Cherry Winks

Cherry Winks are a popular cookie that became a winning recipe for a National Pillsbury contest back in the 1950s.

The recipe is a basic cookie dough with dates, maraschino cherries, and nuts then rolled into cornflakes and baked.

These crunchy little gems are perfect for any holiday cookie tray and certainly have a delicious blend of flavor in every bite.

The sweet little maraschino cherries really give this cookie its character in color with the balance of sweet and crunchy coating from the cereal along with the pecans and sweet dates.

We love this vintage cherry cookie and it's surely a treat every Christmas holiday!

Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom of this page in a printable recipe card.

Step By Step on How to Make Cherry Wink Cookies

1. preheat the oven and prepare your baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat mats
2. chop the nuts, dates, and cherries and set aside
3. whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and set aside in a bowl
4. cream the sugar and shortening
5. add the eggs, milk, and vanilla
6. blend in the dry ingredients
7. fold in the fruit and nut
8. roll into balls then the crushed cornflakes
9. bake for 10 to 12 minutes
10. the recipe is at the bottom of this page in a printable recipe card

Other Substitutions:

1. all cherries can be used in place of dates
2. chocolate chips instead of dates
3. substitute sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds for nut allergies
4. any kind of nuts can be added we usually swap out pecans for pistachios during the Christmas holiday season 
5. other dried fruits in place of dates: chopped apricots, dried pineapple, raisins, craisins, or figs
6. I do not recommend substituting butter for shortening it will change the texture of the dough

Ingredients You Will Need (scroll down for exact measurements)

• sifted flour
• baking powder
• baking soda
• salt
• vegetable shortening
• sugar
• eggs
• milk
• vanilla extract
• pecans
• chopped maraschino cherries and more quartered to garnish
• pitted chopped dates (see our suggestions for substitutions)
• crushed cornflakes

Tips

• roll cookies into cornflakes after rolling them into balls
• bake on parchment paper
• watch carefully these don't burn if the cookies need to bake a little longer due to the size you make them
• these cookies are not overly sweet add 1/4 more sugar to this recipe for a sweeter cookie
• use all cherries if you're not fond of dates 
• add any kind of nuts you prefer
•  add some food coloring to the dough red or green for holiday colors
  
• add almond extract instead of vanilla for another flavor
• chill the dough if you find your dough very sticky for around 1 hour
• store these in airtight containers
• sprinkle the tops with powdered sugar when serving around the holidays
• roll in coconut instead of cereal for coconut cherry winks

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Vintage Cherry Cookie Recipes

These vintage cherry wink cookies look beautiful on a holiday cookie tray around Christmas time.


This basic cookie dough is certainly timeless in popularity, everyone who tastes one wants the recipe so be sure to print off a few copies.

Cherry Winks

Yield: 50

Author: Claudia Lamascolo

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 10 MinTotal time: 20 Min

This popular cookie from the 1950s is called Cherry Winks delicious maraschino cherry, fruit, and nut-baked cookies rolled in cornflakes.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups of sifted flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup vegetable shortening
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1/3 cup of chopped maraschino cherries and 10 more quartered to garnish the top of the cookies before baking
• 14 chopped pitted dates or choose another addition from our suggestions in the note section
• 3 cups of crushed cornflakes (the cookies are rolled into these after shaping do not add to the batter)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Crush the cornflakes and add them to a pie plate ( I place them in a plastic bag and roll over them with a rolling pin)
4. Chop the dates, cherries, and nuts then set aside in a bowl.
5. Place the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a small bowl whisk together, and set it aside.
6. In a large bowl add the shortening and sugar, and cream together using an electric mixer for 2 minutes.
7. Add the eggs, milk, and vanilla to the creamed mixture, and beat that for 1 minute.
8. Stir in the flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder mixture to the wet batter.
9. Fold in the dates, cherries, and nuts into the batter.
10. I use a medium-sized cookie scoop (if you want 50 cookies use the smallest cookie scoop)
11. Roll into balls and then roll them into crushed cornflakes add a cut piece of cherry in the center.
12. Place these cherry wink cookies on the prepared baking sheet.
13. Bake at 375 degrees preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes
14. Cool and store in an air-tight container,

Notes

Other Substitutions:

1. all cherries can be used in place of dates
2. chocolate chips instead of dates
3. any kind of nuts can be added we usually swap out pecans for pistachios during the Christmas holiday season
4. substitute sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds for nut allergies
5. other dried fruits in place of dates: chopped apricots, dried pineapple, raisins, craisins, or figs
6. I do not recommend substituting butter for shortening it will change the texture of the dough

Tips

• roll cookies into cornflakes after rolling them into balls
• bake on parchment paper
• crush the cornflakes and add them to a pie plate ( I place them in a plastic bag and roll over them with a rolling pin to crush them)
• chill the dough if you find your dough very sticky for around 1 hour
• watch carefully these don't burn if the cookies need to bake a little longer due to the size you make them
• these cookies are not overly sweet add 1/4 more sugar to this recipe for a sweeter cookie
• use all cherries if you're not fond of dates 
• add any kind of nuts you prefer
•  add some food coloring to the dough red or green for holiday colors
• add almond extract instead of vanilla for another flavor
• store these in airtight containers
• sprinkle the tops with powdered sugar when serving around the holidays
• roll in coconut instead of cereal for coconut cherry winks

Nutrition Facts

Calories

142.35

Fat (grams)

4.98 g

Sat. Fat (grams)

1 g

Carbs (grams)

23.19 g

Fiber (grams)

1.06 g

Net carbs

22.13 g

Sugar (grams)

7.35 g

Protein (grams)

2.2 g

Sodium (milligrams)

149.28 mg

Cholesterol (grams)

6.62 mg

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Disclosure: This recipe was originally shared in 2012. It was edited and re-published in 2023.