Christmas Cookie Baking Round 4 - Cherry Winks and Thumbprints - by Sunscape

I'm gaining on baking enough cookies for twelve giveaway trays for all my neighbors. It was a full day making these two cookies, but I made it through. Standing for a long while in the kitchen can sometimes take a toll on my lower back. Thank goodness for ice packs and heating pads after doing all that work at one time.

Cherry Winks

Cream together:

1/2 cup softened butter
1 cup of sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sift Together:

1 1/2 cups of flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon of salt

• Combine the dry and wet ingredients to make your dough and roll the dough into small, one-inch-sized balls. Place them on a parchment-lined baking tray, this will help keep the tray clean.

Drain:

1 10-ounce jar of Maraschino cherries - reserve the juice

• Make an indent in each dough ball with the back of a measuring spoon. Fill each cookie with one of the Maraschino Cherries.

Frosting:

6 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate chips or white chocolate
1/2 cup of condensed milk
4 Tablespoons of the cherry juice

In a small saucepan, combine the chocolate pieces, condensed milk, and cherry juice stirring until the chocolate is melted. Drizzle the frosting over each cookie and bake in a preheated oven at 350°F. for approximately 10 minutes until done.

Thumbprints

Cream together:

1/2 cup softened butter
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 egg

Add:

1/4 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of flour

• 1 egg separated - Beat the egg white until frothy.
• Make one inch-sized dough balls and dip them into the egg whites, then roll them into chopped walnuts, about a cup or more.

• Line a baking sheet with parchment to prevent sticking, and using the back of a measuring spoon, make an indent in the center of each dough ball.

• Bake the cookies for 6 minutes in a 325°F. oven. Remove the tray and spoon a dollop of your favorite jam into the center of each one. This year I used my homemade jams, pineapple, strawberry, and raspberry.

• After filling, return the cookies to the oven and back an additional 8-10 minutes. Allow them to cool slightly on the tray before transferring them to the cooling rack.

These will be a nice addition to the cookie assortment, and I only have one more day in the kitchen before I can assemble the cookie trays. That will be all about chocolate, stay tuned for more holiday goodies.

Round 1- Cuccidati and Sesame Cookies

Round 2- Cranberry-Pistachio Shortbread and Coconut Cookies

Round 3- Red Velvet Crinkles