Spending time in my childhood bedroom instantly transports me back to being 17. I pull on an old high school volleyball sweatshirt, poke through drawers, and my room turns into the same delightful chaos it always was.
Boozy brownie balls are ridiculously simple and dangerously easy to eat. Make a pan of brownies, crumble them, add a generous splash of bourbon, mix, shape into balls and roll in sugar. Done. Boozy bourbon brownie balls — and yes, the alliteration is delightful.
I even found a great plate tucked away with the dishes—conveniently located next to the bottles.
The brownie pan gets crumbled, then crumbled again until the pieces are fine crumbs ready to be mixed with bourbon.
Add the not-so-secret ingredient, shape the mixture into balls, and roll each one in festive sprinkles or coarse sugar. Place the finished bites into candy cups for a touch of class.
Boozy Brownie Balls
Makes about 4 dozen
Inspired by Martha Stewart
Ingredients:
1 1/2 sticks butter, cut into pieces
6 ounces finely chopped semisweet chocolate (or about 1/2 bag of chocolate chips)
3 eggs
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons bourbon
Coarse sugar or sprinkles, for rolling
Preheat the oven to 350°F and butter an 11 x 17 baking dish. Melt the butter and chocolate together in a small saucepan set over a pan of simmering water, stirring until smooth. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt. Stir in the chocolate mixture and beat until smooth. Add the flour and mix until the batter is glossy and uniform. Pour into the prepared pan and bake about 10 minutes, or until a tester comes out with a few crumbs attached. Allow brownies to cool completely.
Break the brownies into large pieces, then work them into fine crumbs. Add the bourbon and mix until the crumbs are evenly moistened. Roll into 1-inch balls, coat in coarse sugar or sprinkles, and chill in the refrigerator until firm.
Quick nostalgia break: rummaging through boxes turns up old treasures. This photo is peak Pacific Northwest—me playing a salmon in an elementary school play. No big deal.
From my collection of keepsakes: the world’s smallest personalized coffee mug. Everyone needs one. Turns out I had a great eye even as a kid.
One more overshare: I can only describe this neon find with a single word—awesomesauce.
