November "Drink" of the Month - Bourbon Balls

Is it possible to ever tire of drinking excellently crafted cocktails? While it would be easy to overdo it in one evening... I don't think I would ever turn down an excellent drink if offered one. However, if you should ever tire of drinking fine cocktails and spirits, the good news is that you can also eat fine spirits! There are lots of options: tiramisu, whiskey glazed anything, rum cake, etc. One of my favorites, however, are Kentucky Bourbon Balls - bourbon infused fudge coated with chocolate and usually topped with a pecan half.

Since Thanksgiving is the time for cooking, baking, and an overdose of deserts, we decided to make bourbon balls this past weekend. Because I'm a prude, and dislike chocolate (I know, I'm the worst), we coated our bourbon balls with white chocolate instead of milk chocolate. We followed a recipe, but worked mostly with found objects - so we were a little light on chopped nuts. The result was a fudge that was a little runny, which made coating the fudge balls with chocolate quite difficult. I've included a picture of my one perfect ball, but the rest were a mess. While they were not the most visually appealing, they were delicious... and boozy as heck. Should you make your own bourbon balls, make sure not to skimp on the nuts, and remember that the freezer is your best friend. Keeping bourbon balls out at room temperature will lead to a runny mess, so your finished product should remain in the fridge/freezer.

Below is the recipe for bourbon balls. I've combined the Imbibe magazine recipe that we used with some helpful insight from the Food Network recipe. Since this is my recipe, I'm going to use white chocolate, but feel free to sub for semi-sweet/milk chocolate chips instead. Here is my recipe for bourbon balls:

Finely chop 3/4 to 1 cups of walnuts. Place in a mason jar, and cover with 5 tbsp of bourbon. Allow

the nuts to soak in bourbon overnight.

The following day, combine the following in a mixing bowl:

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

3/4-1 cups bourbon-soaked chopped walnuts

1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix using a hand-mixer until smooth and elements are fully combined. Place in refrigerator and allow to cool for 1-2 hours.

Form fudge mix into small balls (between 1/2-3/4" in diameter), place balls on wax-paper lined cookies sheet. Freeze balls for 1-2 hours.

Melt one package of (white) chocolate chips in double boiler or similar. Dip balls into melted chocolate using a toothpick. Spin to coat. Place coated balls back on wax paper, cover toothpick hole with pecan half. Return to freezer until ready to serve.

 

I hope you enjoy your bourbon balls!

October Drink of the Month - Fallen Patriot

This month's drink is not an original, but rather came across my desk from Imbibe Magazine, by way of the Teardrop Lounge in Portland, Oregon. While it may not be one of my originals, it is what I drank almost exclusively during the month of October, so it seems worthy of inclusion into the blog roll. As an additional bonus, this is one of the few bourbon cocktails that Ann will drink, so it is a major winner in my book.

According to Imbibe, the inspiration for this drink is a classic - the Lion's Tail (bourbon, allspice dram, lime juice, gomme syrup, and bitters). I can see the inspiration, but the Fallen Patriot feels to me more like a winter-y mint julep with a hint of the tropics. Teardrop Lounge introduces a complex-flavored cordial for sweetness: Licor 43 (sometimes called Cuarenta y Tres). Licor 43 is most often used to make Key Lime flavored cocktails because of its vanilla body and lime finish. It plays nicely with the baking spice flavors found in allspice dram. The resulting sweet and spicy combo is mixed with bourbon, lime and fresh mint to make the Fallen Patriot. The result is a drink with just as much sweetness and mint-y finish as a mint julep, but with some fun additions! Fresh citrus from the lime, vanilla warmth from the Licor 43, and cinnamon/nutmeg/clove from the allspice dram. It's a great drink for a fall day spent watching ND football!

Sadly, I did not capture any pictures this month, but I do have the recipe for the Fallen Patriot to share:

In a mixing glass, combine the following ingredients:
2 oz bourbon (I like a wheated bourbon for this)*
0.75 oz Licor 34
0.75 oz lime juice
0.25 oz allspice dram
10 mint leaves

Shake over ice for 12-15 seconds until the mint is well pulverized. Double strain into a coupe glass to remover any mint particles. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

*Larceny is a good mid-range wheated bourbon. I use Buggy Whip Wheat Whiskey from Journeyman Distillery, which is excellent.

I hope you enjoy your Fallen Patriot!