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These maraschino cherry chocolate chip cookies always bring the wow factor to any gathering or special occasion. What’s even better? They take just 10 minutes to prep and have a perfect pink color for a beautiful display.
These cookies are SO GOOD! I used cherry juice instead of almond extract and mini white chocolate chips, and made them extra big- 12 cookies a batch. Definitely making these again, boyfriend was obsessed too!
-Jenna
Cherry Cookies
I believe I have mentioned this before, whenever it’s one of my nieces or nephews birthdays, they get to pick what kind of cookie I make and mail to them. Pretty lucky, huh?!
Well one of my nieces doesn’t like chocolate… I know, I don’t understand – I live off chocolate. So I was giving her a few options of cookies I could make and one of the options was maraschino cherry cookies.
I got to work and made five test batches! Some of the batches were pretty funny looking – working with an add in like maraschino cherries can be hard because they have so much moisture. But I finally got the recipe just right!
The ones I mailed her didn’t have chocolate chips so you can definitely make these cherry cookies without the chips, but for us chocolate lovers, more chocolate the better!
The combination of maraschino cherries and chocolate chips reminds me of this delicious cherry cordial ice cream that the ice cream shop near our house has. I love the taste of cherry ice cream, especially if there’s chocolate!
The cherry flavor is on point. These pink cookies would also be fun for baby showers – especially for a baby girl!
We’ve also add these cookies to our cookie trays during the holidays. And we love gifting this easy recipe for valentine’s day.
Ingredients for Chocolate Cherry Cookies
Scroll down to the recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions for making Cherry 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
- almond extract
- pink gel food coloring – I recommend AmeriColor brand.
- all purpose flour
- baking soda
- salt
- maraschino cherries – Well drained & finely chopped.
- semi-sweet chocolate chips – You can substitute or dark, milk or white chocolate chips.
I love the flavor the 1/8 teaspoon almond extract adds to this cookie recipe. Cherry-almond cookies were a match made in heaven!
How to Make Cherry Cookies
- 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 extracts, beat again.
- Gel food coloring. Add in a small amount of pink gel food coloring and mix.
- Add dry ingredients. In separate small bowl, whisk together the flour, 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 14-16 minutes. Be sure not to over bake or the cookies will loose their pink color and turn brown.
- Cool. Allow the cookies to cool to the touch on the baking sheet (about 15 minutes) then move them to a wire rack.
Cherry Cookie Baking Time
For the cherry chocolate cookies in the photos, the dough balls were about 3 heaping tablespoons, so that’s a large cookie!
I baked those for 14-16 minutes – just until the edge of the cookie would begin to turn golden. The result is a soft and chewy cherry chocolate chip cookie!
If you make smaller dough balls, you should reduce the baking time otherwise the cookies will be over done.
Time Required for Chocolate Cherry Cookies
- 10 minutes to make the cookie dough
- 14-16 minutes to bake the cookies
- 15 minutes to cool the cookies
Gluten Free Cherry Cookies
I have made these cookies multiple times with King Arthur’s Gluten Free Measure for Measure Flour with great success.
Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies Tips
Here are some tips and hints for perfect cherry cookies.
Properly measure the all purpose flour using the spoon and sweep method.
You need 3/4 cup chopped & drained maraschino cherries. Plus an extra 2 tablespoons or so for garnish. 3/4 cup chopped maraschino cherries is about half a 16 oz jar.
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.
Can you freeze maraschino cherry cookies?
Maraschino cherry 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.
In the mood for more sweets? Learn how to add crumb topping to any muffin or try chocolate pudding pie!
More Recipes From The First Year
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Maraschino Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ stick unsalted butter, softened, 1/4 cup
- ¾ cup light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ⅛ tsp almond extract
- Small amount of pink gel food coloring
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour, 180 grams, properly measured
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¾ cup drained & finely chopped maraschino cherries, plus extra for garnish
- ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus extra for garnish
Instructions
- It's critical that you measure the flour accurately. Unknowingly adding too much flour will result in dry cookies.The most accurate way to measure flour is to use a kitchen scale, weighing it in grams. If you don’t have a kitchen scale, follow this method. Aerate the flour with a whisk or spoon. Flour becomes heavy and compact as it sits. Aerating is the same as fluffing the flour, but not the same as sifting it. Do not sift the flour unless the recipe specifically calls for it. Use a spoon to sprinkle the flour into the measuring cup. Do not tap the cup against the counter, as this will compact the flour. Use the back of a butter knife to level off the excess.
- 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 extracts, beat again.
- Add in a small amount of pink gel food coloring and mix.
- In separate small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to wet ingredients, mixing by hand with a spatula.
- Add in the finely chopped maraschino cherries and chocolate chips, mix by hand until combined. The batter will be thick.
- Use a cookie scoop to drop dough balls onto a silicone lined baking sheet. Press additional cherries and chocolate chips into the outside of the dough balls.
- Bake for 14-16 minutes – be sure not to over bake or the cookies will loose their pink color and turn brown.
- Allow the cookies to cool to the touch on the baking sheet (about 15 minutes) then move them to a cooling rack.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclosure
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.
Mine did not come out at all like yours.
My cookie dough never turned pink. I used the gel pink coloring and kept adding, but the color never changed. At a point I had to just stop for risk of turning the dough into a bitter taste. They looked and tasted like cakey choc chip almond flavor cookies with cherries added. Was a bit disappointed.
What brand of gel food coloring did you use? Did you make any other changes? Did you use light brown sugar or dark brown?
Exactly what I experienced!
I followed the recipe and they came out perfect! Can’t wait for my friends and family to try them.
Cookies came out too cake-like for me. I measures everything exactly, butter was at room temp, and blended everything in order.
Really good flavor. My friends and I also reduced the maraschino juices with some amaretto to make a glaze that enhanced the cherry flavor.
I think we under baked a little because I was afraid of them getting too brown. Was curious if you tried tenting the pan in foil for any amount of time to reduce browning?
I love how you reduced the juice with amaretto! I haven’t tried tenting the cookies.
Chocolate chip cherry cookies
I bake TONS of cookies, it’s my thing. Which is why I totally do not trust the 1/2 stick of butter to 1.5 cups flour. I’m reading how stiff this dough is and how poorly they spread, and that’s exactly why. I don’t wake my mixer up fir less than 2 sticks of butter, and that would need 6 cups of flour, which I’ve NEVER used that much flour in any 1 cup of butter ratio. Nope. I love the flavor profiles here, I’d even throw in some chopped pistachios for pops of green and call it a Spumoni cookie, perfect for Christmas. But I’m absolutely tweeking the fat/flour ratio to something that makes more sense.
How would you modify it? More butter to amount of flour, or more flour to amount of butter?
The cookies taste great, but even with the gel food coloring, the pink color is not there. I tried regular food coloring, too. I think the picture might be enhanced a bit.
Hi Sue! I used a good dollop of rose pink gel food coloring from Wilton.
I’m thinking of mixing red and green maraschino cherries to make it more “Christmasy”
Love that idea! Email me a photo at beth@thefirstyearblog.com, I’d love to see!
Made these cookies yesterday, without the chocolate chips (as I am with your niece – nasty stuff! lol! Nice to know there is another non chocolate eater in the world!). They came out great! Used a small scoop and got 36 lovely delicious cherry cookies!!