With aromatic cherries and rich, velvety chocolate, these Chocolate Cherry Thumbprint Cookies are delicious and addicting! The cherry flavor is subtle, not overpowering, but will leave you hungry for more!
Welcome to Day 12 of our 12 Days of Cookies!
We made it to the end! Take a look at the holiday cookies we’ve been sharing!
Day 1 – Copycat Crumbl Reese’s Peanut Butter Cookies
Day 2 – Linzer Cookies
Day 3 – Chocolate Dipped Orange Cookies
Day 4 – Turtle Tassies
Day 5 – Fruity Pebbles Cookies
Day 6 – Brownie Mix Cookies
Day 7 – Cornflake Wreaths
Day 8 – Double Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Day 9 – Pizzelles
Day 10 – Bourbon Toffee Cookies
Day 11 – Peppermint Gooey Bars
Day 12 – You’re on it!
SAVE THIS CHERRY CHOCOLATE THUMBPRINTS RECIPE TO YOUR FAVORITE PINTEREST BOARD!
I love maraschino cherries! They are such a fun topping for ice cream sundaes and the perfect sweet treat to add as a surprise to these cookies. When you mix them with chocolate, how can you go wrong? Chocolate and Cherry- what a combination!
Want cherries, but don’t want a chocolate cookie? Make these Cherry Thumbprint Cookies.
What is a “thumbprint” cookie?
Believe it or not, it’s just like it sounds! Each cookie has a thumbprint in the middle. Before baking, you’ll add a thumbprint to the center of each cookie dough ball. That is where we will later add the maraschino cherry before we cover it all with delicious cherry fudge frosting.
What you’ll need to make these Chocolate Cherry Cookies
Gather the following ingredients for your chocolate cookie dough:
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Unsalted butter, room temperature
- White granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- Pure vanilla extract
- 1 jar maraschino cherries, stems removed and blotted dry
- Save the juice for the frosting!
Chocolate Cherry Frosting Ingredients
To make the frosting, you’ll need the following:
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Sweetened condensed milk
- Maraschino cherry juice
How to make Cherry Chocolate Thumbprint Cookies
First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees and prepare cookie sheets by lining them with parchment paper, then set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt) and set aside.
In a large bowl, use an electric mixer or stand mixer on medium-low speed to cream butter and sugar. Mix until light and fluffy, then add the egg and vanilla. Continue mixing until they are fully incorporated.
Slowly add the flour mixture along with the cocoa powder, mixing on low until just combined.
Use a cookie scoop to form 1-inch balls, rolling in between your palms to smooth out the dough. Place them evenly apart on the prepared baking sheet. Use your thumb or a ½ teaspoon measuring spoon to press an indent in the center of each cookie dough ball, then place a cherry in the middle of each cookie on top of the thumbprint.
Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes or until cooked through. Cool completely on wire racks.
Frosting your Thumbprint Cookies
In a small bowl that is microwave-safe, combine the semi-sweet chocolate chips, condensed milk, and cherry juice. Stir to combine. Cook in the microwave in 15-second intervals until the chocolate is melted and smooth, stirring in between each round.
Transfer the melted chocolate frosting into a piping bag and drizzle over the cooled cookies. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes:
- The cookie dough should be about Play-doh consistency. You should be able to roll it between your palms without sticking but you also shouldn’t have to force it to stay together. If the dough needs adjusting you can add a little more flour if it’s too sticky, or a teaspoon of milk if it’s too dry.
- Make sure your cherries are blotted dry completely before adding them to the cookies. If you skip this step, you will end up with a wet spot in the center of the cookie.
- 10 minutes was PERFECT when we tested this recipe. With chocolate cookies, it may be hard to tell when they are done. I like to look at the edges of the cookie and carefully check the bottoms. The cookies are soft, so they won’t firm up until they start to cool.
- If your frosting is too thick, you can thin it with more cherry juice.
Can I make Chocolate Cherry Thumbprints ahead of time?
This dough is perfect for making ahead and freezing until ready to bake! Simply make the dough as directed, roll the cookie dough into balls, then freeze the balls until ready to bake. I would freeze them on the cookie sheet until firm, then transfer them to a freezer bag to freeze completely. Then thaw the dough balls to room temperature before baking.
How to store leftover cookies
Because of the cherry, these cookies should be enjoyed within three days of being made. Store any leftovers in the fridge or at room temperature in an airtight container.
These popular cookies are a staple not only during the holiday season but also for Valentine’s Day or any time you want to make a cherry lover happy! I know you’ll love these decadent, fudgy cookies, so share them with your loved ones today!
More Cherry Recipes
There are tons more cherry recipes on the blog for you cherry fans! Try one of these next time:
- Christmas Cherry Hand Pies
- Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake
- Red Velvet Cherry Dream Bars
- Chocolate Cherry Crinkles
- Cherry Pound Cake
- Chocolate Cherry Pancakes
- Chocolate Cherry Cookies
- Cherry and Dark Chocolate Galette
- Black Forest Cherry Dream Bars
- Chocolate Cherry Cheesecake Bread Pudding
These chocolate cookies with a cherry in the middle and more chocolate drizzled on top are delicious and easy enough to eat all year long! However, they are sure to be a hit when they’re served in those cookie boxes because who doesn’t like chocolate and cherries?
Chocolate Cherry Thumbprints
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups All-purpose Flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 jar Maraschino Cherries stems removed and blotted dry
Chocolate Cherry Frosting
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ½ cup sweetened condensed milk
- 2 teaspoons maraschino cherry juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper.
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, use an electric mixer on medium low speed to combine the butter andsugar. Mix until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and vanilla and continue mixing until fully incorporated.
- Slowly add the flour mixture, along with the cocoa powder mixing on low just untilcombined.
- Use a large cookie scoop to form balls, rolling in between palms to smooth.
- Place evenly apart on the prepared cookie sheet anduse a ½ teaspoon measuringspoon (or your thumb) to press an indent in the center of each cookie dough ball. Place a cherry in the center of each cookie.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes or until cooked through. Cool completely.
Cherry Chocolate Frosting
- In asmall bowl, combine the semi-sweet chocolate chips, condensed milk and cherryjuice. Stir to combine.
- Cook in the microwave in 15 second intervals until the chocolate is melted and smooth.Be sure to stir in between each round. Do not over cook.
- Transferthe frosting into a piping bag and drizzle over the cooled cookies. Serve.
Notes
- The cookie dough should be about playdough consistency. It should be able to roll between palms without sticking but you also shouldn’t have to force it to stay together.
- If the dough needs adjusting (this happens to even the best bakers!) you can add more flour if it’s too sticky or a teaspoon of milk if it’s too thick.
- 10 minutes was the PERFECT bake time for me. With chocolate cookies, it can be difficult to tell when they are done. I like to look at the edges of the cookie and carefully check the bottoms. The cookies are soft, so they won’t firm up until they start to cool.
- Make sure your cherries are blotted dry completely. If you skip this step you will end up with a wet spot in the center of the cookie.
- Because of the cherry, the cookies should be enjoyed within 3 days of being made. Store in the fridge or at room temperature.
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You can make and freeze the dough balls and thaw them before baking if you want to make this ahead of time.
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If your icing is too thick, you can add cherry juice to it.
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If you make the frosting ahead of time and freeze it, be careful to slowly melt the frosting so it doesn’t seize.
Comments & Reviews
Looks delicious!
The directions say to add egg and vanilla but there is no egg in the ingredient list. Is it just one egg? Thank you.
Brenda, thanks so much for bringing that to our attention! It was accidentally omitted, but the recipe card has been updated to show one egg is needed in the ingredient list.
did not try yet, but egg is not in the recipe, but mentioned in directions.. cookies look great and will try for Valentines day.