Cherry chocolate chunk cookies bring together tart dried cherries and rich chocolate chunks in every bite. And cream cheese in the dough keeps the cookies soft and fluffy. They come together easily and offer a sweet and tart twist that always stands out on a cookie tray.
Are you a flat and crunchy cookie person or a soft and chewy cookie person? I am definitely team soft and chewy. And if you are too, you will love these cookies. Cream cheese steps in as the secret ingredient that keeps every bite tender while adding just a little tang. That softness sets the stage for the next part of the magic: cherries and chocolate.
Cherries and chocolate just make sense together because they balance each other in a way that feels comforting and familiar. Dried cherries bring a tart, chewy fruitiness that blends perfectly with the rich notes of chocolate. The two balance each other without competing, which is why people reach for this combo when they want something classic but that still feels a little special.
Jump to:
Ingredients
- Semi sweet chocolate chunks or chips
- Dried cherries
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Salted butter
- Cream cheese
- Brown sugar
- Almond extract
- Vanilla extract
- Eggs
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions
- Chocolate chunks - semi sweet is usually my go to chocolate for cookies, but you can use milk, dark or white chocolate as well. However, you don't need to use chunks, chocolate chips work perfectly! You could also substitute nuts for all or part of the chocolate or the cherries to have cherries and nuts cookies or chocolate and nuts cookies. Or even a combo of cherries, chocolate and nuts.
- Dried cherries - you could substitute fresh cherries for the dried cherries or use another type of dried fruit if you wish. You could also use thawed frozen cherries or even maraschino cherries for a festive color pop. If using thawed frozen cherries or maraschino cherries, make sure to strain them and then soak up any extra liquid with a paper towel or cloth napkin.
Equipment
A stand or hand mixer is helpful for making cherry chocolate chunk cookies.
Storage
Store any leftover cookies an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 to 4 days.
Next Level Tips
- I love buying chocolate chunks at Aldi. However, I've also seen chocolate chunks at Target and other stores. You could even rough chop bars of chocolate to make your own chunks!
- These chocolate cherry cookies are naturally puffy. After baking, they do not deflate like regular chocolate chip cookies. If you want flatter cookies, you'll have to press them down before baking.
- Don't over-mix these cookies. One of the main reasons for cookie fails is often over-mixing. Mix just until all the flour has been incorporated.
- Don't take them out of the oven early like you might for regular chocolate chip cookies. Let them bake until the tops are starting to turn golden brown.
- White chocolate and maraschino cherries make an extra festive color combo during the holidays!
FAQ
Yes, of course! Chocolate chips are the classic way to use chocolate in cookies. However, don't be afraid to try something new! Chocolate chunks make your cookies look a little different. A little more elegant. And, if you have an Aldi nearby, chocolate chunks are cheaper than regular chocolate chips right now too.
Fun fact: almonds are not actually nuts! Almonds are the pit of a stone fruit which makes them related to cherries, also stone fruits. The difference is that almonds are the pit we eat whereas with cherries, we eat the fleshy fruit part and toss the pit. They share the same flavor compound called benzaldehyde which is found in all stone fruits. Since they share the same flavor profile, I always use almond extract any time I want to enhance the flavor of cherry in a recipe.
Related
Looking for other cookie recipes? Try these:
Cherry Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Equipment
- 1 Stand or hand mixer
Ingredients
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 8 tablespoons salted butter softened
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 ½ cups brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup dried cherries roughly chopped
- 10 ounces chocolate chunks
Instructions
- Add the all-purpose flour, baking soda and salt to a small bowl. Stir well and set aside.
- Add the softened butter and cream cheese to a mixing bowl and mix with a stand mixer or hand mixer on medium low until well blended.
- Add the brown sugar, almond extract and vanilla extract to the mixing bowl and mix until fluffy.
- Add the eggs to the mixing bowl and mix until combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl and mix only until all of the flour streaks are gone.
- Fold in the dried cherries and chocolate chunks until they are evenly distributed. (You can also set aside some chocolate chunks and dried cherries if you want to press some into the tops of the cookie mounds manually before baking.)
- Refrigerate the dough for one hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray or line the baking sheet with parchment paper or a baking mat.
- Use a medium cookie scoop, or two spoons, to drop the dough in mounds of about 2 tablespoons each onto the baking sheet. (I like to bake in batches of 12, but these puffy cookies don't spread too much so you can certainly fit more on a standard baking sheet.)
- Bake for 13-15 minutes until the tops are lightly browned. Don't remove them early like you might for regular chocolate chip cookies.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a minimum of 5 minutes. Then transfer them to a cooling rack to finish cooling.
- Makes 36-40 cookies. Enjoy!
Would you like to save this?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Don't worry! We won't spam you!
Mary Perales says
Loved this recipe! The chocolate cherry gave a nice balance between a sweet and tart bite with the batter.
Tracy @ Next Level Baker says
So happy you loved it!