Spiked Chocolate Covered Cherries
This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure PolicyThese Spiked Chocolate Covered Cherries are a delicious and fun treat to make for the holidays or any time of the year. Cheers!
Hey there, friends! Welcome to Day 3 of the 12 Days of Christmas adventure! Are you enjoying things so far? Picking up a few ideas? I hope you’re taking a hot minute to check out all of the bloggers’ projects. You can follow along easily with our shared Pinterest board or on Instagram with #12days72ideas.
Spiked Chocolate Covered Cherries:
This wouldn’t be a proper series on IBC without a few recipes. Today I wanted to share something that’s super easy, but extemely delicious and very fancy looking: Spiked Chocolate Covered Cherries.
I’ve been a fan of chocolate covered cherries since I first tasted one. When I was a child, Santa would always bring me a box of Queen Anne’s Cherries, and I’d gobble them up in no time. Now as an adult (and a blogger), I thought it was time to try making them. However, I’ve kicked them up a notch by spiking them with delicious liquors. Remember the rum soaked gummy cherries I made this summer? Apparently I like to soak things in liquor.
These cherries are pretty simple to make. (See the bottom of this post for the complete recipe.)
Start off by soaking the cherries in your liquor of choice. I tried cherry vodka and white creme de cacao. Let them soak for several days, ideally a week.
Now you’re ready to dip them! I chose milk chocolate for the vodka-soaked cherries and white chocolate for the ones soaked in the creme de cacao. Quick tip here: Dry off your cherries with a paper towel before dipping them. This will help the chocolate to stick.
How to Make Chocolate Covered Cherries:
Once dipped, set the cherries on a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Since I was making two varieties, I used the opposite chocolate on each to make a decorative drizzle. Pretty!
Place the chocolate covered cherries in your refrigerator to set them completely.
These spiked chocolate covered cherries are fun to make and delightful to have around for holiday get-togethers. If you keep them covered in the fridge, they should last for a few days.
As it turned out, I liked both liquor flavors equally. The cherry vodka is higher in alcohol so the cherries soaked in it are a bit stronger, but still very tasty. It all depends on what you prefer.
The cherries look fabulous when served by themselves, but you can also tuck them into your cookie trays for a pop of color. The cherries also work beautifully as a cocktail garnish. (They’d be extra delicious in my Cherry Almond Cocktail and White Christmas Martini). I think they’d look really beautiful atop a cake or cupcake.
For some reason, I just love the flavor of cherries during the holidays. They are comfort food. Maybe it’s all those Queen Anne’s I ate as a kid. Who knows?
Give these a try and tell me what you think. If you use any other liquors, please let us know in the comments what you tried and what you liked best. Cheers!
Spiked Chocolate Covered Cherries
Ingredients
- 16 ounces maraschino cherries with stems
- 1/2 cup liquor Cherry vodka or creme de cacao work well.
- 1 cup chocolate chips dark, milk, or white
- 1 teaspoon shortening
Instructions
- Begin by soaking maraschino cherries (with stems) in liquor for 4-7 days. I tried two different versions. One with cherry vodka; the other with white creme de cacao. I soaked my cherries right in the jar they came in. Just empty out the red syrup and fill the jar with the liquor.
- Once they have soaked for the specified time, drain off the liquor. (You can save this for cocktails.) Then, dry the cherries on a paper towel. This will help the chocolate to stick.
- Cover a cookie sheet with wax paper and set aside.
- In a double boiler (or the microwave), melt your chocolate chips and shortening. (The shortening prevents the chocolate from getting really hard.) Stir until smooth.
- Next, dip the cherries into the chocolate and set on wax paper. Add any leftover melted chocolate to a plastic baggie. Cut a very small section of the tip of the bag and pipe lines or designs on the cherries.
Don’t use the microwave to melt your chocolate, use the boiler method or your bag of chocolate in the bag unopened and hot water in a bowl deep enough to submerge the entire chocolate bag. A small pan works 👍
Microwaves destroy the taste of chocolate.
Adam artisan baker
Brooklyn MI.
Help! Ive been soaking the cherries all week and want to coat them tonight. I just realized I have no shortening like a Crisco. What can I use instead?
Coconut oil … or just leave it out.
xo Michael
After I make my cherries for the holidays I immediately go out and buy some for next Christmas. They soak for a full 12 months. They are INCREDIBLE
Yay! I am making gift baskets this year with lots of yummy treats and am adding these to the basket!! Thank you for the idea! 🙂
I make wiskey cherries but cover them with fondent before covering them with chocolet. bill
How far in advance can these be made and still look pretty?
I have my cherries soaking as we speak..should they go in the fridge or should they be out at room temp? Thanks!
I’d keep them in the fridge.
xo Michael
It’s been years since I thought of spiked cherries. I soaked mine in brandy, I think and used them to garnish a really dense cherry-something.
Now I’m going to wrack my 73 year old brain until I remember. Maybe the recipe is in my set of cooking encyclopedias from the 70s? Hmmmm – they are probably in the basement…
Thanks for the reminder, Michael.
Sheila
these are beautiful – and should be very tasty. I did similar ones for July 4 – i soaked the cherries in fireball whiskey, then dipped them in white chocolate and coated the bottoms with blue sanding sugar — they were OMG awesome… (i can’t take credit for the recipe – i found it on Pinterest – they are called cherry bombs). I happen to love fireball whiskey and anything else bourbon…
i really like the idea of the cherry vodka & the creme de cacao. i will have to try that next…
Do you refrigerate while they are soaking?
I live in Michigan where it is cherry season right now- Do you think this would work well with fresh pitted cherries?
I made these cherries using your recipe for a cocktail-making party last night, and they were AMAZING. I figured they would be good, but they went way beyond expectation. Better than anything I’ve bought at the store! I just used left over liqueurs I had in the cabinet, it ended up begin a mix of Triple Sec, Disaronno, Frangelico and white rum. They were a big hit at the party and I’ll be making them again. Thank you so much for the inspiration!
Just found your blog through Pinterest! Love your ideas! So talented!!
I’ve condensed my tree down to a smaller size since my children are grown and gone with homes of their own. I now put my most special ornaments on my tree including one for each year my husband and I have been together and most importantly one each year for my grandchildren. It’s getting pretty full, now have 4 grandchildren and may have to get a bigger tree soon!!!
Looking forward to all your ideas and trying to recreate some!!
Ruthie
they look delicious!!
My mouth is watering oh so much. Wish I could reach in the screen and grab a bunch of those cherries!
Michael, I seriously was expecting some really fancy schmancy ingredients and techniques for the chocolate part. Chocolate chips and shortening?! I can do this!
I LOVE chocolate covered cherries and wish every Christmas someone would read my mind and get me a quality boxful. (never happens LOL) I’m really going to try this! My shopping list is now updated… thanks! They are gorgeous!
These look absolutely delicious! And they’re beautiful, to boot–a holiday win-win.
I have fond memories of those Queen Anne’s chocolate-covered cherries myself. . . but your homemade ones look much more appetizing. I want to try these!
Oh my goodness! These look amazing!!
We love chocolate-covered cherries too, but hadn’t considered adding a homemade version to our baking repertoire. These look absolutely scrumptious and delightful. They would be a perfect addition to our treat tray!
Yes please and then some……