Gluten Free Rum Balls or Rumkugeln, as we call them in Austria, are a classic holiday treat everyone loves. They are chocolatey, a little boozy and so easy to make. Made with dark chocolate, almond flour, and a generous amount of rum, then rolled in delicious toppings such as cocoa powder or desiccated coconut they are the perfect Christmas Dessert. Just ask my Stepdad who waits patiently every year for my Mom to make the first batch of Rum Balls... they never last until Christmas Day at my Mom's house.
Gluten Free Rumkugeln make a wonderful Holiday Gift for friends and family. Bag them in a small plastic bag with a festive bow for the cutest edible gift straight from your kitchen.
Other delicious homemade holiday gifts are Gluten Free Candied Almonds and Cinnamon Roasted Pecans.
Jump to:
- Recipe Ingredient Note
- How to make Gluten Free Rum Balls
- How to roll and shape Gluten Free Rum Kugeln
- Storage & Freezing
- Do rum balls contain egg?
- FAQ about Gluten Free Rumkugeln
- Join my Gluten Free Community!
- Note about Salt in my Recipes
- Baking in grams
- Note about Ovens and Oven Temperatures
- Substitutions and Modifications
- 📖 Recipe
- 💬 Comments
Recipe Ingredient Note
Dark Chocolate: I highly recommend using a high-quality chocolate bar, 60% or darker to make these Gluten Free Rum Balls. The better the quality, the better the taste. If you are not sure which chocolate is the best to buy at grocery stores, check out these tips: How to buy better chocolate. Since the chocolate has to be grated, chocolate chips will not work here.
Almond Flour: Almond Flour is the main ingredient of Rum Balls aside from Dark Chocolate. It can be substituted with Hazelnut Flour, Walnut Flour, or a combination of different nut flours.
Aquafaba: Rum Kugels traditionally are made with raw egg whites. Since they can cause some concerns regarding food born illnesses, I replaced them with aquafaba, the liquid found in canned chickpeas. Your rum balls will not taste like chickpeas.
Rum: You can either use Rum or Bourbon in this recipe for Gluten Free Rum Balls. I use Captain Morgan Spiced Rum. It is considered Gluten Free like other known rum brands such as Bacardi. Spiced Rum is made from sugar cane which is naturally gluten free, yeast, water, and spices. If you are not a fan of rum, I recommend using a gluten free whiskey such as Knob Creek Whiskey or Koval Bourbon Whiskey (100% corn and millet mix). You can find a better list here: Celiac Safe Whiskey List.
Toppings: For rolling, I use high-quality dutch processed cacao powder (such as Valrhona Cocoa Powder), Unsweetened Shredded Coconut and Chocolate Jimmies or Sprinkles. I use Betty Crocker Chocolate Sprinkles which are gluten-free.
How to make Gluten Free Rum Balls
There are two ways to make Rum Balls - you can either place all the ingredients in the bowl of your food processor or mix them by hand in a mixing bowl.
Step 1: This might be the most labor intense part of this recipe. I like to wear gloves while doing this. Using the coarse side of a box grater carefully grate the dark chocolate on a piece of parchment paper. This way you can transfer the grated chocolate easily to a mixing bowl.
Step 2: In a mixing bowl combine the grated chocolate, almond meal, powdered sugar (also known as confectioners’ sugar) and kosher salt. With a spatula or spoon mix until evenly combined.
Step 3: In a separate bowl combine the aquafaba, rum, water, and vanilla extract. Make a small well in the center of the bowl with the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients to it.
Step 4: Using a spatula mix or clean hands, mix everything together until a smooth dough forms.
Step 5: Cover the bowl with Rum Kugel dough mixture with a lid or some plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 45 minutes. This way the dough can absorb all the liquids and will be easier to shape.
How to roll and shape Gluten Free Rum Kugeln
Once the mixture for the rum balls has rested, it's time to shape and roll them. I like to use a small cookie scoop to portion out the mixture into around 20-gram balls. Using clean hands, roll them into smooth, small balls. Toss each rum ball in your topping of choice and coat evenly.
Transfer the coated rum balls to a parchment-lined air-tight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks. The Rum Kugeln will develop more flavors if you allow for them to sit in the refrigerator for a few days before serving.
Storage & Freezing
Gluten Free Rum Balls are the perfect treats to make ahead of time to Christmas and New Year's Eve. As long as they are stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, they will be good for 3+ weeks. Since they are egg free and dairy-free, they may be stored at room temperature for a few days but for an extended period of time I highly recommend refrigerating them
Do rum balls contain egg?
My Mom's original Rum Ball recipe does contain raw egg whites. Since they can cause some concerns regarding food born illnesses, I replaced them with aquafaba, the liquid found in canned chickpeas. If you want to use pasteurized egg whites instead, please feel free to do so.
FAQ about Gluten Free Rumkugeln
While Rum is the key ingredient to gluten free rumkugeln, it can be replaced with water, sweetened condensed milk, or cold coffee. Not using rum will change the flavor of the rum balls.
Since a lot of the rum ball taste will come from the rum or liquor being used, make sure to use something you do enjoy. Substitutes for rum are Baileys, Grand Marnier, Bourbon and Brandy. I don't recommend using Vodka since it seems to be too harsh.
One would have to eat more than a double batch to actually get drunk on Rumkugeln. You may end up with a belly ache before even start feeling dipsy
Join my Gluten Free Community!
Note about Salt in my Recipes
I use Diamond Kosher Crystal Salt in all of my recipes unless otherwise stated. If use use a different brand or kind of salt in your kitchen please adjust accordingly since some salts can be saltier. If you use Morton’s Kosher Salt please be aware that their salt granules are smaller in size, denser, and crunchier and twice as salty.
Baking in grams
I share my recipes in grams and by weight since baking by weight is the most accurate way to bake. Digital Scales are very affordable and easy to use. You can purchase them on Amazon for less than a set of measuring cups. For small amounts under 10 grams, I like to use this Precision Pocket Scale. Measuring cups are very inaccurate which can cause significant errors when it comes to gluten-free baking or baking in general. Especially since I bake with gluten-free flours which weigh differently than “regular” flours. I do provide some ingredients like spices and leavening agents in measuring spoons. To learn more about Baking with a digital scale, make sure to check out my post about Baking by weight.
Note about Ovens and Oven Temperatures
All my recipes are tested and developed with a conventional oven. I always bake my baked goods on the rack placed in the MIDDLE of my oven. This way the heat coming from the bottom will not burn my baked goods.
If you are baking with convection (fan-forced), please adjust the recipes accordingly. Convection oven can cause baked goods to dry out quickly and still be raw inside. Since takes at least 15-20 minutes for a standard American Oven to be fully preheated. I highly recommend investing in an Oven Thermometer.
Substitutions and Modifications
Any dietary or ingredient modifications/substitutions to this recipe may alter the end result in appearance and taste. I test my recipes several times as published in this post and The Gluten Free Austrian Blog is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe you find on our website.
📖 Recipe
Gluten Free Rum Balls
Gluten Free Rum Balls or Rumkugeln, as we call them in Austria, are a classic holiday treat everyone loves. They are chocolatey, a little boozy and so easy to make. Gluten Free, Daory Free and Egg Free
Ingredients
Gluten Free Rum Balls
- 200 grams dark chocolate
- 200 grams almond flour
- 100 grams powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (4 grams)
- 45 grams aquafaba
- 30 grams Rum
- 30 grams Water
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For finishing
- Coconut, Cocoa, Chocolate Sprinkles as needed
Instructions
How to make Rumkugeln
- Using the coarse side of a box grater carefully grate the dark chocolate on a piece of parchment paper. This way you can transfer the grated chocolate easily to a mixing bowl. (I like to wear gloves while doing this. )
- In a mixing bowl combine the grated chocolate, almond meal, powdered sugar (also known as confectioners’ sugar) and kosher salt. With a spatula or spoon mix until evenly combined.
- In a separate bowl combine the aquafaba, rum, water, and vanilla extract. Make a small well in the center of the bowl with the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients to it.
- Using a spatula mix or clean hands, and mix everything together until a smooth dough forms.
- Cover the bowl with Rum Kugel dough mixture with a lid or some plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 45 minutes. This way the dough can absorb all the liquids and will be easier to shape.
How to roll and shape Gluten Free Rum Balls
- Once the mixture for the rum balls has rested, use a small cookie scoop to portion out the mixture into around 20-gram balls.
- Using clean hands, roll them into smooth, small balls. Toss each rum ball in your topping of choice and coat evenly.
- Transfer the coated rum balls to a parchment-lined air-tight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks. The Rum Kugeln will develop more flavors if you allow for them to sit in the refrigerator for a few days before serving.
Notes
Can I add more Rum? Yes, if you want your Rum Balls more boozy you may replace some or all of the 30 grams of water used in the recipe with Rum.
Aquafaba: Rum Kugels traditionally are made with raw egg whites. Since they can cause some concerns regarding food born illnesses, I replaced them with aquafaba, the liquid found in canned chickpeas. Your rum balls will not taste like chickpeas.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
25Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 126
Calories are a guestimate and randomly generated.
Aleigh says
Is the aquafaba necessary for this recipe? If so, Is there a substitute I can use?
Daniela says
It is a binder and I use it instead of the raw egg whites we normally use to make Rum Balls. You could probably use water but I have never tried it with so much water.
Martin says
Any harm in using the grating disc and a food processor for the chocolate?
Daniela says
not at all! if you have a food processor please use it
Maggie says
If I try substituting egg whites for the aquafaba, would you suggest the same amount by weight?
Daniela says
2 egg whites is what my Mom uses 🙂