Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookies

What a great cookie idea don't you think? I made these over Christmas to give away to friends and everyone enjoyed them. They were fun and something different to make. I couldn't decide which cookie was cuter. Cherry covered in chocolate or uncovered?

Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookies
adapted from Allrecipes.com via Jamie Carpenter

Makes 24 cookies

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 egg *add an extra egg for a chewy cookie
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoon reserved cherry juice, *or 1/2 tsp cherry extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, regular or dark

• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 (10 ounce) jar maraschino cherries, reserve the juice
• 1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 
  
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat the butter and sugar together in a bowl. Add egg, cherry juice/or extract and vanilla extract and beat well. Add the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder and stir until smooth. Roll the mixture into 1-inch balls about the size of a walnut (larger if desired). Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Press center of each ball with thumb. Drain cherries and reserve juice. Place a cherry in indentation of each cookie ball. Bake in preheated oven for 9-10 minutes. 
  
  
  In a saucepan, heat condensed milk and chocolate chips until chips are melted. Stir in 1 1/2 Tablespoons of cherry juice. Spoon about 1 teaspoon of mixture over each cherry and spread to cover cherry. Add more cherry juice to chocolate frosting to get the right consistency if needed.