Sweet Treats Dipped in Chocolate

• Serves: makes 4 1/2 dozen chocolate covered cherries

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 tbsp butter or margerine
• softened
• 1 1/2 tbsp corn syrup
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/4 cups sifted confectioner's sugar
• 54 Marischino cherries (about 2 10 oz jars)
• 1 (10 to 12oz) bar of the milk or dark chocolate of your choice

Instructions

Drain the liquid from the cherries and remove the stem. Lay them out on waxed paper to dry them a bit. (This works best if the cherries are left uncovered in the refrigerator overnight.)

In a small bowl, mix together butter, corn syrup, and vanilla to make the fondant. Slowly add confectioner's sugar and mix well. At this point you may have to get your hands in there and knead the fondant to thoroughly mix it. Divide the dough in half, roll it into logs and wrap it in plastic and chill it until firm, about 2 hours.

When the fondant is cold enough, cut 1 inch slices out of the logs and then cut these slices into quarters. You may not want to do the whole thing at once as the dough will begin to warm and become too sticky. Flatten each small piece of dough and wrap one around each cherry. Lay the fondant covered cherries on a plastic container or cookie sheet lined in wax paper (see photo) and freeze for at least 30 minutes (longer is better).

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. One at a time, dip the cherries into the melted chocolate. Place the cherries on a wax paper covered plastic container or cookie sheet and place them in the refrigerator. Chill them until the chocolate sets, about 30 minutes. You can double dip the cherries if you still have leftover chocolate.

Store the chocolate covered cherries in a cool dry place. It will take about a week for the fondant to fully melt and become liquid.