A Month of Cookies-Cherry Chip Ribbon Cookies-4

Another slice and bake......I just cannot say enough about the ease and convenience of icebox cookies.  This one has the extra step of layering the dough to give the cookie some pretty stripes.  A tiny bit more effort for a little more cookie bling.  This is a nice tasty cookie, and I love the way it looks too.  It's nice to have a log of these in the freezer in preparation for unexpected company!  Let them thaw until you can slice them.....and you are ready to go.  For Christmas you could even throw in some green cherries for a more festive look.

Cherry Chip Ribbon Cookies
1 cup softened butter or margarine
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
pinch of salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
100g bitter sweet chocolate or semi sweet (1/2 cup chips) or 3 oz, to be melted
1/2 cup maraschino cherries, drained, blotted to remove excess juice and chopped
1/4 cup chocolate chips extra

Cream the butter and sugar, add egg, milk, vanilla and a pinch of salt.  Mix until incorporated.  Beat in baking powder, then mix in flour until dough is well blended.  Divide dough in half and place in two separate bowls.  Add the melted chocolate to one bowl and mix in evenly.  Add the cherries and chocolate chips to the other bowl and mix until well distributed.  You may want to add another tablespoon of flour to the cherry dough if it becomes too wet from any cherry juice.
Line a 3X8 loaf pan with plastic wrap.  Take 1/2 of the chocolate dough and pat it down into an even layer in the bottom of the pan. Take 1/2 of the cherry dough and pat it down on top of the chocolate layer making it as even as possible.  Repeat with the remaining chocolate dough and then with the last of the cherry dough. Place loaf pan in fridge to firm up the dough, for a few hours or over night.
Preheat oven to 375F.  Once the dough is cool enough to slice, remove it from the pan and remove the wrapping.  Slice a 1/4 inch slice of the end of the load and cut that slice into 3 equal pieces.  Repeat with remaining dough. Place on nonstick cookie sheet or parchment lined baking sheet  with 1 1/2 inches between each cookie and bake 8-10 minutes or until the edges of the cookies begin to colour.