Maker's Mark Bourbon Balls

In my family, it isn't Christmas until somebody makes a batch of bourbon balls. This recipe, passed down from my Great-Aunt Marie, is the most popular recipe on HerKentucky!

Because the bourbon isn't cooked down, the candy retains the taste of the bourbon used. I think it's pretty important to use a rich wheated bourbon like Maker's Mark to retain the sweetness of the dough. Bourbon balls made with a rye blend bourbon (think Early Times or Old Forester) tend to add a bitter note. The paraffin wax is totally optional — it makes a smoother, shinier shell to the candy. Since this is an old family recipe, I include it, but it really goes back to the days when high-quality baking chocolate wasn’t readily available and the wax was needed to help make the chocolate adhere.

Maker’s Mark Bourbon Balls

This recipe yields between six and seven dozen bourbon balls.

• 1 to 2 cups good bourbon whisky (I use Maker's Mark)

• 1 cup chopped pecans

• 1/2 to 1 cup whole pecan halves (optional)

• 1 two-pound bag of powdered sugar

• 1 stick butter, softened

• 2 bags Ghirardelli semisweet chocolate chips

• paraffin wax

1. Place 1/2 to 1 cup of chopped pecans in shallow bowl. Pour Maker's Mark over nuts, immersing completely. Cover and let soak 12 hours to overnight.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place pecan halves in shallow pan and toast lightly for about ten minutes.

3. Cream butter in stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Combine bourbon-pecan mixture with just enough powdered sugar to form a stiff ball. Refrigerate to let stiffen slightly.

4. Roll dough into small balls.

5. In double-boiler (or a sauce pan placed over a cooker full of boiling water), add a third to a half a bag of semisweet chocolate chips and, if desired, a small shaving of paraffin wax (no more than 1/4 cup). Heat until just smooth. Dip dough balls into the chocolate mixture. The key is to coat them quickly and make small, frequent batches of melted chocolate.

6. Place bourbon balls on wax paper to cool. Top each with a toasted pecan half, if desired. Results are better if you leave them to cool at room temperature rather than in the refrigerator.

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Maker's Mark Bourbon Balls

Maker’s Mark Bourbon Balls are my family’s favorite holiday tradition. I make at least one batch every Christmas season! This recipe was been passed down from my great-aunt Marie. While I’m all for exploring your bourbon palate most of the year, I’m pretty adamant that this must be made with Maker’s Mark! The sweet wheated bourbon is just perfect with the tart semisweet chocolate! Besides, who am I to question a 50 year-old family recipe??

I know the Christmas holiday is a few weeks off, but I wanted to share my Maker’s Mark Bourbon Balls recipe with y’all so you can plan to include it in your holiday dessert plan!

I’ve teamed up with some great Kentucky-based bloggers to share holiday dessert recipes. Just click the photos to read the recipe! I hope y’all enjoy them all!

Ginger Snaps by JCP Eats

Cinnamon French Butter Cream Cookies by Eye See Scarlett

Kentucky Bourbon Ranger Cookies by At Home With Haley

Turtle Thumbprint Cookies by The Motherhood Hustle

Thortons Kentucky Derby Bourbon Ball Donut

Bourbon balls are one of my very favorite Kentucky traditions. They remind me of holidays with my family; my great-aunt Marie always made bourbon balls using the exact same recipe that I use to this day. I always think of bourbon balls as a Christmas treat, or something to savor at the end of a bourbon distillery tour. I only recently learned that a lot of people make bourbon balls as a Derby treat as well.  This morning, I picked up a bourbon ball donut from Thorntons' new #ThorntonsBourbonKitchen line, and it was fabulous! 

If you're in the mood for a bourbon ball, my recipe is below, or you can just pick up one of those donuts at Thortons for 99 cents. It's the same flavor with a lot less effort! And let me know -- do y'all think of bourbon balls as a Derby time treat?

• 1 to 2 cups good bourbon whiskey 
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 to 1 cup whole pecan halves (optional) 
• 1 two-pound bag of powdered sugar
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 2 bags Ghirardelli semisweet chocolate chips
• paraffin wax

1. Place 1/2 to 1 cup of chopped pecans in shallow bowl. Pour bourbon over nuts, immersing completely. Cover and let soak 12 hours to overnight. 
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place pecan halves in shallow pan and toast lightly for about ten minutes. 
3. Cream butter in stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Combine bourbon-pecan mixture with powdered sugar to form a stiff ball. Refrigerate to let stiffen slightly. 
4. Roll dough into small balls. 
5. In double-boiler (or a sauce pan placed over a cooker full of boiling water), add a third to a half a bag of semisweet chocolate chips and a small shaving of paraffin wax (no more than 1/4 cup). Heat until just smooth. Dip dough balls into the chocolate mixture. The key is to coat them quickly and make small, frequent batches of melted chocolate. 
6. Place bourbon balls on wax paper to cool. Top each with a toasted pecan half, if desired. Results are better if you leave them to cool at room temperature rather than in the refrigerator.

Yields between six and seven dozen bourbon balls.

Maker's Mark Bourbon Balls

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In my family, it isn't Christmas until somebody makes a batch of bourbon balls. This recipe, passed down from my Great-Aunt Marie, is the only one that will do. Because the bourbon isn't cooked down, the candy retains the taste of the bourbon used. I think it's pretty important to use a rich wheated bourbon like Maker's Mark to retain the sweetness of the dough. Bourbon balls made with a rye blend bourbon (think Early Times or Old Forester) tend to add a bitter note.

This yields between six and seven dozen bourbon balls.

• 1 to 2 cups good bourbon whisky (I use Maker's Mark)

• 1 cup chopped pecans

• 1/2 to 1 cup whole pecan halves (optional)

• 1 two-pound bag of powdered sugar

• 1 stick butter, softened

• 2 bags Ghirardelli semisweet chocolate chips

• paraffin wax

1. Place 1/2 to 1 cup of chopped pecans in shallow bowl. Pour Maker's Mark over nuts, immersing completely. Cover and let soak 12 hours to overnight.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place pecan halves in shallow pan and toast lightly for about ten minutes.

3. Cream butter in stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Combine bourbon-pecan mixture with just enough powdered sugar to form a stiff ball. Refrigerate to let stiffen slightly.

4. Roll dough into small balls.

5. In double-boiler (or a sauce pan placed over a cooker full of boiling water), add a third to a half a bag of semisweet chocolate chips and a small shaving of paraffin wax (no more than 1/4 cup). Heat until just smooth. Dip dough balls into the chocolate mixture. The key is to coat them quickly and make small, frequent batches of melted chocolate.

6. Place bourbon balls on wax paper to cool. Top each with a toasted pecan half, if desired. Results are better if you leave them to cool at room temperature rather than in the refrigerator.

HerKentucky's Top 10 Posts of 2015

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What a year 2015 has been for Kentucky! The Wildcats just barely missed the mark on a perfect season, Jennifer Lawrence continued her reign as the Queen of the Box Office, George Clooney got married, and Kentucky politics ruled national headlines for something other than the long reign of our Senior Senator. As we look back at 2015, I thought it would be fun to revisit the most popular posts here on HerKentucky.com.

1. I Am Not Kim Davis. Oh boy. This one was a doozy. People read it. A lot of people hated it; a lot loved it. I never expected it to go around Facebook as much as it did. I guess it's fitting that, since The Rowan County Clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples was the Commonwealth's top news story, an opinion piece about Mrs. Davis was HerKentucky's most-read post of the year.

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2. The Five Best Doughnuts in Kentucky. Kentucky has a Doughnut Trail. There were popular "Donutucky" tee shirts this summer. And y'all had strong opinions about the best doughnuts in the Bluegrass State. I stand by my opinion that the girls from Hi-Five make the very best doughnut in Kentucky, but am happy to do some more taste-testing at Nord's and Spalding's to confirm...

3. The Five Best Hamburgers in Kentucky. It seems there's two camps in this world: gourmet burger enthusiasts and diner burger purists. You can't please 'em all.

4. Maker's Mark Bourbon Balls. My great-aunt's recipe has been in my family for as long as I can remember. They're fabulous every year.

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5. The Five Best BBQ Joints in Kentucky. I'm happy to log as many research hours to this project as are needed. I don't know that there is such a thing as an exhaustive effort.

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6. Miss America Heather French. In this post from HerKentucky's early days, Bluegrass Redhead Sarah Stewart Holland recalls her proudest moment as a Kentuckian, bonding with her new college friends and cheering on Miss Kentucky in the Miss America pageant. This lovely piece is always popular around pageant time!

7. Mary Breckinridge and Lilly Pulitzer. Who knew that there was a direct link between preppy fashion guru Lilly Pulitzer and Southeastern Kentucky? I loved finding out that young socialite Lillian McKim served the Frontier Nursing Service as a horseback messenger in the 1940s.

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Mary Breckinridge's Nurses on Horseback

8. Lilly For Target. The sale that broke the preppy internet, and swept through every Target store in the country in less than an hour. The servers were wonky, and the quality varied, but there were a few really cute pieces in the Lilly Pulitzer x Target capsule collection. HerKentucky was on the scene with favorites from the Lilly lookbook and a guide to every Target in or adjacent to the Bluegrass State. A friend of mine actually heard some sorority girls talking about this post at a Southern Indiana Target as they shopped the insanity.

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Before she made dresses, socialite Lilly Pulitzer volunteered in Southeastern KY.

9. How Barre Class Changed My Life. A year ago, I had two herniated discs, couldn't feel the fingers in my left hand, and was terrified that I'd never walk properly again. Barre classes at B.You changed my life in more ways than I could imagine. I've made dear friends, taken charge of my health, and have logged more workouts than in the previous decade.

10 College Basketball is Broken. I love college basketball more than just about anything else. I truly hate that it's become more a game of cover-ups, skirted regulations, agents, and shoe contracts than one of Xs and Os. I kind of went off about that one day.

HerKentucky's top posts of 2015 were as unique and diverse as the Kentuckians we write for and about. As always, thanks to all y'all for reading, and I can't wait to see what 2016 brings for Kentucky!

Maker's Mark Bourbon Balls

Bourbon balls are a holiday tradition in my family. My great-aunt Marie -- of Coca-Cola cake fame--- made them every Christmas and passed the recipe along to all the nieces and nephews. The recipe is as much a part of the holiday tradition for my dad's side of the family as opening presents on Christmas Eve or telling the same family stories every year.

• 1 to 2 cups good bourbon whisky (preferably Maker's Mark) 
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 to 1 cup whole pecan halves (optional) 
• 1 two-pound bag of powdered sugar
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1-2 bags semisweet chocolate chips (preferably Ghiradelli)
• paraffin wax

1. Place 1/2 to 1 cup of chopped pecans in shallow bowl. Pour Maker's Mark over nuts, immersing completely. Cover and let soak 12 hours to overnight. 
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place pecan halves in shallow pan and toast lightly for about ten minutes. 
3. Cream butter in stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Combine bourbon-pecan mixture with just enough powdered sugar to form a stiff ball. Refrigerate to let stiffen slightly. 
4. Roll dough into small balls. 
5. In double-boiler (or a sauce pan placed over a cooker full of boiling water), add a third to a half a bag of semisweet chocolate chips and a small shaving of paraffin wax (no more than 1/4 cup). Heat until just smooth. Dip dough balls into the chocolate mixture. The key is to coat them quickly and make small, frequent batches of melted chocolate. 
6. Place bourbon balls on wax paper to cool. Top each with a toasted pecan half, if desired. Results are better if you leave them to cool at room temperature rather than in the refrigerator.