Holiday Challenge Day 1 - Ho Ho Ho and a Ball of Rum

The holidays are all about spreading warmth and good cheer.   For you and yours that may mean throwing a yule log on the fire, crooning Christmas carols, or catching up on classic holiday movies surrounded by the ones you love.  For me, it means whipping up a batch of rum balls.  Because really, after you've had a couple, who doesn't feel the warmth and good cheer begin to spread?!

This recipe is from Martha Stewart's Cookies, a virtual treasure trove of ideas for anyone looking for inspiration for the holidays and beyond.  Unlike most rum balls that are made with crushed vanilla wafers, ground nuts, or both, these are made with homemade brownies. And who could resist that?  Brownies AND booze in the same recipe! 

I will readily admit that I envisioned myself snacking on a few spare brownie bits while mixing and rolling the rum balls.  And why not?  There's nothing I love more than a rich, thick, chocolatey brownie.  So good!  So tasty!  But sadly, the only thing I was tasting when that pan of brownies came out of the oven was disappointment.  Bitter disappointment.  Because, instead of producing ooey gooey chocolatey goodness, I ended up with a wafer-thin concoction that pulsed and sizzled in the pan like it was possessed.  I am not joking, people!  It sizzled (from all the butter) and pulsed (from what, I do not know).  Nevertheless, I pulled it from the oven and let it cool.  The sizzling and pulsing ceased.  And although it didn't look like a brownie or taste like a brownie, the end result was chocolatey, made perfect crumbs, and when mixed with Kahlua and rum, made some pretty tasty booze-filled balls of joy!

Rum Balls
Makes 4 dozen

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
3 large eggs
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark rum (I used Kahlua in 1/2 the batch)
Coarse sanding sugar, for rolling
Vegetable oil cooking spray

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Coat a 12 x 17 inch rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.
2.  Melt butter and chocolate in a small heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally. Note:  I melted this in the microwave.
3.  Whisk together eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl.  Stir in chocolate mixture, then fold in flour.  Pour batter into prepared baking sheet.  Spread evenly with a rubber spatula.  Bake until top is shiny and a cake tester inserted into center comes out with some crumbs attached, about 10 minutes.  Let cook completely on a wire rack.
4.  Break up brownie into small pieces; transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.  With machine on low, pour in rum, and mix until crumbs start to come together to form a ball.
5.  Shape into 1-inch balls and roll in sanding sugar to coat.  Transfer to a baking sheet; refrigerate, uncovered, until cold, about 2 hours.  Serve chilled or at room temperature.  Rum balls can be refrigerated in an airtight container up to 1 week.