The moment I saw these I knew I had to make them.  Chocolate covered cherries in cookie form?  YES!  They were festive, different, easy, and delish.  Fun new twist for a cookie exchange this season.  Here’s the only thing, personally I would much prefer a fudgier (that does not look right, is that a word?) cookie, so next time I’m going to try these cookie/brownie recipe from my Marshmallow Brownie Bites.  That’s just me, but I still found every bite of these very tasty and really enjoyed sharing them!

Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookies

1 1/4 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/2 c unsalted butter, softened
1 c sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 t vanilla
30 maraschino cherries
1/2 c semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 c sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder & salt together, set aside.

In a mixer beat the butter until softened. Add the sugar and cream the mixture until like & fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Add the flour mixture & beat until well mixed.

Roll the dough into 1-inch balls & place them 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheets. Use your thumb to make an indentation in the center of each cookie.

Drain the cherries reserving the juice. Remove the stems and place a cherry into the indentation in each cookie.

Put the chocolate chips & condensed milk in a small saucepan. Stir over low heat until the chocolate is melted. Stir in 4 teaspoons of the cherry juice. Spoon 1/2 – 1 teaspoon of chocolate over the top of each cherry covering it completely. If the chocolate is too thick add a little more cherry juice.

Bake for 6-7 minutes & cool on a rack. (Watch closely and DO NOT over cook, they can dry out quickly.)