These dried cherry cookies are perfectly soft and chewy with just the right thickness. They're studded with plenty of dried cherries and downright addictive!
Why you'll love them
I have high standards for cookies. A cookie should melt your heart and make you swoon. And these dried cherry cookies hit the target. They're perfectly soft and chewy with crisp edges and just the right thickness.
I paired the dried cherries with white chocolate, but you can customize it to fit your tastebuds! Try dark chocolate chips or walnuts instead, or just stick with cherries.
Key Ingredients
Unsalted butter - Make sure to use room temp unsalted butter. If you only have salted, you can use it and omit the salt from this recipe.
Sugar & brown sugar - To sweeten the cookies and cause them to spread just the right amount.
Egg + yolk - The extra yolk ensures you get a rich, dense cookie with a perfect texture! Trust me on this one.
All-purpose flour - Be sure to measure the flour correctly. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then level it off with the flat edge of a butter knife. If you dunk the measuring cup into the flour, the flour compresses, and you end up with too much.
Baking soda - Cookies need a leavening agent, otherwise they end up skinny and tough.
Dried cherries - I buy a big bag of Monterey tart cherries at Costco! Ounce for ounce, it's much cheaper than other grocery stores.
White chocolate chips - If you don't like white chocolate, just leave them out. Or feel free to swap with chocolate chips.
How to make dried cherry cookies
These dried cherry cookies are a breeze to make! First, preheat your oven and prep a sheet pan (or two) with a silicone baking mat.
If you don't have silicone baking mats, you can use parchment paper, but I highly recommend them! They're reusable and dishwasher-safe, which makes cleanup a breeze.
Cream butter & sugar
In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
You can use a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer.
Add the egg and yolk
Add the egg and the yolk to the butter mixture. Beat until thoroughly mixed in. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure it's all incorporated.
Add the dry ingredients
Add the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and kosher salt. Mix on low speed at first so the flour doesn't poof outside of the bowl, then increase the speed to medium.
Beat until the flour is incorporated and a cookie dough forms. Stir in the dried cherries and white chocolate chips.
Scoop and bake
Use a small portion scoop to scoop six cookies onto a lined sheet pan. Place the sheet pan in the preheated oven and bake for 11 to 12 minutes.
The edges should be golden brown and the middles should look underdone! If the whole cookie looks done when it comes out of the oven, it's overbaked. Cookies set up as they cool.
Recipe Tips
- Don't overbake the cookies! If cookies should look slightly underdone when they come out of the oven. This will give you a soft and chewy texture, instead of a crisp one.
- Use a portion scoop for perfectly sized cookies. I have two portion scoops, a small and a large one. I use them daily! The small scoop gives me perfectly sized and uniform cookies every single time.
- Let the dried cherry cookies cool on the sheet pan. Hot cookies fall apart! They need to cool on the pan for a little while before you transfer them to a cooling rack.
Storage & Freezing
To store
Let the cookies cool completely before you store them. Warm cookies will condensate in a bag or container, causing them to perish faster.
Once cool, transfer the cookies to an airtight container or ziplock bag and store at room temperature for up to 4 days.
To freeze
Baked: Transfer the baked cookies to a freezer-safe Ziplock bag or airtight container. If possible, use a sharpie to write the date on the bag. For best results, use within 3 months of freezing.
Unbaked: Scoop the cookies onto a sheet pan or plate. Place the plate in the freezer for 1 hour. Transfer the solid cookie dough balls to a freezer-safe Ziplock bag. Once ready, bake as directed.
To thaw: You can thaw the cookies at room temperature or in the microwave. Zap one cookie on a paper towel in 15-second increments until defrosted. Don't overheat the cookie or it will fall apart.
Variations
- Dark chocolate - Swap the white chocolate chips with dark chocolate chips!
- Nuts - Forget the chocolate and go with nuts instead! Swap the white chocolate with walnuts, pecans, or sliced almonds.
- Dairy-free - Swap the butter with vegan buttery sticks.
FAQs
Dried cherries are great in baked goods like cookies, muffins, and quick-breads. They're also delicious in salads, yogurt, and trail mix. I use them on salads in place of dried cranberries fairly often.
It just depends on the recipe! For example, a cherry pie would not work with just dried cherries. However, you could swap them in baked goods like cookies and muffins.
I don't find it necessary. High-quality dried cherries tend to be moist and plump without the need for soaking. You don't want them to be too moist in cookies anyhow.
More Cookie Recipes
- Chewy Mixed Nuts Cookies
- Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies
- Flourless Oatmeal Cookies
Dried Cherry Cookies
Equipment
- Sheet pans
- silicone baking mats or parchment paper
- Cookie scoop
Ingredients
- 4 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature (8 tablespoons)
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 1 egg + 1 yolk
- 1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour (or gluten-free all-purpose flour) spooned and leveled*
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup dried cherries
- ½ cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a sheet pan with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the egg and yolk to the butter mixture. Beat until incorporated.
- Add the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt to the mixture. Beat on low speed at first, then increase to medium. Beat until a cookie dough forms.
- Add the dried cherries and white chocolate chips. Stir until well combined.
- Use a small cookie scoop to scoop six cookies onto the sheet pan. Bake for 11 to 12 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the middles look underdone.
- Let the cookies cool on the sheet pan before transferring to a wire rack. Repeat with the remaining cookie dough.
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