Cherry Chocolate Chunk Cookies

 Here is another new cookies recipe for Christmas 2023. I had to be careful there. The other day I wrote the date as 2024. I don’t want to get ahead of myself. Anyway back to the cookies. These are so good. The rich chocolate flavor with the tart cherries, just delicious if I do say so myself. If cherries are not your thing keep watching because I’m sure I will have a new cookies that you will love.

You notice my pretty painted plate. I have a large set of these plates for all the different holidays that my mother-in-law painted in the early 90’s. They are perfect for showcasing the cookies.

This recipe calls for semisweet chocolate chunks but if you can’t find them or you have chocolate chips I’m sure you can use them too.

Start with 1 stick-1/2 cup of softened butter. I haven’t mentioned this but I always use unsalted butter when I bake. Most recipes include salt so it helps you control how much salt you add. It’s a personal preference.

Add 3/4 cup sugar. Mix well. Your butter will turn a light yellow when it is well mixed.

Add one egg. You need your eggs to be at room temperature for baking. If you have farm fresh eggs you can leave them sitting out for a while so you don’t have to worry about bringing them to room temp. I have enjoyed having locally raised farm fresh eggs.

2 Tablespoons of 2% milk. That is what the recipe calls for. I usually have 2%. Up if you don’t I don’t think it will ruin the cookies, Now skim milk I don’t know what it would do to this recipe.

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. Mix all the wet ingredients well in your mixer.

Add 1 cup plain flour. Another suggestion that I have forgotten to remind you of. Add your flour or other dry ingredients a little at a time and start your mixer on low. Just take my word for this. You don’t want flour or even worse cocoa powder flying all over your kitchen.

Add 6Tsblespoond of baking cocoa powder. Mix well very slowly.

Add 1/4 teaspoon baking soda.

Add 1/4 teaspoon salt.Mix all this well.

Now add both 1 cup semisweet chocolate chunks and 1/2 cup dried cherries. Mix well.

Nice rich chocolaty batter. Now this batter is very sticky. If I had to do it over I might put it in the fridge for a little while before I started scooping the dough.

My two sample cookies. I have to see if they are good or not. But I do share. The rest were scooped and put in the freezer. I place them in ziplock freezer bags labeled with the name and oven temp and time.  Bake these in a preheated 350 oven. Bake for 12-14 minutes.

I hope you will try these cookies soon.

Cherry Chocolate Chunk Cookies Recipe

1/2 cup softened butter

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

2 Tablespoons 2% milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla 

1 cup plain flour

6 Tablespoons cocoa

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup semisweet chocolate chunks

1/2 c dried cherries

Preheat oven to 350. Bake 12-14 minutes.

Elf Cookies

 

I don’t know if you can tell or not but there is some shiny sprinkles on top of the cookie. It shows up more in the light. The cookies got a little browner than I would have liked. I’m going to adjust the baking time from what the recipe called for.

Now I have to share something with you. The original name of these cookies is Elf Poop Cookies. While funny some people might not like the name so I am just calling them Elf cookies. But I had to share this picture of how the cookies are really made. Keebler has elves in the trees, I have elves in my freezer making cookies, or at least Elf PoopCookies. I hope it at least makes you smile today.

Now on to the recipe that my Elves make. Very easy recipe and you can use any kind of sprinkles you like. 

Start with 2 sticks softened butter.

Add 1 1/2 cups sugar. Mix well.

Then add two eggs. Another baking hint here. Crack your eggs into another bowl instead of the cookie dough bowl. Learn from my mistakes. You could get shell into your batter. No one wants that.

Add 2 Tablespoons of vanilla. The original recipe calls for peppermint extract but you could substitute vanilla. Not everyone likes peppermint flavoring and sometimes it can taste like medicine so I went for the vanilla.

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt. Mix all this well.

Now gradually add 2 1/2 cups plain flour. Mix after every addition. Scrap down the sides.

Add 1 cup mini chocolate chips.

I had two different kinds of sprinkles so I mixed them. You need 1 cup of whatever kinds of sprinkles you use. When it is not Christmas you can make unicorn cookies and put all kinds of multicolored sprinkles in the dough. Now mix the chips and sprinkles up in the dough.

Look at all those sprinkles.

These are my two test cookies.

I had some silver and shiny white sprinkles/glitter for the tops of the cookies. I tried a cookies with one of each. After baking you really couldn’t tell a difference in the colors. The silver might have been a little shinier. Place in a preheated 350 oven. The recipe calls for cooking for 15 minutes. At the time I thought that was a long time but followed the recipe. Next time I will bake for 12 minutes to test. You can always add more time in one minute increments. 

These are going in the freezer. I did not put the shiny on them yet. I will wait until I bake them and add it then.  I will make a note on the bag that goes in the freezer.

Enjoy.

One more look at Elfie.

Elf Cookies Recipe

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 sticks softened butter

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla or peppermint extract

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 cups plain flour

1 cup sprinkles

1 cup mini chocolate chips. 

Preheat oven to 350. Bake 12-15 minutes.

Spicy Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

 Okay I am introducing a cookie here that I never thought I would make. A spicy cookie! Who would have thought. I thought it sounded interesting and it does have chocolate with it. How bad could it be? Now not everyone is going to like this cookie. Some people do not like spicy things. It’s not real spicy. It is a wonderful rich chocolate cookie and then after you take a couple of bites you feel the heat. It comes in on the back end. Give it a try.

Look at that rich chocolate. Here cookies are worth a try.

Except for the cinnamon and cayenne pepper this could be a regular chocolate cookie.

Start with 2 sticks softened butter.

Add 1 1/2 cups sugar. You will need a little more sugar later.

Add 1 teaspoon vanilla. And mix everything well. 

The softer your butter the easier the butter and sugar mix.

2 teaspoons cream of tartar. This gives the cookies a light and airy consistency.

1 teaspoon baking soda.

1/2 teaspoon sea salt.

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. You will need some more later.

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper.

1/2 cup cocoa. Now mix all this together. I like adding my baking soda, salt and other things before I add the flour it tends to get mixed better. Be careful with the cocoa.

Add 2 eggs.

All mixed up. Smells good.

Gradually add 2 1/4 cups plain flour.

Add 1 cup semis sweet chocolate chips.

In a separate bowl add 1/4 cup sugar.

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix well.

Take you cookie and roll in the cinnamon sugar mixture.

Place in parchment lined cookie sheet. Place in a 375 preheated oven. Bake for 10 minutes. 

These will go in the freezer.mi did not roll in the cinnamon sugar before putting in the freezer. I will roll before they go in the oven.

Now enjoy these cookies. My husband when he bit into one said I don’t taste the heat. Then he did. 

Spicy Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies Recipe

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 sticks softened butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

2 eggs

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 1/4 cups plain flour

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

In a separate bowl 

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375. Bake for 10 minutes.