Name: Cherry Cheesecake Cookies
Total time: 1 h 55 min
Ingredients: 3 1/2 cups (17½ ounces/496 grams) all-purpose flour; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 pound (454 grams) cream cheese , softened; 20 tablespoons (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened; 1 1/2 cups (10½ ounces/298 grams) sugar; 2 large eggs; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 8 whole graham crackers , crushed into crumbs (1 cup) (see note); 3 (20 ounces/567 grams) cans cherry pie filling , drained

Why This Recipe Works

Cheesecake is delicious, but its decadence comes at a price; it's one of the fussiest desserts to prepare. Once the delicate custard-based cake emerges from the oven—and its water bath—it needs to cool completely and then chill in the refrigerator for even more time. The creamy cake is a pain to transport and slice, and if it stays out of the fridge for long it becomes too soft to cut. Our solution: these attractive treats, which walk the line between cookie and cake and include all the flavor of the slices in an easy-to-make, portable form. The dough contains a full pound of cream cheese to ensure that tangy cheesecake flavor, while the addition of flour stabilizes the mixture and guarantees it will hold its shape when baked. To suggest the crust element of cheesecake, we rolled each dough ball in fine graham cracker crumbs, which gave the crackled cookies a handsome exterior finish. The most iconic accompaniment for cheesecake is a cherry topping, so we made an indentation in the center of each cookie and filled it with a few cherries from canned cherry pie filling. Draining the cherries kept moisture to a minimum and prevented the cookie base from becoming soggy.

Before You Begin

To make graham cracker crumbs, process 8 whole graham crackers in a food processor until finely ground.

Instructions

Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in bowl. Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat cream cheese, butter, and sugar until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture, and mix until just combined. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.

Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Spread graham cracker crumbs in shallow dish.

Roll dough into 1½-inch balls, then roll in graham cracker crumbs; space dough balls 2 inches apart on prepared sheets. Using 1-tablespoon measure, make indentation in center of each dough ball. Place 3 cherries in each indentation. Bake until golden around edges, 12 to 14 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let cookies cool for 5 minutes on sheets, then transfer to wire rack. Let cookies cool completely before serving. (Cookies can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.)