A couple of tips to keep in mind.
- The center filling is not a true fondant. I added some Amaretto to the filling as it does not call for any flavoring. Just enough so the filling is easy to knead.
- The cherries must sit on paper towels and dry. It is important that they are dry so the cherry juice doesn’t make your filling too runny.
- When you are ready to wrap the cherry I found it worked to take your ¾ teaspoon of filling, flatten it with your fingers till thin enough to wrap around the cherry. Just wrap it up making sure that you are around the stem if using long stemmed cherries.
- Then they have to dry till the filling is dry to the touch. Hold them by the stem and dip them in the chocolate.
- If they don’t cover completely use a spoon to drizzle chocolate on them.
- I melt the chocolate in a bowl over just simmering water. Take from heat and keeping it over the water let it cool. I melted the chocolate as soon as I covered the cherries with the filling and the chocolate was just right to use.
- If it is too hot, it will melt the filling as you dip them.
- Use a good grade of cherries, Sue and I use Star brand we buy at Costco.
20 ounces or 40 marachino cherries
3 tablespoons butter (softened, just till it will bend, about 20 minutes)
3 tablespoons white corn syrup
2 cups powdered sugar
6 ounces milk chocolate chips (I use Hershey brand)
1 tablespoon all vegetable shortening like Crisco
DirectionsLet cherries stand on paper towels and drain for 2 hours, change paper towels halfway through. Longer won’t hurt them. Line a baking sheet with wax paper.
In a medium bowl, combine butter, corn syrup, and powdered sugar. A very little flavoring of your choice, just enough to make the filling easy to handle. Knead it until smooth. Using ¾ teaspoon each wrap around each cherry and let sit until dry to the touch. Chilling them will speed this up. Mine took about an hour.
Meanwhile melt the chocolate and Crisco over warm water. Let cool. Taking the cherries by the stems, dip in chocolate let drip over the bowl and place on wax paper. Let stand till the coating is firm. Stored in the refrigerator they will keep for up to 1 month. The longer you keep them the more the mixture around the cherries will soften and liquefy.
I bet these are so good.
ReplyDeleteI'll be out till next week.
Happy holidays.
They really are good and don't last long at our house. Happy Holidays to you also. So far we seem to be headed towards no snow so that will be good with people traveling.
DeleteOoh, we made these in 4-H when I was a young girl. It was so much fun! Ours didn't turn out as elegantly as the boxed ones, but we sure had fun making them.
ReplyDeleteIn our part of Wisconsin, a bottle of brandy and a box of chocolate-covered cherries were the ultimate holiday host & hostess gifts!
Not sure about which type of liquor but they were gifts in Minnesota also. The chocolate covered cherries especially. I can remember when as a kid i hoarded mine and did not share. These are fun to make and I had lots of help making and eating them.
ReplyDeleteWell, in Wisconsin the Brandy Old-Fashioned was the number one mixed drink of choice, so gifting a bottle was only proper! I just recently read an article about how the trendsetters in Manhattan have "discovered" the Brandy Old-Fashioned as a "sophisticated" drink. I had a good laugh over that one! The young always think they are the first to discover everything! Just goes to show what comes around, goes around...
ReplyDeleteIsn't that the truth. So many recipes now days are in my older cookbooks and the young folks think they are making something new. At least it gets many of them to cook and bake which is always a good thing. Enjoy you chocolate covered cherries if you decide to make them.
ReplyDelete