These Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies are the perfect treat for any special occasion. Bonus, these vegan cookies are freezer friendly.

Valentine’s Day is close and these Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies are the perfect treat. Valentine’s Day being close also means another chance donate to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer! We are always so excited to participate in this Valentine’s event. This is the fourth year for our event and we want to continue to make a difference in the fight against pediatric cancer. Donate here.

HOW TO MAKE CHERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Then you’ll mix in the applesauce and vanilla. Set this aside and combine the dry ingredients.

In a separate bowl combine the all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

Mix the dry mixture into the wet mixture slowly until the dough forms. Once the dough forms add in the chocolate chips and cherries.

Once combined cover the bowl and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or overnight.

When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and remove the cookie dough from the fridge, let it sit at room temperature while the oven comes up to temperature if you left it in the fridge overnight.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Use a cookie scoop to measure out the cookie dough. Place the cookie dough balls onto the baking sheet and bake for 12-14 minutes or until the cookies are lightly golden around the edges.

Place a towel on the counter and then remove the baking sheet from the oven. Carefully drop the cookie sheet onto the towel. Let the cookies sit on the baking sheet for 2 minutes and then you can transfer to a cooling rack.

OPTIONAL COOKIE ADD-INS:

You can easily add other ingredients like nuts or seeds. Also, another great option is swapping out the chocolate chips for white chocolate chips.

CAN YOU FREEZE COOKIE DOUGH?

Yes, this Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe is freezer friendly! We do recommend that you leave the cherries out and then add in once you’re ready to bake them.

HOW TO FREEZE COOKIE DOUGH

Scoop the dough onto a lined baking sheet and leave a little space between them, you can leave less space than when you’re baking.

Freeze the dough and once the dough is mostly frozen you can place it into a freezer-safe container. We like using our stasher bags.

When you’re ready to bake the dough you can let it sit on the counter while the oven preheats or you can leave them in the refrigerator overnight.

COOKIES FOR KIDS’ CANCER

Cancer is the #1 cause of death of children by disease in the U.S. There are 40,000 U.S. children actively battling cancer right now. The National Cancer Institute’s budget for childhood cancer is less than 4%. We’re thrilled to create these Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies to share with you and we also give a donation each year. You can help us make a difference by donating to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer!

Our goal is to raise at least $3000. Because these three companies: OXO, Mediavine amd Dixie Crystals have each pledged to match our donations raised through this campaign up to $3000! That means when we raise $1, it turns into $4 thanks to these companies matching donations.

Thank you to so many of you who have already donated, please help us reach our goal so we can get the full matching donations and help us make an even huge difference! If you cannot donate, please consider sharing on social media. Donate here.

Previous recipes we’ve made:

COOKIE TIPS & TRICKS:

Do not bake the cookies until the oven is preheated. To ensure your oven is cooking at the correct temperature we suggest using an oven thermometer to check.
Don’t over bake the cookies. They will continue to cook after you remove them from the oven.
If you like a chewier and softer cookie use all brown sugar instead of the cane sugar. (That would mean 1 1/3 cups brown sugar)
Our favorite tip for cookies is letting them get puffy while baking and then carefully dropping the cookie sheet onto a counter or floor. It makes the cookie flatten and makes for a chewy and delicious cookie. Please be careful while doing this, if you have a fragile counter or floor, or fragile yourself – you can allow the cookies to slowly sink on their own as they cool.