Cherry Winks
Classic holiday cookies featuring a soft date, pecan, and cherry center with a crunchy crushed cornflake shell. Baked until golden for a sweet retro treatment on dessert platters.
Equipment
- Electric Mixer
- large bowl
- Cookie sheets
- Cooling racks
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup shortening
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1 cup chopped dates
- 1/3 cup chopped maraschino cherries patted dry with paper towels
- 1 1/2 cups coarsely crushed corn flakes cereal
- 15 maraschino cherries quartered
Instructions
- Beat the sugar and shortening in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth, then mix in the milk, vanilla, and eggs. The mixture should look creamy and unified before the dry ingredients go in.
- Mix in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt on low speed, then fold in the pecans, dates, and chopped cherries. Stop when the dough comes together and the fruit and nuts are spread throughout without streaks of dry flour.
- Cover and refrigerate the dough for 15 minutes if it feels soft or sticky. After chilling, the dough should feel firmer and easier to shape without clinging heavily to your hands.
- Heat the oven to 375°F and spray cookie sheets with cooking spray, then roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough in the crushed corn flakes and shape them into balls. Coat each ball thoroughly, leaving plenty of coarse cereal pieces visible on the outside.
- Arrange the balls 2 inches apart and lightly press a maraschino cherry quarter into the top of each one. The cherry should sit securely without flattening the dough ball.
- Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, then leave the cookies on the sheets for 1 minute before moving them to cooling racks for about 30 minutes. Pull them when the edges turn light golden brown and the cornflake coating still looks bright and crisp.
Notes
Texture tip: Pat chopped maraschino cherries thoroughly dry with paper towels to prevent excess moisture from loosening the dough or bleeding pink syrup.
Crush tip: Coarsely crush cornflakes by hand or gently with a rolling pin rather than creating fine cereal dust to maintain maximum crunchy texture.
Baking tip: Bake one cookie sheet at a time on the center rack, and ensure sheets cool completely between batches so warm pans do not melt shortening early.
Storage: Cool cookies completely on wire racks before placing them in an airtight container to keep trapped steam from softening the cornflake shell.
Nutrition information is an estimate based on common ingredients and serving sizes. Values may vary depending on brands, portions, and substitutions.