Old-Fashioned Cherry Cookies – Chef Donna At Home

Servings: 3 dozen cookies

Cookie dough

  • 10-12 oz. jar of pitted Maraschino cherries
  • 2¾ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 11 Tablespoons Butter, very soft 1 stick plus 3 Tablespoons
  • 2 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, room temperature
  • 2 Tablespoons Maraschino cherry juice, from the jar of cherries
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract
  • ½ cup granulated sugar, for rolling cookies

Glaze

  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons Maraschino cherry juice, from the jar
  • 2 Tablespoons water, as needed
  • Into a strainer, spoon half or more of the cherries. Drain them, chop them by hand and squeeze them of extra moisture as necessary. You need ¾ cup of chopped cherries. Save the juice in the jar for later in the recipe.
  • In a bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
  • Using an electric mixer, cream butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes.
  • Beat in the egg, cherry juice and almond extract until smooth.
  • Slowly beat in half the flour mixture, then the other half. Mix only until smooth, scraping the bowl as needed. Stir in the chopped cherries.
  • Cover and chill the dough in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.
  • When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350° and line some baking sheets with parchment paper if you have it, otherwise grease the sheets.
  • Place the ½ cup of sugar in a small bowl. Using a cookie scoop or a spoon and greased hands, form dough into 1¼-1½” sized balls. Roll them in the sugar a few at a time depending on the size of the bowl. Place them at least two or more inches apart on your baking sheets.
  • Bake 10-11 minutes until just golden on the edges. Cool.
  • Whisk together glaze ingredients in a bowl. Drizzle on cooled cookies in whatever pattern you like. I particularly like a cross hatch design.
  • To make drizzling the glaze easier, you can use a squeeze bottle or a plastic bag. To use a bag, prop the bag open, pour in the glaze, then snip off about 1/4″ of the tip of a corner of the bag with scissors. Twist the top together and squeeze the glaze from the top down.
  • You can chill the dough for a longer time if you need to, even overnight. If it’s cold and solid, just let it sit on the counter for at least 30 minutes before proceeding.
  • These cookies freeze really well. Once the glaze has hardened, freeze them in single layers with wax paper or parchment between the layers. Freeze up to two months.