Chocolate Cherry Maple Cookies

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After the successful Lemon Pound Cake, I figured I should try a few other desserts with different flavor profiles.  Don’t worry, I’ll always come back to my true love peanut butter and chocolate, but in the mean time, I’ll entertain the idea that other combinations can taste good too!

Recently I was in search for something that would be easy enough to make on a weeknight and freeze well so that I wouldn’t eat waste all of the leftovers.  I found a recipe in this cookbook and adapted it to make Chocolate Cherry Maple Cookies.  I used semi-sweet chocolate chunks to get a big blast of flavor, but not too much chocolate because I didn’t want to overpower the cookie.  The dried cherries add a slightly tart contrast to the cookie as well.

The cookie dough isn’t overly sweet but it has a nice hint of maple flavor.  Their texture is in-between shortbread and butter cookies and they are a little bit addicting as a result.  These cookies would make a great addition any dessert platter.

To begin, combine butter, sugar and syrup in a mixer

Beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes

Then, add the egg and vanilla; beat well

Once well-combined, slowly add the flour while mixer is on low speed

Then stir in chocolate and cherries

Once dough is mixed, split dough into two sections and roll each up in saran wrap

Refrigerate for several hours or overnight

Slice logs of dough into cookies about 1/4 inch thick

Bake on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper for 10-12 minutes

Cookies will be just slightly darker and firm to the touch when done

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Chocolate Cherry Maple Cookies

Makes ~30 cookies

Adapted from the Lindt Chocolate Passion Recipe Book

Ingredients:

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 heaping tablespoons maple syrup

1 large egg at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks

1/3 cup dried cherries

Directions:

Combine butter, sugar and syrup in a mixer; beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes

Add the egg and vanilla; beat well

Once well-combined, slowly add the flour while mixer is on low speed

Stir in chocolate and cherries

Once dough is mixed, split it into two sections and form logs with diameters of about 2 1/2 inches; wrap each tightly with saran wrap

Refrigerate for several hours or overnight

Once ready to bake, pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Slice logs of dough into cookies about 1/4 inch thick

Bake on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper for 10-12 minutes

Cookies will be just slightly darker than dough and firm to the touch when done

Notes:

I made the dough one night and baked the cookies the next.  You could easily freeze the dough for several weeks prior to baking if needed.

You may want to consider chopping the cherries into smaller pieces to get them more spread-out through the dough. That would work well if you want cherry in every bite.

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What new flavors have you tried lately?