Hot Chocolate Cookies
/Warm and cozy chocolate cookies, filled with puddles of dark chocolate and gooey marshmallows.
I don’t know whether to blame the frigid weather, the many inches of snow covering our yard, or the baby growing in my belly, but I have been VERY into hot chocolate this winter. I’ve been making it plain from scratch, making Martin’s abuela’s avena, and keeping a box of Trader Joe’s Hot Cocoa packets in my pantry for grabbing in a pinch. I just can’t get enough.
So of course my hot cocoa cravings have spilled over into my recipe development where these cookies were created. I used my brownie-like fudgy chocolate cookie base from my Chocolate Orange Cookies and adapted it slightly to create these ooey, gooey hot chocolate cookies, filled with puddles of dark chocolate and miniature marshmallows to keep you warm all winter long.
how to make hot chocolate cookies
This recipe is very simple and needs minimal chilling time—both wins in my book. We start by melting chocolate and butter over a double boiler. While the chocolate is melting, whisk together your dry ingredients and set them aside. Meanwhile, combine sugar, eggs, and extracts in the bowl of a mixer and whip them for about 3-4 minutes, until the mixture is light and fluffy and a thick ribbon forms when you pull the whisk out of the bowl. Then we incorporate the dry ingredients, followed by the melted chocolate and butter, and finally fold in the chopped chocolate and mini marshmallows.
This batter closely resembles brownie batter, so it will be too loose to scoop right away. Pop the bowl in the fridge to chill for about 30 minutes and then scoop cookies and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 8-12 minutes, depending on cookie size, until the edges are set and the tops are dry. Let them cool slightly on the pan before digging in!
what you need to make hot chocolate cookies
Chocolate. Use high-quality dark chocolate for this recipe because it’s really the star. I like the 72% baking bars from Trader Joe’s. You’ll need 12 oz for melting and another 4 oz chopped for stirring into the batter.
Butter. I always bake with unsalted butter, as the salt amounts varies from brand to brand. If you choose to use salted butter, cut the amount of salt in the recipe in half.
Sugar. Plain, white granulated sugar for this recipe helps our cookies spread just a bit and gives us that crunchy, crackly exterior.
Eggs. Use large eggs, which weigh about 50 grams each. The high egg quantity in this recipe makes the cookies extra fudgy.
Vanilla Extract. I like the subtle rounded-out flavor that dark vanilla extract gives to the cookies.
Cacao Extract. For Christmas, my aunt brought me cacao, cinnamon, and coffee extracts from Tanzania and I was looking for ways to incorporate them in my baking. If you don’t have an aunt who brings you African cacao extracts, just leave it out—no big deal.
Flour. All purpose flour is used in this recipe. Be sure to weigh your flour for the most accurate results.
Salt. I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt in all of my baking and cooking. If you are using Morton’s, cut the salt amount in half as they are much smaller grains.
Baking Powder. Baking powder does most of the leavening in this recipe and keeps our cookies from becoming puddles when baking.
Baking Soda. The baking soda contributes a little to the leavening in this recipe, but it’s big job is to counteract the acid in the chocolate here.
Cocoa Powder. Good, dark cocoa powder provides richness to our cookie.
Miniature Marshmallows. You can’t have hot chocolate without marshmallows. Grab your favorite mini marshmallows for mixing in.
Hot Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients
- 12 oz dark chocolate, chopped
- 1/2 cup (113 g) unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups (300 g) granulated sugar
- 4 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp cacao extract, optional
- 2 cups (250 g) all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 2 tbsp dutch-processed cocoa powder
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 4 oz dark chocolate, chopped
- 90 g (about 1 cup) miniature marshmallows
Instructions
- Melt the chocolate and butter together in the microwave or over a double boiler. Set aside and let cool to room temperature.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip sugar with eggs and vanilla (and cacao extract, if using) on medium-high speed until the mixture is lightened in color and slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. (You should be able to pull the whisk out of the bowl and it should leave a ribbon-like mark in the mixture.)
- Switch to the paddle attachment on the mixer and gradually add dry ingredients, scraping down the sides to make sure that no dry streaks remain.
- With the mixer on low speed, stream in the chocolate mixture and mix until completely combined and batter is all one color. Fold in the chopped chocolate and miniature marshmallows. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using either a medium or large cookie scoop, portion cookies onto tray, leaving space between them because they will spread a little.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes for smaller cookies, 10-12 minutes for larger cookies. Cookies are done when the edges are set and the tops are dry to the touch. Let cookies cool at least 5 minutes on the pan before transferring to a cooling rack.
Notes
If you don't have cacao extract, just omit it.
The longer you chill the dough, the more it sets up and the less your final cookies will spread. If I let the dough chill for longer than an hour, I like to let the cookies rest for a bit at room temperature before baking so that they still have a little spread.
