Danish Cherry Drop Christmas Cookies

Christmas Cookies are a tradition throughout the world. Most people make at least a batch of sugar cookies every Christmas. But, sometimes you can get tired of the same old cookies every year. I try to shake it up by including in my cookie baking some recipes that you won't see at most people's houses. This recipe is one of our favorites. We make about 4 or 5 batches of these every holiday season. My husband eats them before I have a chance to put them away! They can be a little challenging and time consuming but are well worth the effort. I sometimes use colored sugar or food coloring in the icing to make these even more festive.

Danish Cherry Drops

½ cup Butter or margarine (we prefer butter for the richness of the taste)

¼ cup Powdered Sugar

Blend together completely into a smooth mixture and then add:

1 ½ cup plain Flour

1/8 teaspoon Salt

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

½ teaspoon Almond Extract

Blend this really well. The dough will be fairly stiff and somewhat crumbly. You do NOT want it sticky. You can refrigerate the dough for a bit to make it easier to handle.

You will need approximately 2 - 3 jars of maraschino cherries. Drain the cherries, remove any stems and place on paper towels to dry. You want the cherries as dry as possible.

Mold the dough around the cherry in a ball. The easiest way to do this is to take a bit of dough in your palm and flatten it out with a depression in the center. Then place your cherry (stemless) in the center and form the dough around it. Completely seal in the cherry. You do not want any cracks or holes. Do not use too much dough on each cookie. You want a good covering but not a huge mass.

Bake at 350' for 12-15 minutes until they are light brown on the bottom. They will be light on the top but may have a slight color. Try not to overcook them.

Icing

1 cup

Powdered Sugar

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract (or almond which is wonderful!)

2 teaspoons Heavy Cream

If the icing seems too thick for drizzling or dipping, add a tiny bit more liquid. Dip the top of the cookies or drizzle icing over them. Sprinkle with colored sugar as desired. Let the icing set. These will keep longer in the fridge. If you would like, you can add a few drops of food coloring to the icing to make a red or green icing for a more festive look.

A double recipe makes about 5 dozen if you don't put too much dough on the cherry.