When two worlds collide—hot chocolate and cookies—you’re left with a cozy, comforting dessert that’s nearly impossible to resist. Indeed, these hot chocolate cookies have the best of both worlds: a rich chocolate flavor from instant hot cocoa mix and a sweet cookie batter featuring butter, eggs and lots of brown sugar. Marshmallow bits speckled throughout the chocolatey cookie dough give the illusion of a warm cup of cocoa with floating mini marshmallows on a cold wintery day. Double up on the cozy vibes by pairing these hot chocolate cookies with a cup of hot cocoa to dunk the fresh cookies into.
Hot Chocolate Cookies Ingredients
- Butter:Â Softened butter creamed with the two types of sugar until light and fluffy is one key component for ensuring cookies remain soft and tender as they bake.
- Granulated and brown sugar:Â Combining these two types of sugar gives the cookies the right amount of sweetness. The dark, molasses-rich brown sugar adds depth to the cookie dough, while the granulated sugar makes it even sweeter.
- Eggs:Â Allow the eggs to come to room temperature before creaming with the butter to promote a smoother, more even texture and a fluffier cookie dough consistency.
- Vanilla extract:Â A small amount of vanilla extract gives the cookie dough a mild, warming note for an even cozier effect.
- All-purpose flour:Â Slowly incorporate the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, working in batches at a time, to create a lump-free cookie dough that remains supple and tender when baked.
- Instant hot cocoa mix:Â Most instant hot cocoa mixes feature a few key ingredients such as sugar, cocoa powder and powdered milk, depending on the brand. This is a key ingredient for giving these cookies using hot chocolate mix their nostalgia-inducing hot chocolate flavor.
- Baking cocoa:Â A few tablespoons of baking cocoa helps enhance the rich chocolate flavor. Although baking cocoa and cocoa powder are nearly the same, cocoa powder is typically less acidic and slightly milder in flavor than baking cocoa. In this case, the small amounts of baking cocoa are more than enough to enhance the cookie dough without becoming too bitter.
- Baking soda and baking powder: These two ingredients act as leavening agents for the cookies to maintain their fluffy structure and rise while baking.
- Vanilla marshmallow bits: Vanilla marshmallow bits—not to be confused with mini marshmallows—are tiny, crunchy, dehydrated versions of regular marshmallows with a more concentrated flavor and sweetness. Using the dehydrated version of marshmallows ensures they maintain their texture as they bake and don’t dissolve into the batter from the oven’s warmth.
- Semisweet chocolate chips:Â Since the cookie dough in these hot chocolate mix cookies is already sweetened by several ingredients, slightly acidic semisweet chocolate chips balance the sweetness level while adding another chocolate component to the dough.
Directions
Step 1: Make the cookie dough
Preheat the oven to 375°F. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about five to seven minutes. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa mix, baking cocoa, salt, baking soda and baking powder; gradually beat them into the creamed mixture. Gently stir in the marshmallow bits and chocolate chips.
Step 2: Bake
Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto greased baking sheets. Bake them until set, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove them to wire racks to cool completely.
Hot Chocolate Cookies Variations
- Turn them into white hot chocolate cookies: Rather than using the instant hot cocoa mix in the batter, opt for a white hot chocolate mix instead. For even more white chocolate flavor, omit the baking cocoa and add white chocolate chips in place of semisweet chocolate chips.
- Add crushed peppermint candy: For a minty take on these hot chocolate cookies, add crushed peppermint candy to the batter.
- Add white chocolate chips: To make this hot chocolate cookie recipe slightly sweeter, replace half of the semisweet chocolate chips with white chocolate chips.
How to Store Hot Chocolate Cookies
Allow the cookies to cool before storing them in an airtight container at room temperature for two to three weeks.
Can you freeze hot chocolate cookies?
We suggest freezing the raw cookie dough tightly wrapped or in an airtight container for 8 to 12 months. For best results, use these tips to keep in mind when freezing cookies.
Hot Chocolate Cookies Tips
Can you use mini marshmallows instead of vanilla marshmallow bits?
While you can use mini marshmallows in place of marshmallow bits in this recipe, the visual effect and appeal may not be the same. Mini marshmallows are much softer and will melt while baking. Meanwhile, marshmallow bits are drier and hold their shape, making them easily identifiable in the finished cookies. Save your mini marshmallows for other tempting treats instead.
What kind of hot cocoa mix can you use to make hot chocolate cookies?
Always use instant hot cocoa mix, which you can often find in the coffee or cocoa aisle at your grocery store. Hot cocoa mix is primarily made of cocoa and sugar, which easily dissolve into either water or milk. Hot chocolate mix, on the other hand, is richer and may even contain flakes of chocolate that may not incorporate as well into this cookie dough as instant hot cocoa mix would.
What kind of chocolate is good for cookies?
Most bakers prefer semisweet chocolate due to its moderate cacao content, which typically ranges between 35 and 65%. It also offers the best balance between sweetness and bitterness for a more well-balanced cookie.
