Easy Chocolate-Covered Cherry Cookies

All the flavor of a box of chocolate-covered cherries, in an easy cookie that starts with a brownie mix. The mix, plus its packet of chocolate syrup, eggs, and butter come together into a stiff, fudgy dough, then pecans and sweet maraschino cherries are stirred through.

The trick to these cookies is pulling them early. Baked just eight minutes and removed while still soft and slightly underdone, they set into a chewy, brownie-like cookie rather than a dry, cakey one. Let them rest a couple of minutes on the sheet to firm up before you move them.

Between the deep chocolate base, the crunch of pecans, and pops of cherry, they taste just like the boxed candy that inspired them, only warm and homemade. They come together fast enough for a last-minute holiday cookie tray.

Kitchen Tips

• Underbake them on purpose; pull the cookies while soft and they finish setting on the sheet into a fudgy texture.
• Drain and pat the maraschino cherries dry so they don’t add extra liquid to the stiff dough.
• Let the cookies rest 2 to 3 minutes on the hot sheet before moving, or they’ll fall apart.
• Chop the cherries if you want them more evenly distributed through each cookie.

Variations

• Swap the pecans for walnuts, or leave the nuts out.
• Press a chocolate kiss or a whole cherry into the center of each before baking.
• Drizzle the cooled cookies with melted chocolate for an extra chocolate-covered look.