylvania Dutch) immigrants formed a large portion of the population, followed by Polish, Slovak, Ruthenian, Ukrainian, Hungarian, Italian, Russian and Lithuanian immigrants.

The influence of these immigrant populations is still strongly felt in the region, with various towns possessing pronounced ethnic characters and cuisine. Throw in some influence from the Pennsylvania Dutch of the Schuylkill County and Lehigh Valley areas and you have a sampling of Coal Region comfort foods!

The Coal Region is a historically important Anthracite (“hard coal”) coal-mining area in Northeastern Pennsylvania in the central Appalachian Mountains, comprising Lackawanna, Luzerne, Columbia, Carbon, Schuylkill, Northumberland, and the extreme northeast corner of Dauphin counties.