Homemade Cherry Cordials Recipe | The Recipe Critic
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Homemade cherry cordials are a tasty, nostalgic treat! They’re made with sweet cherries that are coated in a rich chocolate shell. Make them for Christmas or Valentine’s Day, and watch them disappear!
Reasons You’ll Love This Recipe
- An Irresistible Sweet Treat: I’m a fan of chocolate-covered anything! I can’t get enough of sweets like chocolate covered strawberries and creamy chocolate covered banana bites. But these chocolate cherries might be my favorite!
- Better Than Store-Bought: All you need is a little time and patience, and you’ll have a treat everyone will love. Plus, homemade is more special!
- Perfect for Any Occasion: These are great year-round, but I especially love to make them for gifting around the holidays.
Cherry Cordial Ingredients
The ingredient list for this cherry cordials recipe is short and simple! Invertase is a unique ingredient, but you can easily find it at baking supply stores or online. Scroll to the bottom of the post for the exact measurements.
- Maraschino Cherries: These sweet cherries add a juicy burst of flavor with each bite!
- Water: Helps dissolve the sugar for the fondant.
- Granulated Sugar: Sweetens the fondant mixture.
- Light Corn Syrup: Keeps the filling nice and smooth.
- Maraschino Cherry Liquid: Adds extra cherry flavor.
- Invertase: Creates the signature gooey texture of the inside filling.
- Almond Extract: For a warm, nutty flavor.
- Chocolate: Use coating chocolate or almond bark to create the candy shell.
How to Make Classic Cherry Cordials
Don’t be intimidated by the number of steps in this recipe. The instructions are very simple and easy to follow. You’ll be biting into sweet, gooey cherry cordials before you know it!
- Dry the Cherries: Drain the cherries and reserve the liquid. Lay the cherries out on a few layers of paper towels. Pat them dry well with a few more paper towels. Set aside.
- Make the Fondant: Add the water, sugar, corn syrup, and cherry juice to a heavy bottomed saucepan. Heat over medium heat until boiling. Use a pastry brush to carefully brush water around the inside rim of the pan. This will melt any sugar granules into the pot.
- Make the Syrup: Use a candy thermometer and cook the syrup until it reaches 240-244ºF, about 5-8 minutes.
- Cool the Syrup: Remove it from the heat and pour it onto a small greased baking sheet. Let the syrup cool until it reaches 120ºF, about 20-30 minutes.
- Beat the Syrup: Once cooled, transfer the syrup to a stand mixer bowl. Beat on medium speed with the paddle attachment until the syrup becomes opaque and runny. Pour into a container and store in the fridge until you are ready to dip your cherries.
Dipping the Cherry Cordials
- Warm the Fondant: Before dipping, gently warm the fondant in 20-second increments in the microwave until it is runny and flows off a spoon in ribbons. You can also use a double boiler. Stir in the invertase and almond extract.
- Dip in Fondant: Dip the cherries in the fondant. Let the excess drip off, and then wipe the bottoms on the side of the bowl.
- Let Them Sit: Place the fondant dipped cherries on a greased baking sheet. Warm the fondant as necessary to keep it workable. The more it cools down, the thicker it will coat the cherries. Let them sit until fully set.
For the Chocolate Coating
- Heat the Chocolate: Once the cherries have been dipped and the fondant is set, heat the coating chocolate in the microwave in 30-second increments. Stir well between each increment until all the chocolate is melted.
- Dip the Bottoms: Dip just the bottoms of the cherries in the chocolate and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Dip the Whole Cherry: Once the bottoms have set, dip the whole cherry in the chocolate. Make sure they are fully coated and set on a parchment-lined baking sheet until fully set. Store in an airtight container for at least 48 hours or up to 3 weeks. This will allow the invertase to liquify the fondant before serving. You can check if they are ready by cutting open a cherry every other day or so until they have liquified to your preference.
Chocolate-Covered Cherry Cordial Tips
New to making candy? These tips will ensure you make the best chocolate covered cherries!
- What is invertase? Invertase is an enzyme used in candy making to help break down candy into liquid sugar. It takes time to work. You can dip the cherries in firm fondant icing and then coat them in chocolate. The best part? No candy mold is needed! Over a few days or up to three weeks, the invertase breaks down the fondant into syrup for the signature oozing cherry cordial.
- Do you HAVE to use invertase? You don’t have to! The cherries will still taste delicious, just not like traditional liquid-filled cordials. For an adult version, soak them in the liquor of your choice. Bourbon, amaretto, cherry liqueur, or Kirsch.
- Using Chocolate Chips: If you use chocolate chips to dip your cherries, add a tablespoon or two of shortening or butter. This will increase the fat content to avoid streaked chocolate. I prefer almond bark or candy melts because they are so easy to melt and dip. You can even temper chocolate to get the absolute most beautiful dipped cherries.
- Using Stemless Cherries: If you use maraschino cherries without stems, use gloves. Don’t worry about making the fondant coating perfect since you’ll cover it with chocolate. Wear gloves and drizzle chocolate all around to fully coat the cherries. And use them to decorate with chocolate swirls or drizzles.
- Dipping Cherries: When dipped in the fondant, don’t bother with parchment paper. Place them right on a greased baking sheet.
- Almond Extract: You don’t have to add the almond extract if you don’t care for it! It won’t affect the outcome of the fondant, just the flavor.
Making the Sugar Syrup
- Making Sugar Syrup: When cooking the sugar syrup, don’t stir it! This can disturb the sugar and cause little sugar crystals to form outside of the syrup. Even one sugar crystal can cause your syrup to crystalize and turn grainy as it cools. So, it’s important not to disturb it once you’ve cleaned the inside of the pot with the pastry brush. Also, be sure to thoroughly wash any utensils used to stir the sugar mixture if you end up stirring it together before heating it.
- Cooling the Syrup: You don’t have to pour the syrup onto a baking sheet to cool. You can pour it into a greased microwave safe bowl instead, but it will take longer to cool to 120ºF. Pouring it into a greased baking sheet helps speed up the process!
How to Store Leftovers
I recommend storing at room temperature, if you love that gooey center! However, you can freeze them too, so make a double batch!
- Storing: Place the cherry cordials in an airtight container. Store at room temperature or in the fridge for up to 4 months.
- In the Freezer: You can freeze the candies, but this may cause the chocolate to crack and the liquid fondant to leak out. If you do freeze them, freeze in an airtight container for up to 6 months. Enjoy them frozen or left at room temperature to thaw for a few hours.
More Cherry-Inspired Desserts to Try
If you are craving something sweet with cherry and chocolate, I’ve got you covered. Try the recipes below! Let me know which is your favorite!
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Drain the cherries and reserve the liquid. Lay the cherries out on a few layers of paper towels and pat them dry well with a few more paper towels. Set aside.
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Make the fondant to dip the cherries in by adding the water, sugar, corn syrup, and maraschino cherry liquid to a heavy-bottomed saucepan and heat over medium heat until boiling. Use a pastry brush to carefully brush water around the inside rim of the pan, melting any sugar granules into the pot.
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Use a candy thermometer and cook the syrup until it reaches 240-244 degrees Fahrenheit, or the soft ball stage, about 5-8 minutes.
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Remove it from the heat and pour it onto a small greased baking sheet. Let the syrup cool until it reaches 120 degrees Fahrenheit, about 20-30 minutes or so.
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Once cooled, transfer the syrup to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium speed with the paddle attachment until the syrup becomes opaque and runny. Pour into a container and store in the refrigerator until you are ready to dip your cherries.
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When you are ready to dip your cherries, gently warm the fondant in 20-second increments in the microwave or over a double boiler until it is runny and flows off a spoon in ribbons. Stir in the invertase and almond extract.
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Dip the cherries in the fondant and let the excess drip off, then wipe the bottoms on the side of the bowl.
-
Place the fondant-dipped cherries on a greased baking sheet. Warm the fondant as necessary to keep it workable, as the more it cools down, the thicker it will coat the cherries. Let them sit until they are all fully set up.
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Once the cherries have been dipped and the fondant is set, heat the coating chocolate in the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring well between each increment until all the chocolate is melted.
-
Dip just the bottoms of the cherries in the chocolate and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
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Once the bottoms have set, dip the whole cherry in the chocolate. Ensure they are fully coated and set on a parchment-lined baking sheet until fully set. Store in an airtight container for at least 48 hours or up to 3 weeks to allow the invertase to liquefy the fondant before serving. You can check if they are ready by cutting open a cherry every other day or so until they have liquified to your preference.
Calories: 168kcalCarbohydrates: 29gProtein: 0.01gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.003gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.003gSodium: 8mgPotassium: 3mgFiber: 0.2gSugar: 29gVitamin A: 2IUCalcium: 3mgIron: 0.03mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
