Hot Cocoa Cookies
Hot Cocoa Cookies are chocolately, chewy, and the perfect winter cookie for a cookie exchange or to leave for Santa. Although they’re made with real deal butter and sugar, cookies can 100% fit into a balanced, feel good diet (keep reading to learn how…).
Nut Free, Gluten free option
I’ve never been so determined to create the most perfect recipe than I was with these Hot Cocoa Cookies. My 4-year-old is OBSESSED with hot cocoa (& cookies), so I thought he would LOVE these!
Of course, when I started to do some research for SEO purposes (“Search Engine Optimization”), I realized that Hot Cocoa Cookies are actually more popular than I thought… But I still wanted to create this recipe for you – my way!
Hot Cocoa Cookies are…
- Chocolately
- Chewy
- Gooey
- Made in 1 bowl
- Freakin’ DELICIOUS!
How I went about making this hot cocoa cookie recipe
To be honest, this recipe came to me on a whim. My 4-year-old son has been LOVING hot cocoa this season and it’s so fun to see him so excited. He also loves cookies, so when we had an hour to kill one Saturday afternoon, I figured we could make some cookies together.
Of course those cookies came out like hockey pucks and it took some tweaking to get the recipe just right (5 attempts, to be honest… see my tips below!).
But I wanted to create the perfect chocolate cookie. Chewy, with solid edges and a gooey middle, but not too gooey.
Luckily, marshmallows help amp up the gooey factor. However, the problem when baking with marshmallows is that they can do a little magic on you and disappear.
The 3rd and 4th tests had that problem! Turns out, I used slightly stale marshmallows in my first two attempts, so they kept in the cookies. If your bag of marshmallows is super fresh, put them in the freezer! This will ensure they won’t completely vanish.
TROUBLESHOOTING TIP: Although, if your marshmallows disappear, your cookies will be extra chewy! To give them the “hot cocoa” appearance, you could always place a few mini marshmallows on top when they come out of the oven and voila, problem solved! (But this recipe is super foolproof so you won’t see any problems along the way!)
Ingredients to Make Hot Cocoa Cookies
You’ll need 10 ingredients to make this recipe…
- Butter
- White sugar
- Brown sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Baking soda
- White whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour
- Mini chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
- Mini marshmallows – stale or frozen!
A few notes on the ingredients in this cookie recipe:
- Even though this recipe contains 2 types of sugar, it does contain 1/4-cup less sugar than comparable recipes.
- The egg yolk helps the texture of these cookies. I find adding just the egg yolks makes them chewier.
- I originally based this recipe off of my double chocolate oat flour cookies, but they came out too thick. Instead, I used white whole wheat flour to enhance the nutrition without impacting the flavor or texture, but you can also use all-purpose flour.
- Use stale or frozen marshmallows so they don’t disappear (AKA melt) when baking
Gluten free option
You can make this recipe gluten free by using a 1-for-1 gluten free flour swap. You could also use oat flour, but the cookies will be more dense.
Kitchen Tools You’ll Need to Make Hot Cocoa Cookies
This recipe doesn’t require any unusual equipment. You’ll need:
- Large mixing bowl – I prefer glass and one with a lid (like this Pyrex one) so you can easily store the dough when it needs to chill
- Hand mixer (this is the exact one I use, in red!)
- Baking sheet
- Ice cream scoop
How to Make Hot Cocoa Cookies
This recipe is quite easy to make…
First, you’ll mix together the butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla extract, AKA your “wet” ingredients. Then you’ll slowly mix in the dry ingredients (cocoa powder, baking soda, and flour).
When the batter is made, you’ll mix in mini chocolate chips. Then refrigerate the dough.
Why do you need to refrigerate the dough?
Chilling the dough helps achieve the best cookie texture and prevent the cookies from spreading too much. Do not skip this step!!!
I suggest refrigerating for at least 4 hours, but you can also make the dough a day in advance and chill overnight.
When you’re ready to bake the cookies, preheat your oven and take the dough out of the fridge so you’ll actually be able to scoop it.
Using an ice cream scooper, scoop a ball of dough. Flatten it out using your hands, then place a few marshmallows in the middle. Close the edges of the dough around the marshmallows to create a ball. Flatten the cookie slightly.
Repeat with the remaining dough. Before baking, sprinkle each cookie with Maldon flaky salt and press additional mini chocolate chips on top for some extra pizazz.
These cookies need just 10 minutes to bake. Let them cool completely on the baking sheet before removing.
How to Store Hot Cocoa Cookies
Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. To extend their shelf life, refrigerate.
You can also freeze the cookies for up to 3 months for best quality.
Other Cookie Recipes to Try This Season:
- Oat Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Nut Free Monster Cookies
- Double Chocolate Oat Flour Cookies
- SunButter Cookies (5 ingredients!)
Hot Cocoa Cookies
Hot Cocoa Cookies are chocolately, chewy, and the perfect winter cookie for a cookie exchange or to leave for Santa. Although they’re made with real deal butter and sugar, cookies can 100% fit into a balanced, feel good diet (keep reading to learn how…).
Ingredients
- ½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, softened
- ½ cup white sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar, loosely packed
- 1 large egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/4 cups white whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup mini chocolate chips or chopped chocolate, plus additional for topping
- ~1/2 cup mini marshmallows
- Flaky sea salt for topping
Instructions
- In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat together the softened butter, white sugar and brown sugar. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and continue to mix together until uniform consistency forms.
- Add the cocoa powder, baking soda, and white whole wheat flour, ½ cup at a time, until well-incorporated. Gently mix in the mini chocolate chips.
- Cover the bowl or transfer the dough to a container with an air-tight lid and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight. If you do not refrigerate the dough, the cookies will spread too much.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Using an ice cream scoop, scoop the dough. Flatten it between your hands, then add about 5 mini marshmallows to the middle. Cover the marshmallows to form a ball and slightly flatten on the baking sheet. Press in additional mini chocolate chips and sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Repeat with the remaining dough, leaving some space between the cookies on the baking sheet. You may need to bake in batches, in which case, refrigerate the prepped cookies before baking.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Let cool completely on the baking sheet before transferring to a plate.
- Store in an airtight container for 3-5 days. Freeze for up to 3 months.
Don’t Forget to PIN these Hot Cocoa Cookies!
XO