Aunt Traute (Edeltraud Hildegard Baude Cameron).  She is not really my aunt but I have claimed as my own!  A treasure.  My husband is the lucky one–who grew up eating her curry chicken and lasagna with birch beer.  Aunt Traute left her mark on his palette during those formative years, and I thank her each day for training his taste buds to demand culinary excitement.

I think of Aunt Traute as a pioneer for women.  She graduated from University of Wisconsin in 1951 with a B.S. in Chemistry.  When most women did not even attend, she did AND in Chemistry!  My father-in-law made the comment that “Traute has never wasted a thing in her life” and those words were so inspiring.  I still remember that day–it changed how I looked at things.  Aunt Traute is also an amazing artist–her colors are bold and true to the subject.  I’m lucky to know her!

I have a few recipes from Aunt Traute and I make them often.  This recipe is special–it takes a few Christmas seasons to get it right and in the last few years I have finally been able to make them almost as good as Aunt Traute.

The rumball recipe!

1 6 oz (1 cup) chocolate chips

3 tablespoon corn syrup

1/2 cup of dark rum (but I’ve used any kind)

2 1/2 cup vanilla wafer crumbs

1/2 cup powdered sugar –sifted (but I have never ever sifted mine)

1 cup finely chopped walnuts (you can use pecan but those are not my favorite)

granulated sugar to roll the balls in

1)  In a large bowl add wafer crumbs and powdered sugar with the nuts and stir

2) in a double boiler (I use a bowl over a pan of water) melt chocolate, add rum and corn syrup

3) add the melted chocolate mixture with the dry ingredients and mix well

4) let sit 30 minutes

5) I use a little scoop to make the balls a uniform size, then I roll them with my hands

6) roll in sugar

7) store in a dry place (I put them in a tin on the top of the fridge)  wait a couple of weeks and they will be perfect!

I have played with this recipe A LOT!   Some combinations I have tried are:

• different kinds of rum–dark, light, spiced, lime bite, and 151 proof
• different kinds of liquors:  orange-Grand Marnier, raspberry-Chambord, hazelnut-Frangelico
• different chocolates–I just prefer regular old Hershey’s
• different binders–oreo’s (a fail), graham crackers were ok but not great
• the original recipe calls for bourbon
• I’ve tried lots of different sugars, vanilla infused sugar, orange peel infused sugar . . . and I like organic sugar–not because it is organic but because it is an off white and looks awesome with the brown of the rum balls.

I am blessed that I have such an inspiring Aunt Traute in my life.