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Black forest cookies combine the flavors of chocolate and cherry into a soft, chewy cookie!
They are easy to make, only 20 minutes from start to finish. Plus no chilling of the dough is needed.
I wasn’t prepared for how popular our maraschino cherry chocolate chip cookies were going to be!
These black forest cookies are like the chocolatey twin of our pink maraschino cookies!
I’m a chocolate fan through and through, so I knew I wanted to make a chocolate cookie base that incorporated the same flavors – chocolate and maraschino cherries!
Black Forest Cookies
The combination of maraschino cherries and chocolate chips reminds me of delicious cherry cordial ice cream. It’s a favorite all year round!
The cherry flavor in these cookies is on point. We add these cookies to our cookie trays during the holidays. And we love gifting this easy recipe for valentine’s day.
What You’ll Need
Scroll down to the recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions for making Black Forest Cookies.
- unsalted butter – Let the butter come to room temperature.
- brown sugar – I recommend using light brown sugar for this recipe.
- large egg
- vanilla extract
- all purpose flour
- unsweetened natural cocoa powder – you can also use dutch processed cocoa
- baking soda
- salt
- maraschino cherries – Well drained & finely chopped.
- semi-sweet chocolate chips – You can substitute or dark, milk or white chocolate chips.
How to Make Black Forest Cookies
Beat together. In a large bowl beat the softened butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer or in a stand mixer for 1 minute, or until combined. Add in the egg and extract, beat again.
Add dry ingredients. In separate small bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing by hand with a spatula.
Add-ins. Add in the finely chopped cherries and chocolate chips, mix by hand until combined. The batter will be thick.
Scoop. Use a cookie scoop to drop dough balls onto a silicone lined baking sheet or parchment paper. Press additional cherries and chocolate chips into the outside of the dough balls.
Bake for 13-15 minutes. Be sure not to over bake the cookies.
Time Required
- 10 minutes to make the cookie dough
- 13-15 minutes to bake the cookies
- 15 minutes to cool the cookies
How to properly measure flour
Properly measuring flour in any baked good recipe is very crucial. This method, or weighing the flour, is the proper and accurate way to measure flour.
- Whisk the flour
- Spoon flour into the measuring cup
- Use a butter knife to level it off
Do not pack the flour down into the measuring cup.
Do not stick the measuring cup into the flour bag and scoop it out. This will result in too much flour in the recipe, making it dry.
Can this recipe be frozen?
Black forest cookies freeze beautifully! Wrap them in individual portions with plastic wrap or place them in an airtight container or freezer bag with parchment between the layers to keep them from sticking.
Freeze for up to 3 months. Let them thaw in the refrigerator before serving.
Tips for Success
Properly measure the all purpose flour using the spoon and sweep method.
Be sure to drain the cherries well. Once you drained off the juice, put the cherries on a few paper towels and let the extra maraschino cherry juice soak up.
Once the cherries have been drained, finely chop them.
If you want the tops of your cookies to look loaded with cherries & chocolate chips like the ones you see in the photos, be sure to add additional cherries and chocolate chips to the outside of the dough balls before baking the cookies.
These are also a great black forest cherry cookie to make for Christmas!
FAQs
The best way to bake cookies is on a cookie sheet that’s lined with a silicone baking mat. Also, bake cookies in the middle of your oven, one tray at a time.
I’ve also made this recipe with gluten free flour with awesome results! I recommend King Arthur’s Gluten Free Measure for Measure Flour. Use it as a one for one substitute for regular flour.
Yes. The texture will be a little different if you use dried cherries – the maraschino cherries are more juicy and soft compared to the dried cherries.
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Black Forest Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ stick unsalted butter, softened, 1/4 cup
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ⅓ cups all purpose flour
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ cup drained & finely chopped maraschino cherries, plus extra for garnish
- ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus extra for garnish
- To top the cookies: additional chopped maraschino cherries and chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º F.
- In a mixing bowl beat the butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer for 1 minute, or until combined. Add in the egg and vanilla extract, beat again.
- In a separate small bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to wet ingredients, mixing by hand with a spatula. The batter will be thick.
- Drain and finely chop the maraschino cherries. Be sure to pat the cherries to absorb as much excess liquid as possible. Add in the chopped cherries and chocolate chips, mixing with a spatula until combined.
- Use a cookie scoop to drop dough balls onto a silicone lined baking sheet. Press additional maraschino cherry pieces and chocolate chips all around the outside of the dough balls.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes.
- Allow the cookies to cool to the touch on the baking sheet (about 15 minutes) then move them to a cooling rack.
Super enjoyed! My dough was a bit dry but I added a small amount of cherry juice (as suggested) and it was perfect!
Would add more cherries next time..
These cookies were so easy to make, and they were the prettiest cookies I have ever made. Â Make sure to read the tips, they made me a better baker! I give my treats as presents and this definitely helped me make better gifts!Â
Can I use fresh bing cherries?
Hi Patti! I haven’t personally tried that so I can’t predict how it would turn out!
Even with measuring flour correctly…the cookie dough batter was pretty dry…I drained the maraschino cherries in a colander but didn’t add any additional steps to dry them any further. Then chopped them and added into the batter…..they turned out perfectly this way!
This recipe has potential. The dough was dry so I added cherry juice. The cookie balls didn’t flatten. They also weren’t very sweet. I’ve made these cookies before and they were delicious. Not sure where I went wrong 🤷🏼‍♀️Â
Amazing cookies even if you don’t like black forest cake!!!! Only edit i made was i used half mini chocolate chips and half white chocolate chips. Also i rolled them really well in wet chopped cherries before baking.Â
MUST ADD CHERRY JUICE, if you don’t, the “batter” is extremely and I mean extremely dry. However, when putting about 1/2 cup of the cherry juice in, it turns out super good and delicious! Good recipe, just needs cherry juice (or more butter!)
Hi Willow! Be sure to properly measure the flour using the spoon, scoop and level method to prevent adding too much flour.
I’m allergic to red dye which is in maraschino cherries.. can I use fresh cherries or frozen ones even?
I wouldn’t recommend using fresh cherries or frozen ones – too much liquid!
ohhhhh my ! are these good ! glad I read the comments as I added a Tbsp of cherry juice to wet the dough just a little more. Next batch, will definitely use more butter.
Great cookies. I got 17 cookies!
A glass of milk on the side would be perfect.