2 eggs

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup cocoa powder

3 cups flour (not sifted)

2 small, 10-oz. jars of maraschino cherries ***

1 pkg. chocolate chips (6 oz. pkg.—2 cups)

½ cup condensed sweetened milk

Melt butter and mix in sugar. Let mixture cool and add eggs. Mix it thoroughly and then add baking powder, baking soda, salt, vanilla, and cocoa, stirring after each addition. Add flour and mix well. (Dough will be stiff and a bit crumbly.)

Drain cherries and remove stems, reserving juice.

Pat dough into walnut-sized balls with your fingers. Place on greased cookie sheet, 12 to a standard sheet. Press down in center with thumb to make a deep indentation. (If the health board’s around, use the bowl of a small spoon!) Place one cherry in each indentation.

In a saucepan over simmering water (double boiler) combine the chocolate chips and the condensed milk. Heat on low until the chips are melted. (You can also do this in the microwave, but you’ll have to keep zapping it to keep it from hardening.)

Add approx. 1/8 cup of the reserved cherry juice and stir to a thick sauce. If sauce is too thick, add more juice in small increments. (Test it with a teaspoon. If it doesn’t glob off, it’s too thick.)

Spoon the sauce over the center of each cookie just enough to cover each cherry. Make sure it doesn’t drip down the sides.

Bake at 350 degrees F. for 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then remove to rack to finish cooling.

Yield: 7 to 8 dozen, depending on cookie size.

A plate of these should be in every psychiatrist’s office—two Chocolate-Covered Cherry Delights will lift anyone out of a depression.

Chapter Twenty

Hannah poured two glasses of chilled wine from the green jug in the bottom of her refrigerator and carried them into the living room. Her sister was seated on the couch, still looking rattled, but the color had come back to her cheeks. Moishe was nestled in her arms, and Hannah could hear him purring as Andrea absently stroked his head. Her resident feline was uncanny. He seemed to sense that Andrea was in need of comfort and he was doing his best imitation of a lap cat. Hannah handed one of the glasses to Andrea and said, “Here. Drink this.”

“What is it?” Andrea eyed the stemmed glass suspiciously.

“White wine. Don’t ask about the label. I’m sure you’ve never heard of it.”

Andrea reached for the glass and expertly sloshed the liquid in a tight circle. “Nice liquor line.” Then she took a small sip. “Light and somewhat fruity with an undertone of oak. It’s not a true Chardonnay, but it’s very interesting. I like it.”

Hannah just smiled and kept her comments to herself. If Andrea knew that the wine had come from the Lake Eden CostMart, and a gallon barely put a dent in a ten dollar bill, she’d decide that it was pure vinegar.