Chocolate Cherry Cookies

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Are you on the hunt for a cookie recipe that is genuinely a cut above the rest? A delightful treat that marries the deep, decadent richness of dark chocolate with a sweet, tangy burst of cherry? Your search is over. We believe that the perfect cookie is a complete sensory experience, and these phenomenal chocolate cherry cookies certainly deliver. They are wonderfully soft, delightfully chewy, and bursting with a flavour pairing that feels both luxurious and comforting. Get ready to discover your new favourite bake.

Why We Adore This Recipe

There are a multitude of reasons to welcome this recipe into your baking collection, but we’ve managed to list just a few of our top ones. These cookies are not just incredibly tasty; they are a genuine pleasure to create and to share.

Perfect Texture: We’ve meticulously balanced the ingredients to create a cookie that is satisfyingly gooey in the centre while having delicately crisp edges. You won’t find any dry, crumbly biscuits here!
Unforgettable Flavour: The union of rich cocoa, sumptuous dark chocolate chunks, and sweet-tart cherries is simply divine. It’s a timeless combination that evokes the luxury of a classic Black Forest gateau.
Simple to Make: Despite their gourmet appeal, the instructions are straightforward and accessible for bakers of all abilities. We will happily guide you through each part of the process.
Versatile and Customisable: This recipe serves as a brilliant foundation. You can easily adapt it by incorporating different nuts, a pinch of spice, or even a dash of liqueur for a more grown-up version.

Essential Ingredients for Chocolate Cherry Cookies

Assembling your ingredients is the first step towards baking triumph. We always suggest using high-quality components, as they contribute so much to the final taste and texture. Here is everything you will need.

Unsalted Butter: Ensure this is softened to room temperature to make the creaming process a breeze.
Light Brown Soft Sugar: This adds essential moisture and a wonderful, deep caramel-like flavour.
Caster Sugar: Provides sweetness and helps achieve those perfectly crisp cookie edges.
Large Egg: Acts as the binder for all our ingredients. It’s best used at room temperature.
Vanilla Extract: Just a small amount wonderfully enhances all the other flavours.
Plain Flour: This forms the fundamental structure of our cookies.
Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: For creating that intensely rich chocolate base.
Bicarbonate of Soda: This is our raising agent, helping the cookies to rise and spread beautifully.
Salt: A tiny pinch of fine sea salt is crucial for balancing the sweetness.
Dark Chocolate Chunks or Chips: We have a preference for chunks, which create glorious molten pockets of chocolate.
Dried Cherries: Either glacé or dried sour cherries will work splendidly in this recipe.

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

Having a bit of flexibility in the kitchen is always a good thing. Should you need to make a substitution, here are some of our tried-and-tested recommendations:

Cherries: We are particularly fond of using dried sour cherries for their tartness, which elegantly cuts through the chocolate’s richness. However, chopped glacé cherries will yield a sweeter, more traditional flavour. You could even try finely chopped fresh cherries, but do pat them very dry to prevent introducing excess moisture. For the most reliable results, using dried cherry cookies is often the best approach.
Chocolate: While our recipe calls for dark chocolate (with at least 50% cocoa solids) to balance the overall sweetness, you could certainly use milk chocolate or even white chocolate chips for an entirely different taste profile. A mixture of all three can be quite fun!
Sugar: If you only have one kind of sugar on hand, you can use all light brown sugar for an exceptionally moist and chewy cookie, or all caster sugar for a noticeably crisper finish.

How to Make Our Perfect Chocolate Cherry Cookies

Now, let’s get to the best part! Follow these simple instructions to bake a batch of the most delicious cookies you’ve ever had. We suggest reading through all the steps before you get started.

Prepare Your Equipment: Firstly, preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C Fan) and line a pair of large baking trays with baking parchment.
Cream Butter and Sugars: In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer or a sturdy wooden spoon to beat the softened butter with both the light brown and caster sugars until the mixture becomes pale, light, and airy. This crucial step incorporates air for a fantastic final texture.
Add Wet Ingredients: Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until they are fully incorporated. Remember to scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is evenly mixed.
Combine Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the plain flour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda, and salt. This ensures the raising agent is distributed perfectly.
Mix the Dough: Gradually introduce the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mixing on a low speed (or by hand) until they are just combined. Take care not to overmix here, as this can result in tough cookies.
Fold in the Goodies: Using a spatula, gently fold in the dark chocolate chunks and dried cherries until they are spread evenly throughout the dough.
Chill the Dough: This is our single most important piece of advice! Cover the bowl and chill the cookie dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, or even up to an hour. Chilling solidifies the butter, which prevents the cookies from spreading too much and also deepens their flavour.
Portion and Bake: Scoop out portions of the dough (roughly 2 tablespoons each) and roll them into balls. Arrange them on your prepared baking trays, making sure to leave ample space between each one to allow for spreading.
Bake to Perfection: Bake for 12-14 minutes. The cookies should appear set at the edges but remain slightly soft in the middle. They will firm up further while cooling on the tray.
Cool Down: Allow the cookies to cool on the baking trays for 5-10 minutes before you move them to a wire rack to cool completely. This helps them to set properly without breaking.

Our Top Tips for the Best Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies

Are you looking to guarantee a flawless batch every single time? We’ve put together our most valuable professional secrets to help elevate your baking from great to truly spectacular.

Don’t Skip Chilling the Dough

We’ve already mentioned this in the method, but it really does bear repeating. Chilling the dough is an absolutely vital step. It solidifies the butter, meaning the cookies spread more slowly in the heat of the oven, which results in a thicker, chewier cookie. It also gives the flour time to hydrate fully, which leads to a richer and more developed flavour. If you appreciate the perfect texture in our Blueberry Heaven Cookies The Definitive Recipe For Soft Chewy Perfection, you’ll understand that a little patience goes a long way!

The Secret to a Chewy Texture

The key to achieving that sought-after chewiness lies in the balance between sugar and moisture. By using a higher proportion of brown sugar to white sugar, as we’ve done here, you introduce more molasses, which directly contributes to that wonderful chew. Additionally, be very mindful not to overbake! The real secret is to remove the cookies from the oven when their centres are still a touch soft.

Choosing Your Cherries and Chocolate

The quality of your additions can have a massive impact on the final result. For the chocolate, using a chopped baking bar instead of standard chips will create those incredible pools of melted chocolate throughout the cookie. When it comes to cocoa powder, a Dutch-processed variety will provide a darker colour and a smoother, less bitter taste. To find out more about the different types, have a look at this brilliant guide to cocoa powder from BBC Good Food. Discovering new flavour combinations is all part of the joy, much like in our beloved Almond Joy Cookie Recipe where coconut, chocolate, and almond create magic together.

Storing and Customising Your Cookies

Once you’ve baked a wonderful batch of these cherry chocolate chip cookies, you’ll want to ensure they stay fresh and delicious for as long as possible.

How to Store Your Cookies

Keep your cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They should remain fresh and chewy for up to 5 days. For an extra trick, you can pop a slice of bread into the container to help them retain their softness.

The unbaked cookie dough also freezes beautifully. Simply roll the dough into balls, place them on a tray to freeze until solid, and then transfer them to a freezer-safe bag. You can bake them directly from frozen; just add an extra 2-3 minutes to the standard baking time.

Fun Variations on Our Chocolate Cherry Cookie Recipe

Please feel free to get creative with this recipe! Here are a few ideas you might like to try:

Go Nuts: For a delightful crunch, add a handful of toasted pecans, walnuts, or almonds to the dough.
Spice It Up: A small pinch of cinnamon or even a tiny dash of chilli powder can introduce a surprising warmth that beautifully complements the chocolate.
Black Forest Flavour: To create genuine black forest cookies, add a splash of kirsch (a type of cherry liqueur) to the dough at the same time as the vanilla.
White Chocolate Drizzle: After the cookies have cooled completely, drizzle them with melted white chocolate for a striking contrast in both appearance and taste.

Frequently Asked Questions About Chocolate Cherry Cookies

Can I use fresh cherries instead of dried ones?: Yes, you can, but we offer a small word of advice. Fresh cherries hold significantly more water, which can alter the cookie’s final texture. We suggest chopping them finely and patting them dry very thoroughly with a paper towel to eliminate as much moisture as you can before adding them to the dough.
Why did my cookies spread out and become too flat?: This is a very common baking problem! It is usually caused by one of two things: either your butter was overly soft (i.e., melted instead of just at room temperature), or you missed the all-important step of chilling the dough. Chilling makes the fat solid, which stops it from melting too quickly once it’s in the oven.
Is it possible to make this recipe gluten-free?: Absolutely. You can substitute the plain flour with a high-quality, gluten-free all-purpose flour blend that already contains xanthan gum. The texture might be slightly different from the original, but they will still be wonderfully delicious.
Is an electric mixer absolutely necessary?: An electric mixer certainly makes the task of creaming the butter and sugar together much quicker and easier, but it isn’t essential. You can definitely make these by hand with a wooden spoon and a bit of effort! Just be sure that the butter and sugar mixture is very light and fluffy before you proceed to the next step.

Conclusion: Your New Go-To Cookie Recipe

We are truly confident that this chocolate cherry cookie recipe will soon become a cherished favourite in your home. It’s the ideal treat for any occasion, whether it’s for a quiet afternoon with a cup of tea, a school bake sale, or a festive gathering. The rich, chewy texture combined with the perfect harmony of sweet and tart flavours makes these cookies simply irresistible.

So, what are you waiting for? Now is the time to pop on an apron, preheat your oven, and fill your kitchen with the glorious scent of freshly baked cookies. We would be delighted to see your results! Please feel free to share your photos with us on social media or leave a comment below to tell us how your batch turned out. Happy baking!