This Hot Cocoa Cookies Recipe is perfect for colder weather! Sweet hot chocolate cookies are topped with marshmallows and baked to perfection!
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These hot chocolate cookies are so good, pillowy soft and full of rich chocolate flavor. Not to mention the gooey marshmallows on top! These would be a great addition to any holiday party or dessert table.
They're perfect on a holiday cookie tray alongside Nutella Filled Cookies, Soft Pumpkin Cookies, Gingersnap Cookies, and Pecan Snowball Cookies.
These cookies also make great gifts for neighbors, family, teachers, you name it!
They're easy to make and will be sure to be a hit with all your loved ones. Make sure you put this easy cookie recipe in your favorites for later!
Why You’ll LOVE a Hot Chocolate Cookie
- Delicious: Even though this recipe is made with only a few ingredients it’s loaded with the hot chocolate flavor you love.
- Cheap: With grocery store costs on the rise, this is a delicious, budget-friendly holiday treat!
- Total Comfort Food: When you want that warm hot chocolate vibe, these cookies have your back.
Hot Chocolate Cookies Recipe Ingredients
For Hot Chocolate Cookies you'll need:
- salted butter
- brown sugar
- eggs
- vanilla extract
- all purpose flour
- cocoa powder
- salt
- baking powder
- mini marshmallows
How to Make This Hot Chocolate Cookie Recipe
- Cream the butter and brown sugar until smooth and creamy.
- Add the eggs and vanilla. Mix well.
- In a separate bowl, add the flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder, and stir well to combine.
- Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl, and mix between additions.
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper use a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop and place on the parchment-lined baking sheet
- Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and quickly make an indent with a spoon. Place 3 mini marshmallows on the top and return to the oven for 2-3 minutes until marshmallows have melted slightly. Do not overbake!
How to Store Hot Cocoa Cookies
Storing: Store hot chocolate cookies in an airtight container in a single layer at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Freezing: Freeze cookie dough balls in a freezer Ziploc or airtight container for up to 2 months. Freeze already baked cookies as well, just be sure they've cooled completely first before freezing.
Freezing Cookie Dough: You can freeze cookie dough! Check out this post for How to Freeze Cookie Dough for tips on saving cookie dough for later.
Substitutions for Hot Cocoa Cookies:
Salted Butter: Butter is essential to this recipe. We haven't tried it with dairy free butter but it might work!
Brown Sugar: We don't recommend substituting brown sugar unless you have to, but White sugar can be used interchangeably with brown sugar. You can add 1 teaspoon of molasses to white sugar to make brown sugar. Check out this post on Sugar Substitutes for Baking for other ideas.
Eggs: We don't recommend substituting eggs, but you can read this article on Egg Substitutions for Baking if you need to substitute. Try it at your own risk!
Vanilla Extract: Helps to add flavor, we don't recommend substituting.
All Purpose Flour: We don't recommend substituting the flour, but you can check out this article on Cake Flour vs. All-Purpose Flour or Substitutions for All-Purpose Flour
Cocoa Powder: Cocoa powder can be substituted with hot chocolate powder.
Salt: Helps to add flavor, we don't recommend substituting.
Baking Powder: Baking powder is essential for this recipe. Do NOT substitute with baking soda.
Mini Marshmallows: Mini marshmallows can be substituted with one regular-sized marshmallow if needed. There are also plenty of flavors and colors you can experiment with.
Hot Cocoa Cookie Recipe Variations
- Toppings: Top with broken bits of peppermint candy canes.
- Mallow Bits: Swap out mini marshmallows with the crunchy mallow bits that come in a hot chocolate packet. Yes! These little crunchy bits are sold separately on their own!
- S'more Please!: Crunch up graham crackers and sprinkle on top of the melted marshmallows for a s'more variation.
Hot Cocoa Cookie FAQ
Yes, you can use hot chocolate powder instead of cocoa powder in your cookie recipe. The hot chocolate powder contains sugar, cocoa powder, milk powder, and creamer so If you need to make this substitution altering your sugar amount may be necessary.
Cocoa powder adds a lovely deep chocolate flavor to the cookies. Adding additions like sugar or even sometimes coffee helps to elevate and enhance the chocolate flavor or cocoa powder.
Cocoa powder is just that, a powder made from cocoa beans. There isn't any added sugar or other ingredients. Very bitter to taste and isn't going to make a very tasty drink on its own. Hot cocoa mix has cocoa powder, sugars, milk powder, and creamer. The ingredients you want when making and or using a hot cocoa mix.
To maintain the super soft hot chocolate cookies, store them at room temperature in an airtight container with a slice of bread. The cookies will draw moisture from the bread and stay chewy and soft.
More Holiday Recipes
- Pecan Snowball Cookies
- Easy Butterscotch Haystack Cookies
- Easy Snickerdoodle Cookies
- Rice Krispie Christmas Treats
- Peppermint Fudge Recipe
- Thumbprint Cookies
Hot Chocolate Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup salted butter 1 stick
- 1 ½ cups brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 cups mini marshmallows
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and prepare a parchment lined baking sheet
- In the mixing bowl of a stand mixer, using the whisk attachment, cream the butter and brown sugar until smooth and creamy.
- Add the eggs and vanilla. Mix well.
- In a separate bowl, add the flour, cocoa, salt, and baking powder, and stir well to combine.
- Add the flour mixture a little at a time to the mixing bowl, and mix between additions.
- When all the flour is added, stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl, and mix again to combine all the ingredients.
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper use a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop place on the parchment lined baking sheet
- Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, or until they've puffed up and are slightly firm at the top.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and quickly make an indent with a spoon. Place 3 mini marshmallows on the top and return to the oven for 2-3 minutes until marshmallows have melted slightly. Do not overbake!
Lenisha
Mmmmmmm delicious! Can’t wait to try this recipe