Cocoa Cherries Recipes

COCOA CHERRY PORK

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Whisk cocoa powder, ancho chile powder, cumin, black pepper, and chipotle pepper in a bowl. Set aside.
• Generously season tenderloins with salt, then coat in the cocoa powder mixture. Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place tenderloins in the skillet and reduce heat to medium. Cook until browned on each side, about 4 minutes.
• Transfer tenderloins to a baking dish; cook in the preheated oven until pork is slightly pink in the center, about 20 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 145 degrees F (63 degrees C).
• Whisk cherry preserves, vinegar, and oregano in a small saucepan over medium heat; bring to a boil and cook 30 seconds. Remove from heat; season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon sauce over pork tenderloin and serve.

LOTS OF CHOCOLATE CHERRY COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
• Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy.
• Beat the egg, coffee granules, and vanilla into the butter and sugar mixture until blended.
• Change the speed to low and pour in the flour mixture. Beat until just combined.
• Stir in semisweet chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, and dried cherries.
• Drop spoonfuls of the dough two inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets.
• Bake 10 to 12 minutes per batch in the preheated oven, until cookies are just becoming firm.
• Let cool on baking sheets for two minutes.
• Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

COCOA & CHERRY OAT BAKE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Cover the cherries with boiling water and set aside for 10 mins. Meanwhile, mix the chia seeds with 3 tbsp warm water.
• Drain the cherries and put in a large bowl with the soaked chia and the remaining ingredients, except the hazelnuts. Tip into a 2-litre ovenproof dish and scatter over the hazelnuts, then bake for 25-30 mins until piping hot in the middle. Serve with yogurt and cherry compote, if you like.

CHOCOLATE CHERRY CAKE (DAIRY-FREE)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350F/180C and grease an 8x8-inch pan.
• In a small bowl, whisk together hot water and cocoa powder until smooth. Set aside to let cool slightly until warm.
• In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
• In another medium bowl, mix together eggs, oil, vanilla extract, and water-cocoa mixture. Add egg mixture into flour mixture and mix with a rubber spatula just until combined. Do not overmix-the less you mix, the lighter the cake will be.
• In a small bowl toss cherries with 2 teaspoons flour in order to prevent cherries from sinking during baking. Add cherries and chocolate chips to cake batter and fold just until combined.
• Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean (repeat testing if your toothpick runs into a cherry). Allow cake to cool completely on a wire rack.
• Dust the top with powdered sugar or top with chocolate ganache. Serve at room temperature.
• Cake can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

CHOCOLATE-CHERRY GINGER COOKIES

Steps:

• Place racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper. Put the turbinado sugar in a shallow bowl and set aside.
• To a large bowl, add the granulated sugar, butter, oil, cocoa powder, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt, and whisk to combine.
• Add the molasses and egg to the bowl, and whisk until smooth. Add the flour and baking soda, and stir with a rubber spatula until a few streaks of flour remain.
• Add the chopped chocolate and cherries, and stir until well-combined and the flour is completely incorporated and no longer streaky.
• Portion the cookies into 24 balls that are roughly 2 tablespoons/35 grams each, roll them in the turbinado sugar, and place them on the prepared baking sheets, 12 cookies per sheet.
• Bake the cookies for 15 to 17 minutes, rotating the sheets from front to back and top to bottom halfway through, until crackly on top but still quite soft in the center. Cool the cookies completely on the baking sheets, then store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.