Sailor Jerry Rum Balls

I kicked today in the butt! 

Woke up at 5am. Showered. Watched last nights shows on hulu while cuddling with Sterling. "Exercised". Made brownies from scratch (which you'll soon find out turned into rum balls...yum!). Got my work face on & headed in for a short 3 hour sift. Conquered the day before Thanksgiving grocery store run.Drove on home. Took Sterling for a long walk. Made an awesome lunch. Finished making rum balls. Cleaned the house. Took some pics of my rum balls (haha) before I inhaled them all. Watched Moonrise Kingdom. Now, here I am telling you about it.

Today was good & it's only the beginning of my four day weekend. Hooray for the holidays! Hooray for Thanksgiving!! I can't wait to see my family tomorrow & eat like... well like I do everyday...like nobody's business! Except tomorrow I won't be the only one going for round 3 and then discreetly unbuttoning my jeans to make room for dessert. Tomorrow is a free pass for everyone to be disgusting. Enjoy it, friends! Give thanks!

And now for some exciting news!! I recently celebrated my 28th birthday on the 10th. It was a great bday weekend full of gifts, food, & shopping. I'm a lucky girl! 

One of the highlights from the weekend was finally getting...

My new tattoo!!!

Is it creepy that I like how black my eyes look in this pic?

If you can't tell, it's a whisk with flowers around it. I've been wanting this for years! I'm so happy with it & I love the way it pokes out of my short sleeve tees... eek!! I have a few others, but this is by far my favorite!

So in honor of my new tat & the holidays, I present to you...

Sailor Jerry Rum Balls!

It's pretty easy to win people over with alcohol infused sweets. These are no different. Delicious little bites of chocolate, sugar, & a hint of rum. I adapted the recipe from a holiday Martha Stewart magazine I have. I just made them vegan. I think I'll be adding these to my annual Christmas cookie boxes this year. 

I seriously love the holidays. It's like bake-palooza for me. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sailor Jerry Rum Balls

Recipe adapted from Ms. Stewart

1 stick earth balance (or any vegan butter sub)

6 ounces vegan semisweet chocolate

1/2 cup prune puree

2 tbsp arrowroot 

2 tbsp water

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp course salt

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup rum

sugar, coconut, or whatever you want for rolling.

Preheat oven to 350. Prepare a 12-by-17 rimmed baking sheet. Melt butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl over simmer water. Set aside. 

Whisk the 2 tbsp of arrowroot with the 2 tbsp of water. Mix with the prune puree, brown sugar, pecans, vanilla, & salt. Stir in the butter/chocolate mixture. Fold in flour. Pour the batter into the prepared baking sheet & bake for about 15 minutes, when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with some crumbs attached. Let cool completely. 

Break brownie up into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low and add rum. Mix until a ball forms.

Shape into 1" balls and roll in sugar or coconut or whatever your heart desires. Transfer to a baking sheet & refrigerate, uncovered, for 2 hours. Serve chilled or at room temp.

Enjoy!!