Cherry Cheesecake Hearts - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (0.13 ounce) package unsweetened cherry-flavored soft drink mix (such as Kool-Aid(R))
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon maraschino cherry juice, or as needed (optional)
1 teaspoon milk, or as needed (optional)
1 teaspoon lemon juice, or as needed (optional)

Preparation

Beat butter and cream cheese in a bowl until smooth and creamy. Add sugar; beat until mixture is pale yellow and fluffy. Add egg, vanilla extract, soft drink mix, and almond extract; beat well.
Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. Add to cream cheese mixture; beat until well mixed. Add maraschino cherry juice, milk, or lemon juice to loosen dough; mix to incorporate. Divide in half; wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 hours to overnight.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Roll dough to 1/4-inch to 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut out using a heart-shaped cookie cutter; transfer cookies to the prepared sheets.
Bake in the preheated oven until golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack, about 15 minutes.