Hot Chocolate Cookies taste like wintertime in cozy cookie form! These chewy cocoa cookies are rolled in hot cocoa mix and baked with gooey marshmallow bits in the dough. They’re perfect on their own or dipped in a cup of hot cocoa.
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Hot Chocolate Cookies recipe
Cookie season is here — it’s the best time of year. Second only to hot chocolate season, really.
But together? Hot chocolate and cookies are a formidable pairing.
You can enjoy them together in these Hot Chocolate Cookies. A rich chocolate dough wraps around chewy marshmallows, which bubble and melt in the oven.
Just before baking, they’re dipped in sugar and hot cocoa mix, which gives them extra hot cocoa flavor.
The result is a dreamy, succulent, dark chocolate cookie that tastes just like a mug of cocoa. They’ll warm you right up!
More cookie recipes: Shortbread Matcha Cookies • Baileys Chocolate Chip Cookies • Snowflake Sugar Cookies • Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
Why you’ll love this recipe
These holiday cookies are the best for chocolate lovers. You’ll love them because:
- Every bite is like a mug of warm cocoa in cookie form. Perfect for the holiday season!
- They’re fun to make with kids. They can roll the dough, dip them in sugar and stuff them with marshmallows.
- These cookies would be an excellent addition to cookie platters, holiday parties, cookie swaps and hot chocolate parties. But trust me: You don’t need a reason to make these cookies!
Tools & equipment
For this easy hot chocolate cookie recipe, you will need your baking basics, including a large bowl, whisk and an electric mixer or stand mixer. I like to use a cookie scoop for portioning out the dough.
You’ll also need cookie sheets and a cooling rack, plus a food-safe, airtight container to store the cookies in once they’ve cooled.
You will also need plastic wrap and parchment paper. (Side note: I am obsessed with my Chic Wrap. It comes in a reusable container and the quality is so good! I have them for plastic wrap, parchment paper and aluminum foil.)
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to grab at the grocery store to make this recipe:
- All-purpose flour
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Large eggs
- Pure vanilla extract
- Instant hot cocoa mix
- Mini marshmallows
Variations and substitutions
These cookies are delicious on their own but you can absolutely mix things up.
With big marshmallows: I have not tried this recipe with regular marshmallows, but it should work. You will want to cut each in half with kitchen scissors. Place one marshmallow half in each cookie dough ball. Let me know if you try it!
Without marshmallows: In fact, this recipe is adapted from a basic chocolate cookie recipe. Roll the dough in sanding sugar.
Peppermint hot chocolate cookies: If you like peppermint hot cocoa, add 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract when you add the 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
Mexican hot chocolate cookies: Add a tablespoon of cinnamon to make a cinnamon sugar mixture that you’ll dip the dough in.
More chocolate: You can experiment with adding semi-sweet chocolate chips or chocolate chunks to the dough.
How to make Hot Chocolate Cookies
These hot cocoa cookies aren’t hard to make, but they do take a little prep time. The dough has to be chilled, then you’ll need some patience when rolling out the cookie dough balls, dipping them in sugar and adding the marshmallows. Let’s get started!
Making the dough
First, we make the dough. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
In a mixing bowl with a hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed (I recommend the paddle attachment), beat butter and 2 cups of sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Add the eggs and vanilla extract, and mix to combine on medium speed. Reduce the mixer to low speed and slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix until well combined. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
Place two pieces of plastic wrap on the counter. Add half the dough to the center of each one. Form the dough into a flattened disk shape and wrap with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator and chill until firm, about 1 hour.
Forming the cookies
While the dough chills, add the remaining ½ cup of sugar to a bowl. Stir in the hot cocoa mix.
Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Rolling between your hands, form dough into 1¼-inch balls. Roll each ball in the hot chocolate sugar mixture and place on the lined baking sheet, about 3 inches apart. Use your finger to press an indentation into the top of each cookie dough ball and stuff with three mini marshmallows.
Bake for 10-12 minutes until set, rotating the cookie sheet halfway through. Transfer baked cookies to cooling racks to cool.
Store cookies between layers of parchment paper in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Tips & tricks
Here are some tips and tricks for making this recipe:
- Measure out your ingredients ahead of time. Some mise on place is always welcome when baking! Setting up an assembly line of sorts to roll, dip and decorate the cookies.
- Keep an eye on the cookies in the oven. You are looking for a soft crackle in the chocolate cookie part and a light golden brown color on the roasted marshmallows.
- You’ll need both cocoa powder and hot cocoa mix for this recipe. They are not the same thing. The unsweetened cocoa powder goes in the cookie dough; the mix is used to flavor the sugar the cookies are dipped in.
- You can freeze the cookie dough to make cookies later.
What to serve with Hot Chocolate Cookies
Hot chocolate cookies are delicious with hot cocoa, of course! Try one of these:
- Hot chocolate: This one is made with real chocolate (a chocolate bar or chocolate chips) and can be made in the slow cooker or
Instant Pot . - Peppermint hot chocolate: If you love the flavor of peppermint, you’ll love this simple recipe. They’d also be good with a peppermint mocha for you coffee lovers!
- White hot chocolate: White chocolate lovers will adore this simple, creamy recipe.
- Hot cocoa bombs: These are so fun for a party! Chocolate shells that contain hot cocoa mix are stirred into hot milk for a delicious and fun presentation. You can make them with other flavors like white chocolate peppermint and salted caramel.
Add them to a cookie plate or tray with other flavors of cookies so these all chocolate cookies stand out. Peanut butter cookies, sugar cookies and white chocolate cranberry cookies would be the ideal holiday cookie combo! These would all be great for a holiday cookie exchange.
And if you have extra marshmallows? Make avalanche cookies or marshmallow vodka! (It’s delightful in a s’mores martini.)
ABOUT THE SWEETEST SEASON
This recipe is part of The Sweetest Season, an annual virtual cookie swap co-hosted by Erin of The Speckled Palate and myself. Every year, we get a big group of food bloggers together to share new holiday cookie recipes.
This year we are raising money for Cookies 4 Kids’ Cancer, which is a recognized 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to funding research for new, innovative and less-toxic treatments for childhood cancer.
This season, OXO will be matching every dollar raised through Dec. 31, 2023, up to $100,000. Whatever money we raise will automatically double on our fundraising page!
More holiday cookie recipes
— Did you make this recipe? —
Please leave a ★★★★★ review or comment below.
Hot Chocolate Cookies
ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour plus
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1¼ cups unsalted butter softened (2½ sticks)
- 2½ cups granulated sugar divided
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon instant hot cocoa mix
- 2 cups mini marshmallows
instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
- In a mixing bowl with an electric mixer or a stand mixer on medium speed, beat butter and 2 cups of sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Add the eggs and vanilla extract, and mix to combine on medium speed. Reduce the mixer speed to the lowest setting and slowly add flour mixture. Mix until well-combined.
- Place two pieces of plastic wrap on the counter. Add half the dough to the center of each one. Form the dough into a flattened disk shape and wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
- While the dough chills, add remaining ½ cup of sugar to a bowl. Stir in the hot cocoa mix.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (176°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Rolling between your hands, form dough into 1¼-inch balls. Roll each ball in the hot chocolate sugar mixture and place on the lined baking sheet, about 3 inches apart. Use your finger to press an indentation into the cookie dough ball and stuff with three mini marshmallows.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until set, rotating halfway through. Transfer baked cookies to a wire rack to cool.
- Store cookies between layers of parchment paper in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
notes
- Measure out your ingredients ahead of time. Some mise on place is always welcome when baking! Setting up an assembly line of sorts to roll, dip and decorate the cookies.
- Keep an eye on the cookies in the oven. You are looking for a soft crackle in the chocolate cookie part and a light golden brown color on the roasted marshmallows.
- You’ll need both cocoa powder and hot cocoa mix for this recipe. They are not the same thing. The unsweetened cocoa powder goes in the cookie dough; the mix is used to flavor the sugar the cookies are dipped in.
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Elizabeth Falcigno says
these look amazing! I love anything with marshmallows!
Sheila says
Love these hot chocolate cookies! They are fun to make and fun to eat!
Ellen says
These are so good and such a treat to enjoy one or two with a mug of hot chocolate.
Eliza from Happy Simple Living says
My whole family loves these sweet hot chocolate cookies! The combination of chocolate and marshmallow is simply IRRESISTIBLE. Thanks for another great recipe!
Grace says
Yum! I’m a big hot cocoa fan (and somehow never seem to use all of my storebought packets), so these cookies are such a great idea.
Jenn says
What a great cookie for the holiday season- Love it!
Kathleen says
The perfect cookies, took them to an exchange yesterday and they were so popular! Chewy, crispy, marshmallowy!
Erin says
OBSESSING over this recipe, my friend, because you KNOW I love a big ‘ol mug of hot chocolate… and so do my kids. We’ll be baking these again and again throughout the winter months, and I’m not mad about it. 😉
Thank you for, once again, making this cookie exchange possible and co-hosting this event with me. It would not be the same (or truly *be*) without you, so thank you. Merry Christmas to you and yours, Susannah!