These cherry cheesecake cookies combine soft, chewy cookies with a creamy cheesecake center and sweet cherry topping. They’re the perfect dessert for any occasion, offering a delightful burst of flavor in every bite.
In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter for 1 minute. Add the sugar and mix until well combined. Mix in egg yolks and vanilla.
Add dry ingredients to the mixing bowl. Start on low speed and increase to medium, mixing until well combined. Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes or even up to overnight.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a cookie sheet with a baking mat or parchment paper or spray lightly with cooking spray. Pour the graham cracker crumbs onto a plate or into a small bowl.
Using a 1 tablespoon cookie dough scoop, scoop dough into balls. Roll the balls in the graham cracker crumbs, covering them completely with graham cracker crumbs. Place two inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet.
Bake the cookies for 10 minutes. Immediately, using the back of a ½-tablespoon measuring spoon, press an indentation in the middle of each cookie, trying not to break the “sides” of the cookies.
Using a fork, place two cherries into the middle of each cookie. Using a fork, rather than a spoon, helps to decrease the amount of pie filling juices so that the filling does not overflow.
Store in the refrigerator until serving.
Notes
Make sure your cream cheese is at room temperature to make sure it blends smoothly.
We used store-bought graham cracker crumbs because they are consistent in size and ground really fine. But the crumbs can certainly be made at home in a food processor.
Adding the pie filling to the center of the cookie can be done before baking. However, the oven heat can make the pie filling easily run out of the indentation.