Monday, July 31, 2017

White Chocolate Cherry Cookies

A shot of cherry drink mix turns these white chocolate-studded cookies a vibrant pink.

Glittering Citrus and White Chocolate Cherry cookies

I'm going to preface this by saying there's pretty much nothing "healthy" about these cookies. I mean, they're essentially the Unicorn Frappuccino of the cookie world - nothing in nature is that pink.

But that's not to mean they're not tasty. Ohh, no. Every once in a while nothing but a true dessert-y indulgence will satisfy, and these cookies also invoked the "kid" in me. Pretty much everyone I know who grew up in the USA or Canada drank at least some Kool Aid in their formative years, and while my parents were of the "half the sugar" club I do have to say it made fantastic, tongue-staining popsicles. They, along with strawberry shortcakes on our back deck, were the highlight of many summers with friends.

Thinking about making an almost "cotton candy" cookie with the powder was intriguing, and a great way to say adios to summer. I found a pretty basic cookie recipe online and played around a bit, not only adding the unsweetened powder but a dash of honey for chewiness, cake flour for an almost melt-in-your-mouth tenderness and white chocolate chips for their unabashed sweetness.

With Summer at it's height, and carnivals cropping up everywhere, these cookies are a great way to toss your baking hat into the ring. If nothing else, the kids will adore the colour and sweet cherry taste, while the grown up kids will have a hint of nostalgia for their "long lost" childhoods.

White Chocolate Cherry Cookies
Makes 50
2 cups margarine (I used Becel)
¼ tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1 pkg unsweetened cherry Kool Aid
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp vanilla
1 ¼ cups whole wheat flour
2 cups cake flour
½ cup white chocolate chips (use a good quality - there's no reason to sacrifice taste)
Sanding sugar to top
  1. Preheat oven to 300F, line cookie sheets with parchment.
  2. Cream together the margarine, salt, sugar, kool aid, honey and vanilla.
  3. Slowly beat in the flours, then mix in the white chocolate chips.
  4. Drop 2” apart onto the cookie sheets and lightly flatten with wet fingertips. Sprinkle with sanding sugar.
  5. Bake, one sheet at a time, for 15-17 minutes, until the cookies are just starting to firm up.
  6. Cool completely on the sheets.
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 107.5
Total Fat: 6.8 g
Cholesterol: 0.2 mg
Sodium: 66.5 mg
Total Carbs: 11.2 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.4 g
Protein: 0.9 g