My Aunt Emily was an absolute pistol and still influences me today. Our grandparents passed away when we were very young and Aunt Emily tried to serve the role of surrogate grandmother, always providing us with wisdom and humor. The last time I visited Aunt Emily, she was very ill. The doctors wanted to keep her in the intensive care unit, but her husband, my Uncle John, convinced them to let her go home so she would be in comfort, surrounded by the family she loved. When I arrived to visit her, I was a little on the early side and she was mortified that I arrived prior to her having her beauty appointments – getting her hair and nails done. My Aunt Emily shared with me that she and Uncle John disobeyed the doctors, going out to dinner with her oxygen tank instead of staying home in bed. She was a Southern woman after all.
During that visit, she shared one of her pearls of wisdom with me: “Darling, if there is one thing I can pass along to you is the importance of laughter. You have lead a full life if you laugh a little everyday… And when you laugh at yourself, it’s even better.” – Aunt Emily
Whenever our family has Bourbon balls, we smile and remember my Aunt Emily.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup powered sugar
- 1 box ‘Nilla wafers
- 2 tablespoons Karo white syrup
- 2 tablespoons cocoa
- 2 cups pecans, finely chopped
- 3 jiggers rum, or 4 or 5 or…
Preparation:
Starting with dry ingredients, put in blender and chop finely. Slowly add rum and syrup.
Remove mixture from blender, putting contents into a bowl. Roll into small balls (slightly larger in size than a truffle). Dust in powdered sugar.
It is optimal to make this at least 24 hours before serving as the rum really starts to work its magic. Happy holidays.