Whiskey Cocoa Balls

Last year I helped my best friend in San Diego make rum balls for Christmas. I never thought I'd like them, maybe because I had tried them when I was a kid and hated the taste of alcohol back then. But last year, they were positively heavenly and I ate way too many.

This year I decided since they were relatively easy to make that I could make them with the kids I've been baking with all week and give them out as Christmas gifts. Instead, it was my best friend here in Lima and I spending a long time figuring out the best way to grind the cookies in her blender and then rolling the balls for another long time, making up stupid stories about our guys and laughing way too much.

Apparently, it doesn't matter where I am anywhere in the world--Virginia, North Carolina, Maryland, California, Germany, France, Israel or Peru--the scenario is the same: two best friends with relationships on our minds having a blast making stuff together. (Or Barbies, as the case was when I lived in Israel. That still counts though because it was about Barbie and Ken. See, it doesn't matter, we're the same if we're 8 or 35.)

My heart sings with joy and love.

Of course, this being Peru, the ingredients had to adjusted for what I can easily find, which meant that rum balls turned to what liquor my friend had on hand. So here goes the Peruvian version of Whiskey Cocoa Balls!


Whiskey Cocoa Balls
Based on an About.com recipe

Ingredients

• (4) 147g packages vanilla crackers (I used Field galletas dulces de vainilla)
• 1 cup confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)
• 1 cup cocoa powder
• 1-1/2 tablespoons light corn syrup (glucosa)
• 1/4 cup whiskey (or your preference of liquor, I bet Grand Marnier would be so tasty)
• Powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and dried grated coconut for rolling (also, a ground nut, like pecan or hazelnut, or even a mild spice like cinnamon would be great for rolling)

Directions

1. Blend the cookies in a food processor or blender and empty into a large bowl.

2. Mix in the sugar, cocoa, corn syrup, and whiskey very thoroughly. Add more whiskey or corn syrup as needed to make the dough malleable for shaping into balls without crumbling.

3. Shape the mixture into balls the size of a quarter and roll in powdered sugar, cocoa, or coconut. (You could roll some balls half in sugar and half in cocoa or whatever combination you prefer.) 
4. Keep in an airtight container in a cool place, or freeze on a baking sheet until each is firm and store in tightly sealed plastic bags.

Makes 2 to 3 dozen