Cherry Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies

Inspired by the flavors of classic chocolate covered cherries, these Cherry Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies are perfect for the holiday season.  Or for Valentine's Day.  Or ... for ANY day.  While they may not have the oozy, gooey center of chocolate covered cherries, they sure do  have that fabulous flavor combination of cherry and chocolate together!
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I just love the combination of cherry and chocolate.  Chocolate covered cherries are one of my favorite totally-indulgent candies to treat myself with at Christmas time.  There's simply something about tasty chocolate, the oozy goodness of the creamy center, and sweetness of the maraschino cherry hiding inside that I just can't resist.

So I decided to take inspiration from my favorite Cherry Almond Cookies and create a chocolate cookie version reminiscent of that ever-favorite classic chocolate covered cherry Christmas candy.

Now while these Cherry Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies may not have the oozy, gooey center of chocolate covered cherries, they sure have the fabulous flavor of cherry and chocolate together! ... Accented by a little drizzle of white chocolate that certainly makes them super cute.

To make a batch of these little chocolate beauties, prepare a rich chocolate dough, chill it for a bit, and then roll it into small balls.  Make a small thumbprint indentation in each ball and set a very well-drained maraschino cherry in each indentation.

The cookies will bake up with the cherries all nicely surrounded by the yummy chocolatey goodness of the cookie.

Once the cookies have cooled, melt a couple ounces of white chocolate with a tiny bit of shortening.  {Shortening helps the white chocolate drizzle a little more smoothly and readily, but if you're opposed to shortening, it can be omitted just fine.}

I like to melt my chocolate by placing it, along with the shortening, in a small zip-top baggy.  Then I place the baggy in a cup of hot water ... very hot straight from the tap is fine ... and let it sit for a few minutes, massaging the chocolate with my fingers every now and then until it's melted and smooth.

Then snip off a very small hole in the corner of the baggy, and drizzle the melted white chocolate over the cooled cookies.

The drizzle makes them extra cute, don't you think?  It also adds that hit of sweetness typically delivered up by chocolate covered cherries' oozy cream filling.

So if you're a fan of cherry and chocolate together, whip up a batch of these cute little cookies inspired by the flavors of classic chocolate covered cherries.  They're just perfect for Christmas, Valentine's Day, or ANY day!

Cherry Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies
Source:  chocolate dough adapted from America's Test Kitchen
(Printable recipe)

Ingredients

• 1 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/3 c. cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 8 T. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3 c. granulated sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 T. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 25 to 30 maraschino cherries, well drained & patted dry with paper towels
• about 2 oz. white chocolate
• 1/2 tsp. shortening

Directions

1. Combine flour, cocoa, and salt; set aside.
2. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg yolk, milk, and vanilla; mix until incorporated. Reduce mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture until just combined.
3. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, 1 hour.
4. With your hands, roll chilled dough into about 25 or 30 1-inch balls.  Place balls about 2 inches apart on a baking sheet. With your thumb, gently press down into the center of each ball just slightly to make a small indentation.  Place a cherry in each indentation. 
5. Chill the baking sheet of dough balls in the refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes before baking. {This chilling time makes the cookies bake up soft and tender, and helps minimize spreading. I have skipped this chill before, and the cookies came out on the dry side ... so I don't recommend skipping it.}
6. Bake at 350℉ until set, about 12 minutes. Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 3 minutes, remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.
7. Place white chocolate and shortening in a small zip-top plastic bag. Set bag in a bowl of warm water to soften. {Don't let the top of the plastic bag get into the water; if water seeps into the bag, the white chocolate will seize up.} Gently knead the chocolate with your fingers until melted and smooth, placing back in the warm water for a minute or two as needed.
8. Snip a very small hole in the corner of the plastic bag. Drizzle white chocolate over the cooled cookies. Let stand until white chocolate is set.
9. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Makes approximately 25 to 30 cookies.

Notes;
- There is indeed no levener in this recipe; that is not a typo.
- These cookies don't spread or change shape much while baking.  They just puff very slightly.

Enjoy!

Please enjoy these other tasty cookie recipes from The Kitchen is My Playground ...

Cherry Almond Cookies

Insanely Delicious Turtle Cookies

Pound Cake Cookies

Christmas Chocolate Kiss Cookies

Grandma's Old-Fashioned Peanut Butter Cookies

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