Chocolate Covered Cherries

One of my dad's favorite Christmas treats of all time was chocolate covered cherries, and it was a tradition for us to get him a slew of them every year since I was old enough pick out presents for people. It made for an easy gift, especially since you can only find them around Christmas, and he loved them (or pretended to love them, anyway...). I specifically remember a conversation with my dad when we were discussing opening a gourmet sandwich shop, and in the midst of our brainstorming  I suggested a homemade candy shop too, and the idea got a little carried away... But how awesome would it be to get a quick, amazing sandwich with a homemade candy for dessert? Yeah, it'd be friggin' awesome, and you know it!

 I thought it'd be a great way to honor my dad's memory around the holidays to make some homemade chocolate covered cherries, since they were such a part of our Christmas tradition with him. And they're a different fun and impressive uber easy addition to a cookie tray.

Chocolate Covered Cherries

-60 maraschino cherries

- 3 T. softened butter

-3 T. corn syrup

-2 cups sifted powdered sugar

-1 lb. good quality dark chocolate ( I used Ghiradelli)

-1 t. canola oil

Directions: Drain and dry cherries on paper towel.

In a medium bowl, gently whisk butter and corn syrup until smooth. Stir in powdered sugar and knead to form a dough. Chill to stiffen if necessary up to 15 minutes. Wrap each cherry in about 1 teaspoon of dough. Chill until firm . Melt dark chocolate and canola oil in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Dip each cherry in with fork, and place on waxed paper lined sheets. Chill until completely set. Store in an airtight container in a cool place. Best flavor when served after 1 or 2 weeks.

 

The phrase "Oh, snap!" comes to mind after making these delicious little sugar bombs. You may want to dip them a few times to get a nice thick coating on each cherry. I'm pretty sure a dentist invented this recipe in its original form with milk chocolate, as that was too sweet for me and I switched it to dark. I made the  squiggles with a small piping tip to give them an authentic look.

The filling is almost like a cadbury egg, tres' amazing.

 I tried to use plain frozen cherries and they wound up slimy, even when I cooked them down, so maraschino are the way to go. Some brands come without high fructose corn syrup for a little extra dough. These ones were also packed in cute little boxes with bows for some holiday treats for friends. I'm sure my dad would have loved them. Enjoy!