Chocolate Cherry Cordial Candies
I’m definitely running with this nostalgia recipe kick – making recipes from my childhood that I thought were lost to me – and I’m having a blast doing it!
This week’s recipe is a nod to my grandmother on my father’s side. Every year for Christmas before she passed, her Christmas box would always include a box of Queen Anne Cherry Cordials. We rarely had candy in the house growing up, so these were always a special treat, and one I looked forward to every holiday season.
The holiday season might be far away at the moment, but I couldn’t resist making these!
Cherry cordials are essentially a maraschino cherry wrapped in a soft fondant, dipped in a chocolate shell. The fondant almost liquifies inside the chocolate the longer the candies sit at room temperature.
As I was researching, it seems many of the recipes call for incredibly specific compounds that break down the fondant-like layer into liquid over a period of (about) a week. I opted, instead, to try a version of the recipe that called for butter and corn syrup.
I don’t use corn syrup in my cooking, as I sometimes react badly to corn products. Honey can be a great substitute, but other things sometimes have to be modified (ie, adding tapioca starch) to produce a similar textural effect. Here, I just added about 2T at the end, dusting my work surface while kneading, to dry up the fondant just a little.
I hope you enjoy these as much as I enjoyed making (and eating them)!
CHOCOLATE COVERED CHERRY CANDIES
MAKES: 60 cherries
2 jars Maraschino cherries (about 60 cherries), drained – leave to dry on paper towel
3T soft dairy-free butter/shortening
3T honey
2c powdered sugar
2-4T tapioca starch for dusting
2 bags dairy-free chocolate chips
With a hand mixer or a stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter/shortening and honey until soft. Add in powdered sugar, little by little, and mix until incorporated. If working with shortening add 1-2T of tapioca starch to dough while mixing. A soft dough should form.
Spread working surface with tapioca starch, and remove dough from bowl and knead for 2 minutes. If dough gets too wet, add 1T of tapioca starch and knead in. The dough will start to sweat quickly if you are in a warm environment – work quickly! Roll out dough and cut into squares. Wrap each cherry with a piece of the dough, making sure cherry is covered evenly on all sides.
NOTE: You need less fondant than you think. The fondant should really be less than ¼” thick. As you are wrapping, some of the cherry juice might seep out, which makes it difficult to wrap. You can press the cherries before using to avoid this, but I just work quickly and dust my hands with tapioca starch, because the juice adds a little bit of extra flavor!
Chill cherries on baking dish until firm (about 2 hours).
After cherries are firm, remove from refrigerator. Again, you will need to act quickly: melt 2 bags chocolate chips in double-boiler or microwave. Dip cherries in melted chocolate and place back onto lined baking dish, and back in refrigerator until set.
Store in air-tight containers at room temperature. These do get better the longer they sit, if they last that long!
