Grammy's Recipe Book Desserts

Chocolate Orange Balls

From Jackie O'Brien

Prep
40 min
Total
40 minstart to eating

Times are our estimates for Grammy's recipe, with unhurried prep.

Grammy's handwritten page for Chocolate Orange Balls
Page 17 · full size

As written

Word for word from her page, with her spelling and line breaks. [?] marks a word we couldn't read.

Chocolate Orange Balls
Jackie O'Brien

2 boxes chocolate wafers
1 cup confectioners sugar
1/3 cup frozen OJ undiluted conc.
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup melted butter salted
chopped walnuts - optional

Crunch wafers fine add rest
of ingredients - bite sized balls
roll in conf sugar.

Grammy's recipe

Her recipe, typed out to cook from: her amounts and her words, with abbreviations spelled out and the steps numbered.

Ingredients

  • 2 boxes chocolate wafers
  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more for rolling
  • ⅓ cup frozen orange juice concentrate, undiluted
  • ¼ cup light corn syrup
  • ¼ cup salted butter, melted
  • Chopped walnuts (optional)

Method

  1. Crush the wafers fine.
  2. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix.
  3. Roll into bite-sized balls and roll them in confectioners’ sugar.

Modernized

A present-day cookbook version, with missing steps filled in. These are suggestions, not her words.

Ingredients

  • 2 (9-ounce) boxes chocolate wafer cookies (such as Nabisco Famous)
  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more for rolling
  • ⅓ cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed, undiluted
  • ¼ cup light corn syrup
  • ¼ cup salted butter, melted
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
  • ½ cup finely chopped walnuts (optional)

Method

  1. Crush the wafers to fine crumbs in a food processor, or in a zip-top bag with a rolling pin.
  2. Stir in the sugar, orange juice concentrate, corn syrup, butter, zest and walnuts until it holds together when squeezed.
  3. Chill 20 minutes if it’s too soft to roll.
  4. Roll into 1-inch balls and roll each in confectioners’ sugar.
  5. Let them sit in an airtight tin at least a day before serving. The flavor mellows and deepens.

Ideas to play with

Twists and variations to try. Suggestions, not hers.

  • Grown-up version

    Replace 2 tablespoons of the orange concentrate with Grand Marnier or another orange liqueur.

  • Dipped

    Dip half of each ball in melted dark chocolate instead of rolling in sugar.

  • Cocoa roll

    Roll some in cocoa powder and some in sugar for a two-tone plate.

  • Mint

    Use chocolate wafers with ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract and a splash of milk in place of the orange.