Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookies

Happy Friday!!  I know, I know, I have a sweet tooth the size of Texas.  Here is one of my favorite decadent cookies - chocolate cookie with a marachino cherry center and rich icing seals the deal.  I heart chocolate covered cherries and all of their oozy goodness :)

Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookies

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 (10 ounce) jar maraschino cherries (drained, juice reserved)
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Beat the butter and sugar together in a bowl
3. Add egg and vanilla and beat well
4. Add the flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder and stir until smooth
5. Roll the mixture into 1-inch balls
6. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and press the center of each ball with your thumb (to create a well for the cherry goodness)
7. Place a cherry in indentation of each cookie ball
8. In a saucepan, heat condensed milk and chocolate chips until chocolate is melted
9. Stir in 4 teaspoons of cherry juice
10. Spoon about 1 teaspoon of mixture over each cherry and spread to cover cherry (thin with additional cherry juice as needed)
11. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes