Vegan & Gluten-free No-Bake Marzipan Rum Balls – perfect for the holidays! They are super easy to make and don’t require an oven. They can be made in 10 minutes.
Got a sec? Because I have probably the easiest cookie recipe here for you! These No-Bake Marzipan Rum Balls can be made in a couple of minutes. They are the perfect addition to any festive cookie platter. You don’t want to miss these! They are vegan & gluten-free and could be easily made into a non-alcoholic version (see recipe notes for alternatives).
You will need 4 ingredients:
- marzipan
- cocoa powder
- rum
- shredded coconut
No-Bake Marzipan Rum Balls
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup marzipan (make sure it's vegan)
- 3 teaspoons cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon rum*
- 2 teaspoons shredded coconut , unsweetened
Instructions
- Mix the marzipan, cocoa powder, and rum and knead it until the whole marzipan is brown.
- Form little balls (about 15 pieces).
- Place the shredded coconut in a small bowl and add a few marzipan balls. Roll them around until coated evenly and repeat for the rest.
- Store in an air-tight box or serve immediately.
Notes
Use alcohol-free vanilla extract or a splash of orange juice for a non-alcoholic version.
Nutrition
Vegan & Gluten-Free Holiday Cookie Party
Together with my blogger friends, we decided it would be fun to make a Holiday Cookie Party – completely vegan & gluten-free. For this reason, everyone is sharing one of their cookie recipes. I think all turned out great and drool-worthy. The Holiday Cookie Party was organized by Rebecca (Strength & Sunshine) and Natalie (Feasting on Fruit), thank you so much, ladies! :)
1 Chocolate Candy Cane Crunch Cookies – Rebecca from Strength And Sunshine
2 Gingerbread Fig Bars – Natalie from Feasting On Fruit
3 No-Bake Marzipan Rum Balls – Bianca from Elephantastic Vegan
5 Chewy Gluten Free Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies – Jenn from Veggie Inspired Journey
6 Cranberry Chocolate Coconut Macaroons – Linda from Veganosity
7 Vegan Orange Cinnamon Christmas Cookies – Sina from Vegan Heaven
8 Cranberry White Chocolate Ginger Cookies – Leah from Love Me Feed Me
10 Sugar Cookie (Vegan, Gluten-Free, Oil-Free) – Brandi from The Vegan 8
11 Orange Spice Cookies – Harriet from Harriet Emily
12 Vegan Cranberry Crunch Dark Chocolate Truffles – Sophia from Veggies Don’t Bite
Strength and Sunshine
I’ve never made anything with marzipan…but that means now…I MUST!!!!
Thank you so much for the recipe my dear! They are scrumptious!!
Bianca
Marzipan is one of these things I always have in the pantry. I mostly use in the christmas time, but what if I want to add marzipan bits to muffins during the year? My pantry is already too full but it’s really hard to let go of staples.
Jackie
Quick question.. any kind of cocoa powder? What did you use?
Bianca
I used unsweetened & dutch-processed cocoa powder.
Linda @ Veganosity
Marzipan reminds me of the Nutcracker, which reminds me of when Alex was a little ballerina playing a mouse and a toy soldier in her dance companies’ production of the Nutcracker, which reminds me of making Christmas cookies with the kids. Good memories and an awesome cookie. Thank you, Bianca, these look delicious!
Bianca
Awwww, that’s lovely! I didn’t know Alex was a ballerina! It did ballet too when I was young.. but only for a year or two. I always loved the story of the nutcracker :)
Michele @ PaleoRunningMomma
I love marzipan – thanks for such a simple recipe that looks so yummy – I’ll be sure to try it out!
Bianca
Awesome, I’m glad you like it! Definitely give it a try.. it’s so easy to make :)
Jenn S.
OMG, what?! These are so super simple. I LOVE it! They look so festive and beautiful and I might just eat the whole batch! And marzipan is sooo good!
Bianca
I was thinking if these were too simple.. but on the other hand..some cookies need more time, so it’s good to have at least some that are quick to make :)
Jenn S.
Yes! Absolutely! And with all the other things we have going on during the holidays, it’s always great to have something you can whip up in no time!
Laura // Chronicles of Passion
Oh how I LOVE marzipan! I haven’t made anything with it yet this holiday season. I think I should start with these!
Bianca
I totally agree on the marzipan thing! So good :D I usually bake with marzipan only in the christmas time but I have it at home all year round.. I’m such a food hoarder :D
Leah M @ love me, feed me
Ahhh! These are so simple and so beautiful! I think they’d make a delish gift!!
Bianca
Thanks Leah! I totally agree. They are the perfect addition to cookie platters :)
Dianne
I love marzipan! I’m going to have to make these this weekend.
Bianca
Awesome! Have fun baking (or should I say no-baking?!) :D
Natalie
I adore these easy little balls Bianca! You always come up with the best simple desserts I was just thinking that with your holiday roundup a few days ago, and these absolutely prove it! Thanks for cookie partying with us :)
Bianca
Thank you for hosting such an amazing virtual cookie feast :D Now if it only would be a real one – that would be awesome.
Trinity Bourne
Amazing!!! This is the most simple, delicious recipe ever!
Bianca
Thank you so much, Trinity! Simple recipes are just my kind of thing :)
Lucie
Yum! No bake cookies are my favorite <3, perfect for last minute cookie making :D I can’t wait to try these! I love that you need just 4 ingredients to make them.
Bianca
If you want more of a challenge you can try making your own marzipan :) I’ve actually wanted to try it for a long time, but never had the motivation to do it.
The Vegan 8
I absolutely LOVE how simple these are to make, totally in love with them and love every ingredient! It’s so nice to see such an easy recipe, I’m all about easy recipes! They look incredibly delicious!
Bianca
Thank you so much, Brandi! They are really delicious and the perfect addition to cookie platters because they don’t take much time to make at all.
veggiesdontbite
You had me at rum….yes, it’s been a long week. LOL But seriously, these look divine and I’d be all over those with my glass of wine right now!
Bianca
Sophia, I think it’s amazing how you juggle family and blogging! You definitely deserved these Marzipan Rum Balls..maybe even with an extra splash of rum :)
Platter Talk
You had me at no bake! These rum balls are just the ticket!!!
Bianca
yeah, sometimes in the middle of christmas baking, I get tired and just want to make easy no-bake treats! :)
Ivana
Where I live marzipan is made with egg whites. No way I could find a vegan brand. What is the name of the brand you used?
Bianca
wait, what? I’ve never even heard of egg whites in marzipan before, that is so weird! Where are you from? I’m from Austria, right next to the marzipan-inventing country, germany, so the brands stick to the traditional recipe: ground almonds, sugar and rosewater. So I just get whatever marzipan I can find in the stores (most of them are even no-brands). I’ve linked to a vegan marzipan product on amazon in the ingredients of the post. Also, you could even make marzipan at home with ground almonds, powdered sugar and some kind of liquid sweetener such as agave syrup, rice syrup and a splash of rosewater. I have a homemade batch of marzipan in the fridge right now – it’s not as super soft and fine as store-bought marzipan but it does the trick :)
Wendy
85 grams of marzipan seems like ery little. Please let me know if that is correct or if it is a typo? THANK YOU1
Bianca
Hi Wendy, just made these again and I’ve updated the recipe. It’s now 1/3 cup = 100g of marzipan. Of course you can double or triple the recipe if you need more marzipan rum balls :)
Carissa Marks Thomson
Even at 1/3 of a cup you arent adding any volume to this recipe, what size are the balls you are making?
Jeanette
This was definitely way too small of a batch. I tripled it and still didn’t get that many. And 1/2 teaspoon of rum? Most recipes call for 1/3 cup. I added 1/4 cup and tripled everything else, but it still didn’t make very many balls- they are delish and easy though!
Sharon
Wow!!!! These look amazing -definitely going on my holiday list this year! :)
Laura Armstrong
In your list of ingredients you call for Marzipan/Almond Paste. These are 2 different types of products. I bought both but after looking it up I went with the Marzipan because it is moldable. Anyone else get confused by this?