Recipe of the Week: Peanut Butter Balls/Oreo Balls

We have an annual Halloween Party and I wanted to make these dessert balls this year. I have eaten them at other parties and functions, but never made them myself. It was fun and easy to make them, but took some time and patience. I am writing both recipes for the dessert balls and pictures of the process and outcome. Both made alot of servings and were a hit at the party.

Peanut Butter Balls

*2 cups creamy or crunchy peanut butter

*1/2 cup butter
* 4 cups confectioners' sugar
* 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Melt peanut butter and butter in saucepan, over low heat. In a large bowl pour sugar. Then pour melted peanut butter and butter over sugar and blend together thoroughly.
2. Form 1 inch balls or smaller balls, spread on cookie sheets, and chill until firm in refrigerator (overnight is okay).
3. Melt chocolate in double boiler and keep melted while working with balls. Dip to cover and place on cookie sheet. Keep chilled until firm.

Oreo Balls

*1 package Oreo cookies, crushed (regular size)

*1 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened

*1 package white chocolate almond bark

1. Using a blender or food processor, mix Oreos and cream cheese together.

2. Roll into walnut size balls.

3. Chill for an hour.

4. Melt approximately 3/4 package of white almond bark.

5. Stick toothpick in an Oreo ball, and dip it in the melted white chocolate.

Optional: When Oreo balls are no longer sticky to the touch, you can decorate them by drizzling chocolate on top.

From My Experience: To melt the chocolate, I used the double boiler method as shown above. Boil water in a pot. With the chocolate inside, put a bowl on top of the pot. The steam and heat from the boiling water will melt the chocolate without burning it. This will also keep the chocolate melted while you are trying to coat the ball. Just make sure you have enough water boiling in the pot because it does evaporate in the process and could dry out if the water boils long enough. Place the dessert balls on a cookie sheet lined with parchment or wax paper sprayed with nonstick spray. To cool the balls faster, I stuck them in the freezer. In this process I made the balls one day, then coated them in chocolate on another day. If you decide to freeze the balls completely like I did, you will want to let them thaw a little so the chocolate will stick. I used chocolate almond bark and white chocolate almond bark for the recipes instead of chocolate chips. It seems to dry thicker and coat better. They both tasted yummy of course and made a great party dessert since they were each just a couple of bites a piece. Everyone loved them and I will definitely make them again!