Enjoy the rich flavors of these irresistible Chocolate Cherry Cookies! Soft, rich chocolate cookies are infused with the flavor of sweet maraschino cherries, with a cherry and chocolate on top.
This no-chill cookie recipe couldn’t get any easier, and the cookies themselves are out-of-this-world delicious.
This easy recipe for Chocolate Cherry Cookies reminds me a lot of a classic black forest cake. In fact, I think I’d rather have a batch of these cookies than any cake – any day!
The soft and cakey chocolate cookies are absolutely perfect, but they are made even better with the addition of maraschino cherries on top and a silky chocolate drizzle.
Chocolate and cherries are a great flavor combination for any fun occasion. They fit in perfectly on holiday cookie platters or as an edible gift for Valentine’s Day. In the warmer months, these cookies are especially delicious served with vanilla ice cream!
Looking for more decadent chocolate cookie recipes? I have plenty for you to try! Buckeye Brownie Cookies are a reader favorite, topped with peanut butter and chocolate. Hot Cocoa Cookies are also so good, with a whole fluffy marshmallow in each one.
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The Best Chocolate Cherry Cookies
- Chocolate Cherry Flavor: I wanted these cookies to have the cherry flavor in every single bite so I’m using the sweet syrup from the maraschino cherries as a flavor ingredient in the chocolate cookie dough. The result is an extra sweet but perfectly balanced cookie that you won’t be able to resist.
- They’re Beautiful! Not only are these cookies a divine chocolate treat, but they also look super fancy.
- An Easy Cookie Recipe: Just because they’re pretty doesn’t mean that they’re hard to make – the shiny red cherries are so attractive on their own, you just need to add one to the top of each cookie to make them look fantastic!
Key Ingredients
Complete list of ingredients with quantities and instructions is located in the recipe card below
- Dry Ingredients: To make these chocolate cookies, you’ll need to whisk together flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
- Unsalted Butter: I almost always use unsalted butter in my baked goods. I prefer to be able to control the amount of salt in the recipe. Let the butter soften at room temperature before starting.
- Eggs: Let two eggs sit out with the butter so that they also come to room temperature.
- Sugar: For rich flavor and tender texture, both granulated sugar and light brown sugar are added to this cookie dough.
- Maraschino Cherries: You’ll need one cherry to add to the top of each cookie, plus about 2 tablespoons of the syrup from the jar to add extra flavor to the cookie dough.
- Chocolate Chips: To make an easy chocolate drizzle for the cherry cookies, melt chocolate chips with a bit of shortening. In place of shortening, you can use coconut oil instead.
How To Make Chocolate Cherry Cookies
Before you get started, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line three baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats and set aside while you make the cookie dough.
- Mix the Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and baking powder until evenly mixed; set aside.
- Mix the Wet Ingredients: In a separate large mixing bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs, maraschino cherry liquid, and vanilla extract and beat on medium speed until fully incorporated.
- Combine to Make the Dough: Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in 2-3 separate additions, mixing well after each.
- Portion Dough and Add Cherries: Divide the dough into 25 golf ball sized dough balls, then place on the prepared baking sheets 3 inches apart. Gently press a cherry into the center of each cookie
- Bake: Bake in the preheated oven for 9-11 minutes, or until the cookies have spread and puffed up. Let the cookies cool completely before adding the chocolate topping.
- Add Chocolate Drizzle: While the cookies cool, melt the chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave-safe bowl. Cook at 30 second intervals, stirring after each, until smooth. Use a piping bag or a spoon to drizzle the chocolate over the tops of the cookies.
Top Cookie Baking Tips
- Use Room Temperature Ingredients: Make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature before starting. This will ensure a smooth and even texture in your cookie dough.
- Measuring Flour: Adding too much flour will make the dough dry and dense. When measuring flour, spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife.
- Adding Cherries: It can be helpful to use your thumb to create a shallow indent for the cherries to sit. Then you can call these cookies chocolate cherry thumbprints!
- The Chocolate Topping: Adding shortening to melted chocolate helps to keep it from hardening too firmly. The chocolate drizzle will stay somewhat soft. If you want the drizzle to be more sturdy, you can leave out the shortening.
- Add Decorations: Red or white sprinkles would be beautiful on these cookies, making them festive enough for Christmas or Valentine’s Day parties. Be sure to add the sprinkles to the chocolate drizzle before it can harden.
How to Store Cookies with Cherries
At Room Temperature: Because the chocolatey topping is semi-soft, these cookies will store best in a single layer in an airtight container and can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 days. After that, the cookies will start to harden.
In the Freezer: It’s best to flash-freeze these cookies by freezing them on a cookie tray until they’re firm, then transferring the frozen cookies to an airtight container. Keep them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Before serving, remove them from the container and arrange them in a single layer on a plate. Allow to thaw at room temperature.
More Delicious Chocolate Cookies to Bake
- Caramel Bear Paw Cookies
- Chocolate Sugar Cookies
- Copycat Crumbl Chocolate Cupcake Cookies
- Hot Cocoa Cookies
- Rolo Stuffed Cookies
Recipe FAQs
Can This Cookie Dough Be Frozen?
Yes, the chocolate cookie dough can be mixed and then frozen as dough balls. When you’d like to bake the cookies, allow the dough to thaw to room temperature, then shape, add the cherries in the middle, and bake as directed.
You’re not chilling the dough?
Nope! In my tests of this recipe I found that chilling was not necessary for this recipe, and when I did chill the dough before baking, the cookies were too tall and didn’t spread well. If it is particularly hot in your house today, you may want to chill the dough briefly so that it’s at a normal room temperature before you bake with it.
What Can I Use Instead of Shortening for the Chocolate Drizzle?
Coconut oil (either refined or unrefined) will work in much the same way as shortening does here.
Yum! I can’t wait for you to try these amazing and simple Chocolate Cherry Cookies! Whenever I’ve shared these, I always get tons of compliments, and I know that you will too.
Chocolate Cherry Cookies
Equipment
- Large cookie scoop
Ingredients
- 3 ¼ cups all purpose flour
- ¾ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons maraschino cherry liquid
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 25 maraschino cherries
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon shortening
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) or 160°C if using a fan oven. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and baking powder until evenly mixed; set aside.
- In a separate large mixing bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs, maraschino cherry liquid, and vanilla extract and beat on medium speed until fully incorporated.
- Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in 2-3 separate additions, mixing well after each.
- Divide the dough into 25 golf ball sized dough balls, then place on the prepared baking sheets 3 inches apart. Gently press a cherry into the center of each cookie, then bake in the preheated oven for 9-11 minutes, or until they are spread and puffed up.
- Meanwhile, melt the chocolate chips and the shortening in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second intervals in the microwave until fully melted and smooth, mixing well after each microwave.
- Allow the cookies to cool completely before drizzling with the melted chocolate.
Notes
- Measuring Flour: Adding too much flour to the dough will make it dry and dense. When measuring flour, spoon it into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife.
- Adding Cherries: It can be helpful to use your thumb to create a shallow indent for the cherries to sit. Then you can call these cookies chocolate cherry thumbprints!
- The Chocolate Topping: Adding shortening to melted chocolate helps to keep it from hardening too firmly. The chocolate drizzle will stay somewhat soft. If you want the drizzle to be more sturdy, you can leave out the shortening.
- Add Decorations: Red or white sprinkles would be beautiful on these cookies, making them festive enough for Christmas or Valentine’s Day parties. Be sure to add the sprinkles to the chocolate drizzle before it can harden.
- Store At Room Temperature: Because the chocolatey topping is semi-soft, these cookies will store best in a single layer in an airtight container and can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 days. After that, the cookies will start to harden.
- Store In the Freezer: It’s best to flash-freeze these cookies by freezing them on a cookie tray until they’re firm, then transferring the frozen cookies to an airtight container. Keep them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Before serving, remove them from the container and arrange in a single layer on a plate. Allow to thaw at room temperature.
Nutrition
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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