No, I didn't really mean to write "Sugar Plum Fairy," the title of the well-known ditty that makes up part of the Nutcracker Suite.  I'm actually referencing Duke Ellington's spin on this classic tune, which he titled, "Sugar Rum Cherry."   It's soft.  It's sweet.  It's smooth...and a little cheeky.  If you haven't heard it, you simply haven't lived! 

This song, along with the cherry and liquor stuffed chocolates that appear this time of year, inspired this dessert.  I marinate frozen dark cherries in rum or brandy, and amaretto then dip them in both white and dark chocolate.  What's not to like?  They are full of more flavor and less sugar (and other suspicious ingredients) than their store-bought cousins.  You can keep the liquor, too.  The cherry flavor gets infused into the mix, making a perfect after dinner digestif--it's even better with a splash of lime juice. 

Ingredients:

1 10 oz bag frozen organic dark cherries

2/3 cup rum or brandy

1/3 cup amaretto

1 cup melted white chocolate

1/2 cup melted dark chocolate.

Soak cherries in liquor mixture for at least one hour or up to overnight--the longer the soak, the boozier they will taste.  Remove cherries from liquid and pat dry with a paper towel.  Using a toothpick, dip each cherry into melted white chocolate and set on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Then drizzle dark chocolate across your rows of white chocolate dipped cherries.  Place baking sheet in fridge and allow cherries to harden about 5 minutes.  Remove from baking sheet and store in a single layer in a flat dish.  Eat within one week.  Enjoy!