Brandy Infused Chocolate Dipped Cherries

I am addicted to any kind of chocolate covered cherry.

 

Honestly.

 

I can’t walk by a box of them for the holidays without wanting to purchase the whole aisle of chocolate covered goodness.  Ever since I can remembered, I’ve treasured the single cordial cherry in the Godiva box every year that the parents gave us a box for Christmas.  It honestly was the last thing I ate out of the box. 

 

And I would savor every last bite!

 

 

So, to say that I would LOVE a box of chocolate covered cherries for Valentine’s Day is an understatement. I could care less about jellies, caramels, truffles. Nope. It’s chocolate covered cherries for me. DARK chocolate covered cherries, thank you!!

 

I am NOT a milk chocolate person. At all! If it’s the only chocolate on the face of the earth I might consider eating it. But for me it’s dark chocolate and the darker the better. 70% or more, please? I know. That’s pretty bitter for some people, but for me it’s heaven. 80%? I’d eat it straight out of the package. And I have.

 

 

These cherries are covered in a semi-sweet chocolate. It’s a good mix, I think. A little sweet but not too sweet. And considering these cherries are sweet, but not too sweet, it’s a perfect mix.

 

I must warn you. These cherries are not for the light weight. Granted I don’t have a huge tolerance, so I can eat a few and still be okay, but they do have a definite kick. Which I love. The combination of the sweet cherry flavor and the sweet chocolate with the brandy flavor and the alcohol kick make for a deliciously sweet and surprising bite of decadence. I can’t seem to eat enough of them, they’re that good.

 

 

I did step outside of my zone with these babies. I’ve never soaked anything but myself in alcohol. So, to make these cherries was really an experiment for me. Granted a DELICIOUS one, but still an experiment none the less. I’ve played with making some flavored vodka, but who hasn’t. Honestly. With that I can easily tell when it’s finished. These cherries required some taste testing every other day or so. I know. It was brutal having to sample these to check their flavor

 

I know. I have to make so many sacrifices for this food blog of mine. It’s work. Hard, laborious work that it just…well…exhausting.

 

 

Just look at how delicious they are! Yes, mine have shrank a bit. If you keep yours in the fridge, I’m sure they wouldn’t, but I’ve been so busy at work that I forgot to photograph them for a few days. But, don’t let that fool you. They still taste DIVINE! I ate two this morning afternoon. They still have that decadent and delicious flavor. It took all the willpower I had it in me to choke three one down.

 

It would have been even more difficult if these cherries weren’t ripe. There’s nothing more puckering than a sour cherry when you don’t want sour cherries. They have a time and place, and neither of which are in this recipe. I sampled one before I grabbed the bag, but also made sure to look for a bag with darker colored cherries. To me, that’s a bag of tasty and ripe cherries.

 

 

Look at how colorful those babies are!  I am in love with those Wilton sprinkles.  There’s red, white and pink; perfect for Valentine’s Day!  I thought nuts, then I thought sugar, but I saw these sprinkles in my stash after our move and knew that’s what I would use to dip these festive cherries in for #TripleSBites.

 

I’ve had so much fun with this event and am loving all of the delicious recipes that the rest of the crew have cooked up.  I hope you do scroll down and see what everyone else is making today for this event.  It’s going to be something tasty, I’m sure!