Chocolate Cherry Blossom Cookies Couldn’t Be Any Cuter

These are perfect for Valentine's Day!

Peanut butter kiss cookies are always a family favorite. Also known as peanut butter blossom cookies, this classic cookie was first invented in 1949 by Freda F. Smith of Gibsonburg, Ohio.

In the years following, peanut butter kiss cookies have become an American staple, and they were even placed in the Pillsbury Bake-Off Hall of Fame — as well as the Smithsonian National Museum!

Now, thanks to this recipe from Baking Beauty, you can make this classic treat with a new twist that is just perfect for Valentine’s Day: chocolate cherry blossom kiss cookies!

The rich red hue of these cookies is not just from red food coloring, but also maraschino cherry liquid, which gives these treats a sweet cherry taste.

Over at The Girl Who Ate Everything, blogger Christy makes her cherry blossom kiss cookies more of a pink hue. The color is still perfect for the romantic holiday, but more delicate and feminine.

Like the recipe from Baking Beauty, Christy also uses maraschino cherries and cherry juice, which really heightens the cherry flavor. The inclusion of almond extract takes things to the next level. She uses a light hand with the red food coloring, which makes her cookies more pink than bright red.

If you want to avoid using store-bought food dyes, try using beet juice. By boiling down whole beets, you can extract a rich, violet hue from the veggies, making it an all-natural way to dye your goodies. Find the directions over at Wholefully.

Or buy an all-natural food dye, like this product from ColorKitchen, which is free of artificial food dyes and made with pigments extracted from nature. It’s available on Amazon for $29.99.