Chocolate Covered Cherry Delights Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until blended. Gradually beat in cherry juice and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour and cocoa; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Stir in coconut, cherries and chocolate chips., Shape dough into 48 balls (about 1-1/4 in.); place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Press a deep indentation in center of each with the end of a wooden spoon handle. Bake 9-11 minutes or until set and bottoms are lightly browned. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely., Fill each cookie with 3/4 teaspoon frosting. Top with cherries. In a microwave, melt chocolate chips and shortening; stir until smooth. Spoon over cherries. Let stand until set.

Steps:

• Place the dried cherries in a coating pan attached to a stand mixer. Spin at low speed. Using a ladle, add the chocolate to the spinning cherries. Add one ladleful at a time until the cherries are coated to the desired thickness. (Use a 50/50 ratio (50 percent chocolate, 50 percent weight of the cherries.) If a thicker coat is desired, use more chocolate and vice versa.
• How to Temper Chocolate(From Dessert Circus, Extraordinary Desserts You Can Make At Home by Jacques Torres):
• Chocolate is tempered so that after it has been melted, it retains its gloss and hardens again without becoming chalky and white (that happens when the molecules of fat separate and form on top of the chocolate). There are a variety of ways to temper.
• One of the easiest ways to temper chocolate is to chop it into small pieces and then place it in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time on high power until most of the chocolate is melted. Be very careful not to overheat it. (The temperature of dark chocolate should be between 88 and 90 degrees F, slightly warmer than your bottom lip. It will retain its shape even when mostly melted. White and milk chocolates melt at a temperature approximately 2 degrees F less because of the amount of lactose they contain.) Any remaining lumps will melt in the chocolate's residual heat. Use an immersion blender or whisk to break up the lumps. Usually, chocolate begins to set, or crystallize, along the side of the bowl. As it sets, mix those crystals into the melted chocolate to temper it. A glass bowl retains heat well and keeps the chocolate tempered longer.
• Another way to temper chocolate is called seeding. In this method, add small pieces of unmelted chocolate to melted chocolate. The amount of unmelted chocolate to be added depends on the temperature of the melted chocolate, but is usually 1/4 of the total amount. It is easiest to use an immersion blender for this, or a whisk.
• The classic way to temper chocolate is called tabliering. Two thirds of the melted chocolate is poured onto a marble or another cold work surface. The chocolate is spread out and worked with a spatula until its temperature is approximately 81 degrees F. At this stage, it is thick and begins to set. This tempered chocolate is then added to the remaining non-tempered chocolate and mixed thoroughly until the mass has a completely uniform temperature. If the temperature is still too high, part of the chocolate is worked further on the cold surface until the correct temperature is reached. This is a lot of work, requires a lot of room, and makes a big mess.
• A simple method of checking tempering, is to apply a small quantity of chocolate to a piece of paper or to the point of a knife. If the chocolate has been correctly tempered, it will harden evenly and show a good gloss within a few minutes.

Steps:

• Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or waxed paper. Pat cherries dry with paper towels.
• Melt chocolates separately in stainless steel bowl set over pan of simmering water, stirring until smooth.
• Holding stem of cherry, dip cherry into melted chocolate to coat. You can coat half of cherry in white chocolate and half in semisweet chocolate, if desired. Transfer chocolate-dipped cherry to prepared cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining cherries and melted chocolate.
• Refrigerate for about 40 minutes, or until set.

Steps:

• Add chocolate drink mix, almond milk, cherries, and ice to blender and blend until smooth.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F, rack in middle position.
• Melt butter and mix in sugar.
• Let mixture cool.
• Add eggs, mix thoroughly.
• Add baking powder, baking soda, salt, vanilla and cocoa, stirring after each addition.
• Add flour and mix well (dough will be stiff and a bit crumbly).
• Drain cherries, remove stems, reserve juice.
• Pat dough into walnut-sized balls.
• Place on a greased cookie sheet, 12 to a standard sheet.
• Press down in center with thumb to make a deep indentation.
• Place one cherry in each indentation.
• In a saucepan, over simmering water (double boiler), combine the chocolate chips and condensed milk.
• Heat on low until the chips are melted.
• Add approximately 1/8 cup of reserved cherry juice and stir to a thick sauce.
• If sauce is too thick, carefully add a little more juice. Test with a teaspoon. If it doesn't glob off, it is too thick.
• Spoon the sauce over the center of each cookie, just enough to cover each cherry. Make sure it doesn't drip down the sides.
• Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes.
• Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes.
• Remove to rack to finish cooling.