Chocolate Cherry Surprises, Variant of Chocolate Covered Surpris

Sweet and tender cookies with milk chocolate and maraschino cherry centers. These are a variant on my original Chocolate Covered Surprise Cookies #133833. The same method used to form this variant could be used with the Chocolate cookie dough for double the chocolate taste!

• Ready In: 1 hr 25 mins
• Serves: 24-25

Ingredients

• 2⁄3 cup butter, softened
• 3⁄4 cup  firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1  tablespoon maraschino cherry juice
• 1  teaspoon vanilla extract
• 25  maraschino cherries, patted dry
• 1  cup  milk chocolate chips, plus
• 25  more  milk chocolate chips, divided

Directions

1. Butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy.
2. Add flour, cherry juice and vanilla; mix well.
3. Cover; refrigerate 1 hour.
4. Preheat oven to 350°F
5. Stuff each cherry with 1 of the chocolate morsels; wrap in 1 tablespoon of dough, completely covering cherry with dough.
6. Roll each into ball.
7. Place, 2 inches apart, on ungreased baking sheet.
8. Reserve remaining chocolate morsels for later use.
9. Bake 15 minutes, or until lightly browned.
10. Remove from baking sheet to wire rack; cool 30 minutes.
11. Melt remaining 1 cup chocolate morsels in top of double boiler over low heat. (Or, place in small microwavable bowl; microwave on HIGH 45 seconds.
12. Stir until chocolate is completely melted.) Dip tops of cookies into melted chocolate.
13. Return to wire rack; let stand until chocolate is set, about 1 hour.
14. Store in single layer in airtight container at room temperature.