Cherry Mashers

When my kids were young my (then) Mother-in-law would make chocolate covered cherries for Christmas. I was never a fan of chocolate covered cherries myself. In my defense, the only kind I had ever tried were the kind in the red heart shaped box you find at the grocery store.

One day I decided that I would try one of her chocolate covered cherries and, to my delight, they were marvelous!! But there was something different about these!! They were not like the kind you find at the grocery store. These didn’t have whole cherries inside. Rather they had a gooey delicious cherry filled mixture in them.

Years after my divorce I was craving that wonderful cherry filled chocolate concoction. I tried to get the recipe from family members but no one seemed to have it, or they weren’t giving it up. Fast forward to this past year and I was watching a cooking show on TV. It was Joanna Gaines and she was making Christmas candy. She went on, and on, about this cherry masher recipe her aunt makes. CHERRY MASHERS!? Could this really be the recipe I’ve been searching for for so long? It seemed like the perfect name for them!! I watched with great intent and jotted down all of the ingredients. This HAD to be the recipe.

When Christmas came I decided to give them a try. They tasted fantastic!!! Not exactly how I remembered my (ex) mother-in-law’s, but very close!!! When my boys came home for Christmas, I had them try the cherry mashers. They agreed that they passed the test!! They were very close to their grandma’s recipe! Not exact, but close!!

I decided to make them for Valentine’s Day. It’s the perfect homemade treat for a loved one.

Again, this recipe comes from Joanna Gaines. I actually found it later in my Magnolia Table cookbook as well! I changed just a few small things from the recipe in the cookbook to try and make them more like the cherry mashers I remember.

Ingredients

• 41/2 c powdered sugar
• 6 Tbsp softened butter
• Cherries, drained, dried, and chopped (10oz jar)
• Vanilla 1/2 tsp
• 3Tbsp sweetened condensed milk
• Chocolate melting wafers
• 1 Tbsp oil
• Holiday sprinkles

Recipe

• Blend powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, milk and cherries. Start at low speed and gradually turn it up to medium. Beat for about 4 mins.
• Form the cherry mixture into balls using a 3/4 ounce cookie scoop. Place them on a prepared baking sheet with parchment paper and freeze them. 1 to 2 hours.
• Make chocolate coating in a double broiler or microwave. Add 1 Tbsp of oil to the chocolate to make it easier for dipping.
• Remove the cherry balls and reshape them into balls using your hands. Refreeze them for about an hour.
• Dunk the cherry balls, one at a time, into the chocolate coating. Let the excess chocolate drip off.
• Immediately sprinkle with toppings. Place them back onto the parchment paper.
• We like to put ours back in the freezer and eat them cold.

I hope you enjoy this Valentine’s Day and feel super loved by the loved ones in your life. Whether that’s a significant other or not! I know I am going to enjoy some of these cherry mashers with my amazing husband and be super grateful to Joanna Gaines for bringing something back into my life that I thought was lost. Happy Valentine’s, Everyone!