Kentucky Bourbon Balls Recipe

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Bourbon balls seem like a folk recipe that spontaneously sprang to life whenever people had leftover cookie crumbs and booze. Recipe developer Jessica Morone calls this confection "really delicious," adding that bourbon balls are "great for sharing at parties, or even giving as gifts." Another nice thing about this cookie, cake-like dessert is that, as Morone points out, "They are also super easy to make, since you don't have to bake them." 

It's worth noting, however, that these boozy bourbon balls should not be served to kids. As Morone explains, "Since these aren't baked, the alcohol doesn't bake off, so these should only be served to adults." Not all adults drink, though, plus it can be tough keeping the kids out of anything chocolate-flavored. If this is a concern, you could always make this dessert with a non-alcoholic bourbon alternative. 

For the bourbon balls, you'll need bourbon of some sort, unsurprisingly. You'll also need chopped pecans and graham cracker crumbs to make up the bulk of the balls, along with Dutch-process cocoa powder, confectioners' sugar, light corn syrup, and maple syrup. And, though it is optional, you may want some granulated sugar on hand to roll the bourbon balls in before serving.

Set the oven to 325 F. While it's preheating, chop the pecans if necessary, then spread the nuts out over a sheet pan. Once the oven's hot enough, cook the nuts for 12 to 15 minutes, but keep a close eye on them. You want them lightly toasted, but nuts can burn before you know it.

When the pecans are toasted, mix them in a bowl with the bourbon. Use plastic wrap to cover the container, then let them sit, and macerate for 2 to 3 hours. At the end of this time period, drain the nuts, but reserve the bourbon. 

Mix the nuts with the graham cracker crumbs, along with ¼ cup each of cocoa powder and confectioners' sugar. Now, stir the bourbon back in to the nut mixture, along with the maple and corn syrup. 

Roll the dough into balls about ¾-inch in diameter, or a heaping tablespoon's worth. If you're not great at estimating sizes, just know that you should get about 30 bourbon balls out of this recipe. The most important thing to be aware of, however, is that with bourbon balls, size does not matter at all. As they are not being cooked, you can have small ones, and large ones with no need to worry.

Mix the rest of the cocoa powder and confectioners' sugar together, and roll the bourbon balls in this mixture. If you want to add a little sparkle, you can optionally roll the balls in some granulated sugar. Once the balls are coated, stick them in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes before you eat them.

Morone says the bourbon balls should last for a while in the refrigerator, but notes that "After 2 weeks, they will just be stale, and will not taste very good." If you don't think you'll be able to eat an entire batch in that amount of time, she does say that they can always be frozen.

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Though most bourbon ball recipes follow a pretty straightforward formula, that doesn't mean that you can't customize these boozy treats to make them your own. For starters, if you aren't too keen on pecans, you can easily swap them out for a different type of nut. "Pecans are traditionally used in bourbon balls, but if you don't like pecans you can substitute any other finely chopped nut that you prefer," Morone says, so peanuts, walnuts, or almonds are all viable options here. Alternatively, you can make these bourbon balls nut-free entirely by omitting the pecans entirely and adding an extra cup of graham crackers crumbs to the mix.

Speaking of graham crackers, you can also swap those out, though Morone does highlight the fact that their flavor pairs particularly well with bourbon. Other options include vanilla or chocolate wafers, but just make sure to crush them down into crumbs akin to graham cracker crumbs.

Finally, while this recipe calls for an optional granulated sugar coating, there are other, more decorative approaches you could take. To double-down on the chocolate, consider drizzling melted chocolate over the bourbon balls, or add even more nuttiness with extra chopped pecans. 

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