Black Forest Cookies

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Soft and chewy chocolate cookies filled with creamy white chocolate chunks and sweet maraschino cherry pieces.

Is there a food, specifically a dessert, that reminds you of your childhood? I’ve said before that cardamom tastes like my childhood and honey walnut cookies taste like Christmas growing up, but there is a cake that reminds me specifically of dessert with my mom.

And while I’ve loved whipping up cakes every month this year, authentic black forest cake is pretty involved, so I’m not exactly ready to tackle it just yet. Maybe sometime in the future, but not with a toddler while I’m almost 20 weeks pregnant.

Cherry fillings, kirsch, chocolate shavings, whipping cream, espresso… No. No no no. Not happening right now. Especially that kirsch situation. I have a hard enough time watching people at holiday parties these days downing G&Ts. Sad face.

But a cookie? Reminiscent of a cake that’s incredibly involved? I’m totally down. And if I can add it to my cookie party? Even more down!

Now I have to say, the cake my mom made that I spoke of? A total black forest shortcut. She’d bake up 2 layers of chocolate cake (something similar to this), put a layer of cherry pie filling between the cake layers, and cover the whole thing in Cool Whip.

And it was so so good.

We’d eat it up so fast, and that cake always stuck as one of my favorite flavor combos (cherries + chocolate = love).

I still have a hard time passing up a cherry cordial (and there’s a recipe for cherry cordial puppy chow in my cookbook)!

So these cookies are similar– a shortcut to black forest while still holding onto the essence of the whole idea itself in an easy, one-stop-shop cookie.

This is now the third time you’re seeing this basic recipe. A classic chocolate cookie recipe can be the perfect one to hold onto for adding in all sorts of add-ins. I first made this chocolate cookie when I made my chocolate cayenne cookies, and we saw it again last week in my chocolate white chocolate chunk cookies.

We’re just changing up what we’re putting inside (and a little bit of the baking directions) to make the perfect vehicle for cherries and white chocolate chunks.

These chocolate cookies are FILLED with goodies. Every bite has creamy white chocolate and bits of incredibly sweet and flavorful maraschino cherries.

Every. Single. Bite.

And the way we make sure that happens is by adding a whole jar of cherries. chopped up into bits. It takes a tiny bit of work, but it’s so worth it. Just be sure to buy de-stemmed cherries before starting. Otherwise you’ll have to pull 18-20 stems out before chopping. Not the worst thing, but the sooner you get those cherries in that batter, the sooner you have one in your mouth.

Definitely the latter is better, right?

These cookies are super soft, chewy, and packed with so much flavor. They definitely hit the spot if you’re a fan of black forest cake and like the chocolate/cherry combo without all the work of the cake (although I would love to dive into that someday and share the labor of love on the blog!).

The white chocolate chunks provide the creamy complement to the deep dark chocolate and the sweet and chewy cherries. A must have on the cookie trays for those texture lovers in your life!

So there are two more days of cookies left in the 12 Days of Christmas Cookies. Have you made any yet? What’s your favorite? What have you added to your list of cookies to make?

I sure am having fun sharing all of these cookies with you, so stay tuned for a few fun things to help wrap it all up before Christmas is here and Santa is ready for all of his treats!

5 from 1 vote

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Black Forest Cookies

Soft and chewy chocolate cookies filled with creamy white chocolate chunks and sweet maraschino cherry pieces.

Prep Time15 mins

Bake Time10 mins

Total Time25 mins

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Recipe Author Lynn April

Servings: 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 and 1/4 cups all purpose flour be sure to measure properly
• ▢ ¼ cup + 2 Tablespoons Dutch processed cocoa
• ▢ ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
• ▢ 1 cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 large egg
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ 8-10 ounces maraschino cherries about 18-20 cherries, finely chopped
• ▢ 4 ounces white chocolate chopped

Instructions

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl with a handheld mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy (approximately 2-3 minutes). Turn the mixer speed down to medium, add the egg and vanilla, and beat again until combined.
• With the mixer on low, slowly add flour mixture and beat until just combined. Add the white chocolate chunks and cherries and continue mixing until evenly dispersed. Cover dough and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days.
• When you are ready to bake the cookies, line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
• Using a cookie scoop (I use this #50 cookie scoop for all of my standard size cookies), roll the dough into balls and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until edges are set and center is no longer shiny. Remove from oven and allow to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature up to 1 week. Baked cookies can be frozen, up to 2 months. Rolled cookie dough can be frozen, up to 3 months. Place on baking sheet and add 1-2 minutes to baking time.

Did you make this recipe?Mention @freshaprilflours on Instagram or tag #freshaprilflours!

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.