I found this recipe for Dairy Free and Gluten-Free Rum Balls in the October 2014 issue of Gluten-Free & More* magazine. I must say, it’s quite wonderful! Not only do the gluten-free rum balls taste great, but also they bring back fond memories of enjoying rum balls growing up (my aunt would make them all the time). On top of that, it made for a fantastic baking project for my kids.
OK, let’s talk about how much fun these gluten-free rum balls are to make. I enlisted my kids to help me make them. It almost felt like we were doing a craft project, crumbling up cookies and rolling and shaping the “dough” with our hands. It was so much fun and messy, yet we ended up with a beautiful and tasty dessert to serve that night.
While all the ingredients in these gluten-free rum balls are naturally gluten-free, you’ll want to make sure you get the right gluten-free cookies to crush. The recipe recommends gluten-free shortbread cookies like these from Pamela’s*, and these work great, but you can also use gluten-free vanilla wafers like these from Kinnikinnik*. My aunt uses vanilla wafers – her rum balls bring back so many tasty and fun memories!
Another note on the ingredients. For the powdered sugar, look for organic brands. Powdered sugar is notoriously made with cornstarch, and most cornstarch in our county is made with genetically modified corn. This powdered sugar from Wholesome* is organic and is made with tapioca starch instead of cornstarch. It made the perfect topping to my gluten-free rum ball dessert!
When you review my recipe below, please note I made a few modifications to the original gluten-free rum ball recipe as seen in Gluten-Free & More magazine. The original recipe is online,* so feel free to reference it too and feel free to make it your own. Have fun making them with your own flair and style!
I served these awesome gluten-free rum balls at our New Year’s Eve party – I thought it looked like an elegant dessert and guess what, it did!
I’d like to make an extra plea for you to become a subscriber to Gluten Free & More! The gluten-free magazine always offers up wonderful recipes to experiment with and when you subscribe, you support this publication and keep it going! It also makes the perfect holiday gift for the gluten-free person in your life! You can use my affiliate link to place your order*. It’s easy to do and only costs a few dollars an issue ($23 for the entire year – worth every penny!)
In the meantime, please enjoy this fun gluten-free rum ball recipe! Cheers to a Happy New Year ahead!
Gluten-Free Rum Balls
January 8, 2015
Involve your kids when making these gluten-free rum balls. They will have so much fun!
- Yields: 16 balls
Ingredients
1 cup dairy-free semisweet chocolate chips (or regular semisweet chocolate chips if you're not dairy-free)
½ cup rum, orange juice or ⅓ cup orange juice and 2½ tablespoons orange liqueur, such as Grand Marnier
2¼ cups crushed gluten-free shortbread cookies (about 11/4 boxes) or gluten-free vanilla wafers
¼ cup finely chopped walnuts optional (If omitting the walnuts, increase the cookie crumbs to 2½ cups)
Directions
In a medium microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate in microwave on medium setting 1 minute, repeating in 20-second increments until most of the pieces are melted.
Stir in sugar and honey. Mixture may be lumpy. Add rum and stir. Add cookie crumbs and nuts, if using, and mix well.
Chill mixture 1 hour or until it’s hard enough to form into small balls.
Roll balls in confectioners’ sugar. Then set them in muffin papers and place on a serving dish to serve.
May be stored in a covered container in a cool location for up to a week.
Each gluten-free rum ball contains 98 calories, 4g total fat, 2g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 3mg cholesterol, 10mg sodium, 12g carbohydrate, 1g fiber, 10g sugars, 1g protein, 7 Est GL
*Denotes affiliate link.