Proof of a Kentucky Holiday Tradition

Kentucky’s most famous candy is the bourbon ball.

About a dozen Kentucky candy companies make their own versions of the bourbon ball, but at this time of year, many people make their own. The combination of Kentucky’s most famous beverage and chocolate is a nice gift to receive.

The bourbon ball was first known as the “Kentucky colonel.” It originally began with a fondant center with a generous allotment of bourbon, encased in pecan halves and dipped in thin dark chocolate. According to Kentucky Hospitality, A 200-Year Tradition, the bourbon was so generous that the postal authorities would not let the candy be sent through the mail.

“The idea of mixing candy and bourbon together was accidentally suggested by a dignitary at Frankfort’s sesquicentennial celebration in 1936. He stated that the two best tastes in the world are Mrs. Booe’s candies and fine Kentucky bourbon. Mrs. Booe worked on the recipe for two years before perfecting the process for blending bourbon and candy,” according to The Rebecca Ruth Candy Factory in Frankfort.

The candy company was founded in 1919, when two substitute school teachers in their mid-20s, Ruth Hanly (Booe) and Rebecca Gooch, decided they were not really very good teachers. The young women had received high praise from family and friends for the gifts of chocolates they had given during Christmases past. The women founded Rebecca Ruth Candies, with the help of J.J. King, the owner of the Frankfort Hotel. The hotel’s bar was closed by Prohibition, so the women rented it and began dipping chocolates.

In 1924, Hanly married Douglas Booe and moved to Northern Kentucky, where she continued to make candies. In 1927, Douglas Booe died, and her widow, needing to provide for her family, moved back to Frankfort.

In 1929, Gooch married and sold her portion of the business to Booe. In 1964, Booe retired, passing the business to her son, John Booe, who still runs the company with his son, Charles.

Other candy companies and home cooks have copied the bourbon ball, but the recipe for Rebecca Ruth Candies’ bourbon ball remains a secret.

This version of the bourbon ball is from Sandra Davis’ cookbook, That Special Touch.

Bourbon balls

24 lemon wafers
1 cup pecans, finely chopped
1 cup superfine granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
2⁄3 cup Maker’s Mark bourbon
2 tablespoons honey
1⁄2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Crush wafers and place crumbs in bowl with pecans, granulated sugar, cocoa, bourbon and honey; mix thoroughly. Drop from a teaspoon onto baking sheet and chill. After chilling, roll on waxed paper into marble-size balls. Sift together confectioners’ sugar and cinnamon; roll balls in mixture and let stand until sugar is partially absorbed. Then roll in mixture again. Store between layers of waxed paper in airtight container. Makes 30 bourbon balls.

This recipe for Kentucky colonel bourbon balls is from Elizabeth Ross’ Kentucky Keepsakes.

Kentucky colonel bourbon balls

1 cup pecans, finely chopped
2⁄3 cup bourbon
1 stick butter
2 pounds confectioners’ sugar
6 squares bitter chocolate
1 square paraffin, about 1 inch

Let nuts stand in bourbon overnight. Work butter and confectioners’ sugar together until mixture is in fine crumbs like meal. Add bourbon, a little at a time. Work in pecans. Form into balls about the size of large marbles and chill in refrigerator on a cookie sheet until crusty, about 1 hour. Put bitter chocolate and paraffin in top of double boiler and melt over hot water. Do not let water boil. Dip balls in chocolate. (Optional: Place a pecan half on top of each ball.) Put on waxed paper to cool. Store in refrigerator. Makes 90 balls.

Note: This mixture will be very sticky and hard to form into balls. It is easier if you keep your hands cold by running water over them. Use only bonded bourbon, any proof. Do not use a blended whiskey.