During a trip last Fall to Pike’s Place Market in Seattle, I happened upon the Chukar Cherries stand and had a field day.  Like a kid in a candy store, I had a hard time choosing one variety over the other – the options were endless.  Although they sell other dried fruits and nuts, I was mostly intrigued with the cherries and ended up coming home with  Rainier, Columbia River Tart, Chipotle Chocolate Covered, and one other kind that I ate right away but forgot what they were.  I wish I would have bought loads more.
I tend to hoard food.  No…not under my mattress, but in my pantry.  When I come across new, unusual, or exotic food items, I bring them home and stash them away.  There they sit, just waiting for me to come up with the perfect recipe or use for them.  Dare I admit that from time to time, expiration dates pass and into the trash they go.  As the saying goes – “the road to hell is paved with good intentions.”  Heartbreaking to say the least.  So as to insure that the last remaining bag of dried tart cherries I schlepped home from Seattle would not befall a trashy ending, I decided to use them in my countdown cookie recipe this week.
This cookie has it all going on – cocoa, white chocolate, pecans, and of course, tart cherries.  A little something for everyone.  And, they also lend themselves to modification.  Pecans aren’t your thing? – sub in another nut.  No white chocolate on hand?, chocolate chips would work just fine.  Use your imagination and see what magic you can make.  I tested these cookies with a store brand cocoa and also with a deep, dark, Valrhona cocoa from my local baking supply store.  As expected, the Valrhona resulted in a deeper chocolate flavor –  but the store brand also worked well and delivered a tasty cookie.  Use up whatever cocoa you have on hand.  That way you won’t have to “trash it” somewhere down the road.