Advent Devotions 2022

Granny's Legacy

Posted by Glenda Davis on

When I was growing up, my family lived with my mother’s mother, whom we called Granny. Granny was an excellent seamstress for the public, but at Christmas she put her sewing aside to make candy. She made many different kinds: pecan logs, marshmallows, fondant, fudge, caramels, gum drops, divinity, and many others which she packed in boxes as gifts for family and friends. Of course, my sister, brother, and I got to taste test all of them. We each had our favorites. I think my favorite was the homemade marshmallows, which were good on their own, but especially wonderful in hot chocolate.

Over the years, many of Granny’s recipes have been lost, but one that I particularly love now is her bourbon balls. I don’t think I enjoyed them much as a child, and probably wasn’t allowed to have many of them back then anyway. However, I was able to get the recipe from my mother, and I often make them during the holidays. This recipe is a reminder of my favorite time of year during my youth.

Note: It is also important to remember that Wilson was a dry county at the time, and my deeply religious Granny would get one of my uncles in Nashville to purchase the bourbon for her. Even if she could have bought it legally in Lebanon, she wouldn’t have, as she would never have walked into a liquor store in this town!

 

Granny Bryan’s Bourbon Balls
3/4 cup bourbon
1 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup butter        
2 lbs. powdered sugar
1/2 lb Baker’s semisweet chocolate (3 boxes)

Soak pecans overnight in bourbon in an airtight container. Drain bourbon & cream pecans with 1 lb. sugar. Cream thoroughly the other 1 lb. sugar & butter. Combine mixtures & blend well. Add pecans. Chill. Make into balls & dip in melted chocolate.

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