Boozy Cherry Bombs are always a hit with adults for the summer holiday season! Made with maraschino cherries soaked in vodka, these boozy bites are dipped in a white chocolate candy coating and festively decorated for the Fourth of July, Memorial Day, or just a fun summer party!

a couple of cherry bombs with blue sanding sugar.

Red, White, & Blue Boozy Cherry Bombs

Our buzzed Cherry Bombs recipe is a fun and festive way to turn a classic cocktail garnish into flavorful party food with a subtle boozy bite! With super simple steps, even novice cooks can create these red, white, and blue treats.

Get your patriotic party started with the perfect sweet snack. Whether you’re hosting a casual get-together or a formal gathering, drunken cherries are delicious and can look elegant, even when dressed up like the American flag!

Cherry Bombs Ingredients

Maraschino cherries with stems: Be sure to choose a high-quality brand of stemmed maraschino cherries. Nice plump cherries will yield the best results for this cherry bomb recipe.
Vodka: Feel free to experiment with different flavored vodkas or liqueurs, like vanilla almond liqueur, spiced rum, vanilla vodka, or even Fireball cinnamon whisky.
White chocolate melting discs: Use a good quality white candy melting disc for best results. I prefer using the Ghirardelli brand found in the baking aisle at most local grocery stores for the most consistent results. You can substitute vanilla almond bark or white chocolate chips for the white chocolate candy melts. Be sure to follow the instructions on the packaging for melting instructions.
Blue sanding sugar: You can swap the sanding sugar for blue sprinkles or blue nonpareils.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How to Make Boozy Cherry Bombs

Drain Juice In The Jar: Drain out ⅓ cup of cherry juice from the jar, but do not remove the cherries.
Add Alcohol: Add vodka to the jar and replace the lid. Refrigerate for 1 hour or up to overnight. The longer you allow your cherries to soak in the alcohol-infused juice, the stronger the flavor will be.
Pat Dry: Remove all the alcohol-infused cherries from the jar and gently pat dry with a paper towel.
Melt: Microwave the white chocolate for 30 seconds to 1 minute, stir, then heat in 15-30 second intervals until melted and smooth.
Dip And Decorate: Hold a dry cherry by the stem and dip it into the melted chocolate then into the blue sanding sugar sprinkles. Place each dipped cherry onto a parchment paper lined tray, with the stem is pointing up.
Serve: Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

cherry bomb with white and blue stripes.

Serving Suggestions

When you’re tired of sipping and slurping spiked red, white, and blue jello shots, this recipe is the perfect replacement – after all, a delicious dessert deserves to be served alongside the other 4th of July food that accompanies the fireworks. From my 4th of July fudge, 4th of July charcuterie board, to my 4th of July trifle, there’s no shortage of red, white, and blue 4th of July Desserts and recipes that you can prepare for patriotic parties.

Roll your cherry bomb cherries inside baked brownie batter (like my Chocolate Covered Cherry Brownie Bombs), place them on a pile of whipped cream, or use them as a signature topping for an ice cream sundae or a refreshing summer cocktail.

maraschino cherries dipped in almond bark and blue sanding sugar.

Tips & Variations

Customize Your Colors: Feel free to customize your cherry bomb dessert recipe with the color sprinkle to coordinate with a themed party, favorite sports team, or other holiday celebration. (Check out our Christmas Cherry Bombs)
Make A Virgin Version: To make these treats kid-friendly, you don’t have to soak them in alcohol. For an all-age appropriate snack, skip soaking the cherries and simply pat them dry, dip them in melted chocolate, and decorate with sanding sugar, nonpareils, or sprinkles.
Choose Your Chocolate: If you’re not a fan of white chocolate, you can use dark chocolate or milk chocolate melting discs in a one-to-one ratio for a different flavor profile.
Separate The Sugar: You may need to break apart the blue sanding sugar every so often, as it can tend to clump together in more humid temperatures. It can get “stuck” in clumps if any of the melted white chocolate gets mixed into it as you dip the cherries.

Proper Storage

To Store: Store the finished cherry bombs in the refrigerator, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for up to two days. Be cautious of condensation affecting the white chocolate’s adhesion.
To Freeze: I do not recommend freezing these cherry bombers.
Make Ahead: You can prepare the cherries and store them in the fridge for a day or two before dipping them in chocolate.

More Fun Twists on Cocktails

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Cherry Bombs

Author — Jennifer Fishkind

Serves —

Cherry Bombs are vodka-infused maraschino cherries that are coated with white chocolate and dressed up as a 4th of July dessert.

Print Rate Pin Save

Prep Time 15

Chill Time 30

Total Time 45

Ingredients

▢ 10 ounce jar of maraschino cherries with stems
▢ ¼ cup Vodka (I used Absolut Vanilia)
▢ 5 ounces white chocolate melting discs
▢ ¼ cup blue sanding sugar

Instructions

Remove the lid of the jar of maraschino cherries, being sure to save the lid, and drain out a third of a cup of juice from the jar of the maraschino cherries. You want to keep the cherries in the jar.
10 ounce jar of maraschino cherries
Add a quarter cup of vodka to the jar of maraschino cherries. Replace the lid to the jar of cherries and refrigerate for at least one hour or up to overnight. The longer you allow your cherries to soak in the Vodka-infused juice, the stronger the flavor will be.
¼ cup Vodka
Once the cherries have soaked in the vodka-flavored cherry juice, carefully remove all the maraschino cherries from the jar. Place them onto a paper towel-lined plate, and pat the cherries dry really well.
Tip: Be sure that your cherries are patted dry really well before dipping them into the melted white chocolate, as any excess liquid can cause the white chocolate to seize up and not adhere to the cherries.
Line a rimmed tray with a piece of parchment paper. Set aside.
In a small, microwave-safe bowl, add the white chocolate melting discs.
Microwave for thirty seconds to one minute at 50% power, stir, then microwave an additional 15-30 seconds or until the white chocolate is fully melted and stirred to a smooth consistency.
Tips: For best results, follow the melting instructions on your brand's packaging for the white chocolate melting discs. Be sure to stir between each heating cycle.
5 ounces white chocolate melting discs
Hold a very dry maraschino cherry by the stem and dip it into the melted white chocolate, covering approximately three-quarters of the cherry with the white chocolate.
Once you have dipped the cherry into the white chocolate, then dip the bottom of the white chocolate dipped cherry into the blue sanding sugar. Place the dipped cherry bomb onto the prepared rimmed tray. Be sure that the stem is pointing up. Repeat until all the stemmed maraschino cherries have been dipped.
Tip: You may need to break apart the blue sanding sugar every so often, as it can tend to clump together in more humid temperatures. It can get “stuck” in clumps if any of the melted white chocolate gets mixed into it as you dip the cherries.
¼ cup blue sanding sugar
Place the tray of cherry bombs into the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill before serving.

Jenn’s Notes

Storage:

To Store: Store the finished cherry bombs in the refrigerator, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for up to two days. Be cautious of condensation affecting the white chocolate’s adhesion.
To Freeze: I do not recommend freezing these cherry bombers.
Make Ahead: You can prepare the cherries and store them in the fridge for a day or two before dipping them in chocolate.

Tips:

Customize Your Colors: Feel free to customize your cherry bomb dessert recipe with the color sprinkle to coordinate with a themed party, favorite sports team, or other holiday celebration.
Make A Virgin Version: To make these treats kid-friendly, you don’t have to soak them in alcohol. For an all-age appropriate snack, skip soaking the cherries and simply pat them dry, dip them in melted chocolate, and decorate with sanding sugar, nonpareils, or sprinkles.
Choose Your Chocolate: If you’re not a fan of white chocolate, you can use dark chocolate or milk chocolate melting discs in a one-to-one ratio for a different flavor profile.
Separate The Sugar: You may need to break apart the blue sanding sugar every so often, as it can tend to clump together in more humid temperatures. It can get “stuck” in clumps if any of the melted white chocolate gets mixed into it as you dip the cherries.