No Bake Gingersnap Brandy Balls

12 Days of Christmas Cookies

These easy No Bake Gingersnap Brandy Balls marry two of my favorite flavors: brandy and gingersnaps. With a heady dose of brandy in every bite, these tasty morsels double as a sweet dessert and an after-dinner drink!

I have been known to add brandy to unexpected foods: pie, waffles, cranberry chutney, and chocolate peppermint kiss cookies! You can imagine how excited I was to combine gingersnaps and brandy into one easy, no-bake cookie!!

They come together effortlessly with the help of a food processor and a microwave! The hardest part is waiting for them to set in the refrigerator.

Tart cherries are soaked in brandy and then combined with gingersnap crumbs, nutty, toasted walnuts, and powdered sugar! The effect is sensational!

Brandy is the star flavor, so choose a high-quality brandy or if you don’t like brandy, skip these and head straight to my Gingerbread Boys, Gingersnaps, or Molasses Sugar Cookies!

Much to my delight and to the disappointment of my husband, these No-Bake Gingersnap Brandy Balls taste like brandied gingerbread cookie dough with a hint of cherry and toasted walnuts! Headspinningly delicious…or that could be the brandy. Hmm… Doesn’t matter. They are awesome.

My husband would have preferred a coarser chopped walnut coating, which could easily be done to accommodate those who want a little crunch with their ginger brandy balls!

I loved the intermingling of brandy, gingersnap, cherry, and toasted walnut flavors. You can use homemade gingersnaps or a quality store-bought!

It should be noted, because I try to do all I can to avoid disappointment around here, that brandy is the primary flavor. If you would like to tone down the brandy flavor and make it a nice subtle background note, then substitute half the brandy for filtered water. I also cannot emphasize enough: quality brandy is a must!

These No-Bake Gingersnap Brandy Balls are for the ninth day of my 12 Days of Christmas Cookies. 

• Chocolate Pecan Tassies
• Molasses Sugar Cookies
• Old Fashioned Gingersnaps
• Peanut Butter Blossoms
• Old Fashioned Oat Lace Cookies
• Raspberry Linzer Cookies
• Holiday Bark 
• Cherry Pecan Cookies

No Bake Gingersnap Brandy Balls

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• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 20 minutes
• Yield: 18 Cookies 1x

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Description

These easy No Bake Gingersnap Brandy Balls marry two of my favorite flavors: brandy and gingersnaps. With a heady dose of brandy in every bite, these tasty morsels double as a sweet dessert and an after dinner drink!

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1/3 cup (1 ½ oz) tart dried cherries, chopped
• ¼ cup brandy
• 1 ¼ cups (5 ¾ oz) crushed gingersnap cookies (homemade or store-bought)
• 1 ¼ cups (5 oz) confectioners sugar, divided
• ¾ cup (2 ¾ oz) toasted chopped walnuts, divided (I toasted mine in a pan)
• 4 tablespoons (2oz) unsalted butter, melted
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt

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Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, soften chopped cherries in brandy. Let sit for about 10 minutes.
2. Stir in gingersnap crumbs, 1 cup sugar, ¼ cup walnuts, butter, and ¼ teaspoon salt.
3. Let the gingersnap mixture sit, so that it is firm enough to roll. While it sits pulse the remaining walnuts, sugar and salt in a food processor until finely ground.
4. Roll the dough into balls approximately 1 inch wide and roll in ground walnut sugar. Place on a rimmed baking sheet or plate; cover with plastic wrap; and refrigerate at least 12 hours.

Notes

It should be noted that brandy is the primary flavor. If you would like to tone down the brandy flavor and make it a nice subtle background note, then substitute half the brandy for filtered water. I also cannot emphasize enough: quality brandy is a must!

Recipe adapted from Brandy Sugarplums from Fine Cooking, December 2014/January 2015

Tis the Season for festive desserts!

Grandma’s Molasses Sugar Cookies 

Holiday Bark

Cherry Pecan Cookies

Hungarian Apricot Kolaches

 Spiced Apple Cider Cranberry Cupcakes

Soft Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies

 Traditional Linzer Cookies 

My Mom’s Gingerbread Boys

 Peanut Butter Blossoms