Toast with rum balls!

Kandla Nijhowne

Festive times are here again! There’s laughter, merriment, music and food at every market, mall or wedding venue. But the temperature has plummeted, so the situation isn’t conducive to labouring in the kitchen too much. At such times, I pull out of my hat such festive quickies as Rum Balls. These dense truffle-like morsels are perfect for a party. They don’t require baking and are really quite effortless. They even accommodate leftover scraps of any cake languishing in a tin on the kitchen shelf. Even the ingredients are more co-operative than the weather; you can change them around to suit your preference. If you like Christmas cake but haven’t baked any, I promise you this is a pretty close cousin to it. Festive times imply a hint of alcohol but these fruity, rum-soaked beauties can also be made with orange juice as a substitute.

Fruited Rum Balls

• 1½ finely powdered sugar (or icing sugar)
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• ½ tsp cinnamon powder
• ¼ tsp clove powder
• ½ cup good quality rum
• 2 tbsp corn syrup (or liquid glucose)
• 2½-3 cups crushed biscuits (Digestive) or cake crumbs
• ½ cup chopped raisins
• ¼ cup chopped almonds
• ¼ cup chopped walnuts
•  
• 1 tbsp each chopped glace cherries and grated dried coconut (optional)

Method

• Pour rum in a saucepan, add the raisins and nuts. Warm on low heat, bring to a simmer and let it bubble for 1-2 minutes.
• Cover the pan and keep warm for 30 minutes. We have to let the alcohol permeate into the fruit. (To fast forward the process, I transfer the contents into a small bowl and put it away in a casserole)
• Use a deep, wide basin or bowl, sift together one cup of sugar, the cocoa powder and spice.
• Add the cake crumbs or crushed biscuits; then add the glucose and the rum-soaked fruit.
• Add coconut or glace cherries (if using them). Mix well and chill for an hour or until slightly firm.
• Put the remaining ½ cup of sugar in a flat dish.
• Scoop out portions of the mixture and shape into walnut-sized balls. Roll evenly in the sugar till well-coated.
• Chill and serve as a sweetmeat or serve as a dessert with ice-cream.

Note: A fancy version can be made by dipping the chilled, shaped balls in melted chocolate. Once firm, you can trail lashings of melted white chocolate across them.

You can also dust them with cocoa powder or roll them in coloured sprinkles.

A spoonful of grated orange zest would also work wonders to enhance their flavour.

(Nijhowne is a Chandigarh-based culinary expert)