The yummiest part of a Pecan Pie with a little kick! I made these for Thanksgiving and several holiday parties. They were a huge hit with all. Especially, for my healthy “portion controlled” friends! They liked the fact that they could have one pie ball instead of being served one slice of pie and only eating a small portion of it. A lot of people have asked about a non-alcoholic version: try almond extract if you do not like the taste of alcohol. You can also use a rum non-alcohol flavoring. Add a little water to equal liquid amount. Vanilla wafers can be subbed for graham crackers.
-For everyone confused about the alcohol and measuring the substitutions, I just made these and they are AMAZING! it calls for 1/4 C of rum, which is 4 T. I divided the dough with dry ingredients, vanilla and syrup added. 3/4 went to one bowl, 1/4 to another. Then I put 3 T of rum in the large bowl (3/4 of the required liquid), mixed it and formed the balls to freeze. I put 4-5 drops of Rum flavor combined with enough water to make 1 T total liquid, and added it to the small bowl (1/4 of the required liquid). Then, just to make it simple, i dipped the non-alcoholic ones in white bark and the rum ones in chocolate bark so we could tell them apart. I dropped a little course salt on some of them, and the plate is beautiful! Sadly, one of them didn’t fit on the plate, so I ate it. Oh ya. Perfection!
-This was surprisingly easy and fun to make, and the flavor is OUT OF THIS WORLD! Plus, I had enough left over after making both rum filled and non-alcoholic versions to make some almond bark and mint bark. Be careful not to make the balls too big, and chop the nuts very fine so it will mix up well. The hint to put water on your hands is very helpful. incredible recipe! A real keeper.
-These are incredibly delicious and so easy to make. I have a couple of suggestions: After mixing all the ingredients, set aside for about half an hour to let the crumbs absorb the liquids and make the mix stick together better. I skipped the chocolate dip and simply dusted them in confectioner’s sugar with a bit of cocoa mixed in. Best hint: use food prep gloves to roll the balls. No sticking!
Serves: 24 balls
Ingredients
2 1/2 c pecans, toasted and chopped
1 c graham crackers, crushed (vanilla wafers, Oreos can be subbed if you do not like graham crackers)
1 c brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 tsp salt (if you can not handle the sodium, don’t use it!)
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1/4 c bourbon, brandy or spiced rum. non alcoholic version: use almond extract, rum extract, or any other that may suit your taste. add a little water/juice to equal the liquid amount.
1 tsp vanilla
7 oz dark chocolate bark. If you prefer white chocolate…go for it!
1 tsp coarse sea salt (optional)
Directions
1. Combine first four ingredients in large bowl.
2. Add maple syrup, bourbon, and vanilla.
3. Use your hands to make sure all the ingredients are mixed thoroughly. Almond extract can be subbed for non-alcohol version… add water to equal liquid amount. You can also try non-alcohol rum flavoring.
4. Form balls by scooping a tablespoon size amount of mixture.
5. Roll in hands to form balls.
6. Place balls on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Place cookie sheet in the freezer for 2 hrs. Tip: After all balls are made, roll balls again with slightly water damped hands. This will make balls smooth before dipping in chocolate.
7. Melt chocolate bark in a double boiler or microwave per directions on package.
8. Dip frozen balls into chocolate.
Pecan Pie Balls
9. Then place on the parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
10. Optional: Sprinkle a few grains of coarse sea salt on balls before the chocolate sets.
11. These freeze well. Take out of the freezer and let sit for 15 minutes. They are also good frozen!
Last Step: Don’t forget to share!