food hits and misses

More festive food - this time without any baking. I'm not sure when, or even if, rum balls became Christmas food, but they've always been something that's only eaten by my family over the festive season. Mum's recipe was always a very standard chocolate rum ball, sometimes replaced by an apricot and coconut white rum ball. I decided to try something a little bit different this year, and added cherries to make a cherry ripe rum ball.



If you have a food processor, this recipe couldn't be any easier. If you don't, it's still a simple recipe, but will involve a little more effort.

Incidentally, as this recipe is made with condensed milk, the second day of Christmas probably isn't the best time to make it unless you plan on making more closer to the day. I love them so whipped them up to take visiting. I reckon there'll be another batch on Christmas Eve.

Choc cherry rum balls

2 x 250g packets Chocolate Ripple biscuits
3 tbspn cocoa
1 cup desiccated coconut
395g can sweetened condensed milk
1 tspn rum essence
200g glace cherries
Extra coconut, cocoa or chocolate sprinkles for coating

Method

Crush the biscuits to a fine crumb. Add the cocoa and coconut and stir to combine. Finally add the condensed milk, rum essence and finely chopped cherries. Refrigerate for around an hour to firm up a little. Roll teaspoon sized amounts of the mixture into little balls, then roll in coating. Place back in refrigerator for at least two hours, preferably overnight.