Rich and full of cherries and nuts, I found this recipe awhile ago and made them for my husband, who loves black forest cake. The recipe had been put aside and I thought I'd lost it until recently when I found it again. Since the time I first made it, I quit baking with the sickly sweet and flaming red candied cherries it calls for. What's a girl to do? Well, I found a jar of sour cherries at the store instead, drained them well, and used them in place of the maraschino ones. You can use either, if you wish.
Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 cup chopped walnuts or almonds
2/3 cup softened butter
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups maraschino cherries, drained and chopped (reserve 1/4 cup juice)
Pre-heat oven to 375 F.
Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl, beat together the butter, and sugar until fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and continue to beat well. Combine with the flour mixture, alternating with the buttermilk. Fold in the cherries and nuts. Drop by teaspoonfuls about 2 inches apart onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Icing
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup cocoa
1/4 tsp. almond extract (or vanilla)
1/4 cup maraschino cherry juice
1 1/2 cups icing sugar
Melt the butter in a saucepan and stir in the cocoa, almond extract and cherry juice. Whisk in icing sugar until smooth. Frost cooled cookies and top with 1/2 of a maraschino cherry.
