Rum Balls Recipe
These chocolatey, coconut-coated rum balls contain juicy sultanas. They are best made at least a day before serving to allow them to firm up and allow the flavours to blend.
Makes about 40 rum balls.
1 x 250g packet Nice biscuits
24g (3 tablespoons) cocoa powder
1/2 cup (42g) desiccated coconut
1 x 395g can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (1 teaspoon natural vanilla essence)
1 1/2 tablespoons rum
130g (2/3 cup, lightly packed) sultanas
About 65g (3/4 cup) desiccated coconut, for coating
Place biscuits and cocoa in a food processor or blender and crush biscuits very finely.
If you used a blender, pour the crushed biscuit and cocoa mixture into a large bowl and stir in the remaining ingredients (except the coconut for coating).
If you used a food processor, you can add the 1/2 cup coconut, condensed milk, vanilla and rum to the biscuit crumbs and process until the mixture is well combined. Then add the sultanas and process on very low speed until just combined.
Place mixture in refrigerator or freezer until it is firm enough to roll into balls (about 30 minutes in the refrigerator). If the mixture is too soft, it will be sticky and difficult to roll properly and the rum balls will not hold their shape.
Sprinkle coconut for coating onto a plate or into a flat-bottomed dish. Roll generously heaped teaspoons of mixture into balls, and then roll in coconut. Store, preferably in a single layer, in an airtight container in the refrigerator. © www.exclusivelyfood.com.au
Click here for our Christmas Truffles recipe.
Click here for our Apricot Balls recipe.
posted by Amanda and Debbie at
8:43 AM
55 Comments:
I wonder if 1/2cup of coconut in mixture might help hold shape better. Lovely rich flavour.
Hi Margaret,
These rum balls are quite soft and moist. If you would prefer a firmer consistency, you could add some coconut to the rum ball mixture. Or you could reduce the amount of condensed milk a little.
We used Nestle condensed milk in this recipe - some other brands may have a thinner consistency and produce softer rum balls.
Also, we keep them in the fridge until serving time as they will soften at room temperature.
Thanks for your feedback!
Hi Amanda and Debbie,
I have noticed some rum ball receipes say they can be frozen once rolled, is this receipe suitable to freeze - what do you recommend?
Thanks & Seasons Greetings,
Alison
Hi Alison,
We haven't tried freezing these rum balls, but we don't see any reason why they wouldn't be ok to freeze.
Can you make rum balls without rum?
Yes, you could make this recipe without the rum.
Hi!
How long will they "keep" after making? I am wanting to make some as xmas gifts,,
The label on the condensed milk that we use says that once the can is opened, the condensed milk can be kept in the fridge for up to five days. Because condensed milk is a major ingredient in our rum balls, and the rum balls are not cooked, we aren't sure whether it would be safe to keep them for any longer than five days. If you'd like to make them soon, perhaps you could freeze them.
What can I use instead of Nice Biscuits? They don't sell them where I live and I love this recipe (I used it last year).
Hi Casey,
You could use any type of plain sweet biscuit. You will probably need to adjust the amount of condensed milk if you use a biscuit that is substantially different to an Arnott's Nice biscuit.
Do you have to use cocoa? Because I am making them for a friend and she is sensitive to cocoa.
You could leave the cocoa out, but the rum balls won't have as much flavour. If you omit the cocoa, you will probably need to reduce the amount of condensed milk a little.
Hi
Is it possible to make these rum balls without the sultanas in it? Maybe substitute for a little more biscuit or coconit?????
You could leave the sultanas out or replace them with raisins, glace cherries, chopped marshmallows etc.
Hello,
Can you use rum extract instead of actual rum?
Simone
Another favourite recipe to add to my collection and a huge hit with family and friends over here in Sweden.
Hi Simone,
You could use rum extract instead of rum. If doing so reduces the total amount of liquid in the recipe, your rum balls will have a slightly firmer consistency.
These taste yummy, and are really easy, but deflate really quickly. I used the Nestle condensed milk, but they just got flate after a couple of minutes out of freezer. Any ideas what I can do to make them not go flat?
Hi Gracie,
We serve our rum balls straight from the fridge and the serving bowl is empty before the rum balls have had a chance to warm up and lose their shape! Because both you and Margaret have found the rum balls to be a little too soft, we have amended the recipe to include 1/2 cup desiccated coconut in the mixture. This should allow the rum balls to better hold their shape when removed from the fridge for serving.
I've started substitution some of the plain biscuits for crushed ginger biscuits. The add a lovely perk to the rum balls.
hi who ever can help me,
i need to make rum balls but i have no condensed milk. what else can i use to substitute?
anonymous
Unfortunately, there is no substitute for condensed milk in this recipe.
hi girls!
love your recipe, i searched for almost and hour looking for just a standard rumball recipe, used so many search engines! luckily one came across you recipe!
i'd also like to say that you can substitute the Arnotts biscuits for a plain brand/unmarked brand, without any dire consquences, except of course more money in one's purse!
One would just like to say that you are simply doing a corking job! keep on it!
hello
i heard from a friend how effective this website was but i just couldnt believe it, i had to check it out myself! you girls are doing a marvellous job,
i was wondering if it is possible to get drunk or tispy or have any side effects due to the rum in this recipe? i wish to make these for my children and i have been told that the balls will be lumpy and flat without rum! we dont want lumpy balls, now do we? if the rum does cause drunkeness, could you please reccomend a suitable substitute that is natural, flavouring, preservative, gluten, lactose, phosphate, food acid, vegetable gum and yellow colouring 442 free as i have severe allergies and i fear i may have passes them down to one or more ( i have 8)gorgeous sons.
If we were serving these rum balls to children, we would omit the rum. (Most young children would probably prefer the milder flavour of the rum-free balls anyway.) You could slightly reduce the quantity of dry ingredients to offset the reduced amount of liquid. Otherwise, the rum balls won’t be quite as moist.
These are simply the best rum balls I have ever tasted. A huge hit with the guys at work. The only thing I add is slightly more rum, at the request of a few of the guys. I don't mind them as they are.
i have made these rum balls many times with out the rum of course, and the other day I made them without the sultanas, and they are brilliant, I would advise to have this recipe with no sultanas.
Hi :)
What kind of Cocoa should i use? Unsweetened Baking cocoa? or sweetened such as Cadbury drinking chocolate?
thanks!
We use unsweetened cocoa powder in this recipe.
Hi there,
Cant wait to try this!
Is there any good substitutes for the coconut coating??
Hi Natasha
You could roll the rum balls in crushed nuts or finely grated chocolate.
Sounds good, just wondering though, can any type of rum be used or are you better off using say dark rum?
We like the flavour that dark rum provides, but light rum can be used if preferred.
I'm not one for posting comments, but thought this one was an exception...
Every time I need to find a recipe you guys seem to have come up with the best and easiest ways to impress my friends :-)
This time, Rum ball recipe is a hit and I love reading all the comments for variations, tips and a boost of confidence to try a new recipe when so many before have tried and posted great comments,
Thanks for a great site to bookmark and keep coming back to .....
Do nice biscuits have to be used? Are you able to make these with just condensed milk, cocoa and coconut?
If you omitted the biscuits, you would need to change the other ingredient quantities to avoid ending up with a very wet mixture.
hi there - i have been told that you can use weet bix instead of biscuits - would this work?
We have seen recipes for rum balls that include Weet-Bix. You may be better off using a recipe that specifies Weet-Bix as an ingredient rather than using them as a substitute for the biscuits in this recipe.
Great recipe. Mum used to make these. I used cheap no name biscuits with no adverse effects. I also added 2/3 cup Flaxseed meal (so I don't feel so guilty letting my kids eat them) and an extra 1 teaspoon of vanilla essence (instead of rum). They turned out great and didn't need to be refrigerated before rolling as the mix was a little firmer than usual due to the extra flaxseed.
Hi, can you use Arnott's milk arrowroot biscuits, if so do you need to change the rest of the receipe at all. Also how long do these rum balls keep for.
Thank you
Hi Kim
Please see our above comments dated 11/11/07 and 15/11/07.
Hi there, would you be able to substitute Bailey's Irish Cream instead of Rum
Thanks for this recipe. I used Marie biscuits and replaced the rum with Baileys for a smooth, creamy flavour. The balls turned out beautifully and tasted great- a real Christmas hit!
Hi there,
Made these today and taste delicious. Is it normal for the mixture to be quite firm, like almost difficult to roll firm? I omitted the sultanas and rum, and refrigerated the mix for a little while before making into balls, but when rolling the balls in the coconut, the coconut didn't easily stick to them. It seemed as though they needed to be a little moister and softer for the coconut to stick. Taste and look great now though!
Just knocked up a batch and they taste superb.
Used double the rum but a good quality smooth one (Captain Morgan Spiced Gold). Unfortunately they may have cost me a food processor though, as the mix was pretty dense for the poor little Kenwood. Smoke from an electrical appliance is not usually a good sign...
1 and a Half tablespoons of rum seamed very lean before i rolled em and i could bearly smell it nor taste in the in the mixture. I recommend doubling the rum to 3 Tablespoons for sure!
Hi Kathy
Yes, Baileys Irish Cream could be used in place of the rum.
Hi Claire
Your rum ball mixture would have been firmer due to the omission of the rum.
I made these for Christmas and they were great, very tasty. I found the mixture wasn't firm enough to roll into balls after half an hour in the fridge, so left it for about 2 hours. Thanks for a great recipe!
Hi! I would love rum balls and would love to try to make it on my own. As a first timer, I am being a little paranoid... Do the biscuits have to be crushed really really finely? I do not have a food processor, will it be difficult to stir and combine all the ingredients by hand?
I have tried this recipe with a whole glaced cherry inside and rolled in chocolate sprinkles and it works equally as good.
To the person who asked about crushing the biscuits: We think the rum balls hold their shape better and have a nicer texture when they are made with biscuits that are very finely crushed. Will you be crushing the biscuits by hand? It shouldn't be difficult to combine the ingredients without a food processor.
This recipe is really good but I'm wondering can you make rum balls without biscutis cuz I don't have any?
Do you have cake crumbs, Weet-Bix, or something else that you could use to replace the biscuits?
Hi Amanda,
I wanted to make rum balls and I had never made them before. I got on the net to find your recipe and all I want to say is thank you very much. They turned out perfectly and I used the Nestle Skim Condensed Milk with no problem. I put the mixture in the freezer for 20 mins before rolling them into balls and not a problem with stickiness at all.
10/10
Kind Regards Jacinta
I used Marie biscuits, and soaked my sultanas in rum for about a day. I also put in 4 tbsp of rum! And added a few more cookies to make the mixture firmer.
They are great, except I wish I could stack a whole bunch in one container - having to store in one layer makes for a lot of containers!
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