What you need to make Hot Chocolate Cookies:
For the cookies:
- butter, unsalted
- semi-sweet chocolate chips
- flour
- unsweetened cocoa powder
- baking powder
- salt
- brown sugar
- eggs
- chocolate extract (or vanilla if you can’t find chocolate)
- mini marshmallows
- Sprinkles
- powdered sugar
How to make Hot Chocolate Cookies:
FOR THE COOKIES:
In a small sauce pan, melt the butter and then whisk in the semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Whisk together until the butter and semi-sweet chocolate chips melt into a smooth chocolate sauce.
Set aside and let cool.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugar, eggs and extract together. Mix until well combined.
Once the chocolate and butter mixture is cooled mix it into the sugar, eggs and extract.
Slowly whisk the flour mixture into the chocolate mixture.
Mix until everything is combined. Cover in plastic wrap and place into the fridge for 1 hour.
Remove dough from the fridge after one hour and preheat oven to 325F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Spoon out about a tablespoon of chilled dough and roll it into a ball. Lay it onto a prepared baking sheet.
Press each cookie down a little bit.
Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven.
Top each cookie with three mini marshmallows. Place back into the oven for 2 – 3 minutes.
Remove cookies from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Repeat until all cookies are done.
Let cookies cool and make the chocolate glaze.
FOR THE GLAZE:
In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter, cocoa powder, hot water and chocolate extract (or vanilla extract).
Slowly whisk in the powdered sugar until everything is combined.
Lay a piece of parchment paper under the cooling rack that is holding the cooled cookies. (This will make for easy clean up!)
Drizzle each cookie with the chocolate glaze, covering the marshmallows. While the chocolate glaze is wet, sprinkle each cookie with the sprinkles..
Let cookies and chocolate glaze set for about 30 minute before serving.
Keep cookies in an air tight container.
But another little reason that I wanted to share these cookies with you is because today is my brother’s birthday!! My little brother is turning 26 today!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ADAM!!!!
Ok, I know, I know, what does my brother’s birthday have to do with Hot Chocolate Cookies?
Well last year Thomas and I went to Disney World and we took my Brother and my future Sister in Law with us. I don’t know if you know this or not but when you stay at the Disney Resorts you can buy these Disney Refillable mugs and then when you’re in the food courts or lunch type restaurants at the resorts you can just fill up your mugs with drink for free. (Well it’s not free, because you had to pay for that stinkin $15 mug but you know what I mean…)
Well, my brother fell in love with the hot chocolate there and every time we turned around he was walking back to the restaurants in the resort to re-fill is mug with hot chocolate.
I found this pretty funny because Adam isn’t normally a big sweets person and he’s also one of those people that likes to hang out at the gym. haha. 😉
Random, I know, but now every time I think about anything that has to do with “Hot Chocolate” I picture Adam scurrying off at Disney to find more hot chocolate.
Ok, haha sorry, just a little family memory but I’ll like it when I look back on these posts in a few years. 😉
Also, let me say that these Hot Chocolate Cookies are slightly adapted from the Hot Cocoa Cookies from Glorious Treats. My husband’s cousin’s wife, Crystal, made these right before Christmas and I got to try them when I went over to her house for a day of Christmas cookie making and Christmas crafts!
These Hot Chocolate Cookies were super good and I had to really work on showing some restraint around them! I got a few few tips and methods on what she did differently with these cookies and then I changed up a few measurements based on cookies that I’d made in the past.
I upped the brown sugar a bit, changed out the large marshmallows for mini ones plus I added chocolate extract instead of vanilla to the cookies and glaze.
“More brown sugar, mini marshmallows and CHOCOLATE EXTRACT!!”
Crystal had mentioned that the chocolate glaze on top was super sweet and it was. While the old me would have been all over that, the new me had to step back a bit because it was so sweet that it made my teeth hurt haha.
I made the recipe for the glaze and while I wanted to add less sugar I couldn’t get it to thicken up nicely without it. So I made the glaze and then we just didn’t pour quite as much onto each Hot Chocolate Cookie. I tried to get just enough on there to mainly cover the marshmallows.
So there you have it, Hot Chocolate Cookies at the beginning of January. You’re welcome. 😉
Also don’t forget the Christmas Sprinkles to make these extra festive!
**You don’t have to use THESE brands but there are a few that I love**
Hot Chocolate Cookies
Hot Chocolate Cookies
Hot Chocolate Cookies are so popular in our family that I end up making dozens and dozens for family members during the holidays! They're rich chocolate cookies with melted marshmallows stacked on top with a chocolate glaze drizzle and sprinkles to finish them off.
Ingredients
For Cookies:
- 1/2 cup butter, unsalted (1 stick)
- 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoons chocolate extract (or vanilla if you can't find chocolate)
- 135 mini marshmallows
- Sprinkles
For Glaze:
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup hot water
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon chocolate extract (or vanilla if you can't find chocolate)
Instructions
For the cookies:
In a small sauce pan, melt the butter and then whisk in the semi-sweet chocolate chips. Whisk together until the butter and semi-sweet chocolate chips melt into a smooth chocolate sauce.
Set aside and let cool.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugar, eggs and extract together. Mix until well combined.
Once the chocolate and butter mixture is cooled mix it into the sugar, eggs and extract.
Slowly whisk the flour mixture into the chocolate mixture.
Mix until everything is combined. Cover in plastic wrap and place into the fridge for 1 hour.
Remove dough from the fridge after one hour and preheat oven to 325F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Spoon out about a tablespoon of chilled dough and roll it into a ball. Lay it onto a prepared baking sheet.
Press each cookie down a little bit.
Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Top each cookie with three mini marshmallows. Place back into the oven for 2 - 3 minutes.
Remove cookies from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Repeat until all cookies are done.
Let cookies cool and make the chocolate glaze.
For the Glaze:
In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter, cocoa powder, hot water and chocolate extract (or vanilla extract).
Slowly whisk in the powdered sugar until everything is combined.
Lay a piece of parchment paper under the cooling rack that is holding the cooled cookies. (This will make for easy clean up!)
Drizzle each cookie with the chocolate glaze, covering the marshmallows. While the chocolate glaze is wet, sprinkle each cookie with the sprinkles.
Let cookies and chocolate glaze set for about 30 minute before serving.
Keep cookies in an air tight container.
If you make this recipe, snap a picture and share it on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter with the hashtag #bigbearswife —
I love to see what your cooking from the blog!
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More Christmas Cookies
Pecan Pie Cookie Cups
Peanut Butter Cookies
It’s Christmas until January 6, so you’re good! I keep my decorations up until the 15th or so. The lights are so pretty!
This sounds amazing! I would add cinnamon too as I love my hot chocolate with a touch of cinnamon
It’s NEVER the wrong time for hot chocolate cookies! Good for you for posting what you want 🙂
These cookies are so much fun! My kids would love these! And we still use those Disney mugs all the time 🙂
Can the dough be frozen ahead of time
it can be! <3
I like your attitude. Plus, it’s never too late for delicious cookies!
Angie, these cookies couldn’t look any more scrumptious. Besides, it’s winter, hot chocolate is appropriate, and you have license to do what you want this year and less of what is expected. Brava!
I’m going to continue posting nothing but desserts. I don’t care that it’s January. 😀 And these look magical, despite their Christmas-ness! Happy birthday to your brother. 🙂
You go girl!!! Who cares what anybody expects – you just do what feels right to you!! Besides, our Christmas deco is going to stay up for at least another week; I’ve been desperately trying to hold on to some cheeriness so this recipe couldn’t come at a better time! These cookies look terrific, I wish I could have a handful of these for dessert tonight!
#SorryNotSorry is right – 80% healthyish and 20% indulgent is what I heard on a show the other day so this works well with January – right?
my Christmas decoratioons are still up so I don’t mind 😉 esp because they look sooo chocolatey and delish and perfect for this gross cold weather! 😛
can this recipe be doubled?
Yes.
Cookies are my weakness, pretty much any kind and these look amazing! These look AHmazing!
Oh my! I just made these for an early Christmas party this week and they are my new favorite cookie. A little crunch on the outside and chewy inside, they taste just like a mug of hot chocolate. Thank you for a wonderful recipe. I must have made mine much smaller than yours ( I used my small cookie scoop) because I got 75 cookies, Bonus!
I’m so glad you liked them! More cookies is never a bad thing hahaha <3
Hi Angie! I would like to make these for a cookie exchange on 12/12/16 – do you know how long they would last sealed in an airtight container?
Hey Allie! They would probably last 5 days to a week in an air tight container 🙂
Does anyone know if these freeze well? Student life doesn’t allow for close to christmas baking ahha
Hi Jennifer!
I’ve never frozen them but I would think it would be fine. I will ask around and see if anyone that has made them as frozen them (they don’t normally last here long enough to freeze hahaha)
They freeze beautifully!!
Mine are coming out runny as soon as they go in the oven! They are delicious but how do I keep them in cookie shape?
Hey Kathleen,
Without being there with you I can’t pinpoint the exact reason they’re doing this but if it were me, I would increase the chill time for the dough and lower my oven temperature just a bit. Also make sure that you’re not putting them on a hot baking sheet
Does the glaze harden? I’m thinking of adding these to our annual cookie-baking marathon next weekend, but they’ll need to be stacked for delivering to people and I’m trying to avoid a goopy mess. Thoughts?
Hey Kassie,
The glaze kind of hardens but not like hard sugar cookie icing. It isn’t like syrup though. It kind of dries instead of hardens. They can totally be stacked after they’ve cooled. 🙂
My cookies turned out just like the picture and tasted awesome.
YAY! I’m so glad to hear that!
Can the flour be substituted with almond flour?
I haven’t tried it that way yet. I’m so sure how it would work.
When do you add the marshmallows?
As soon as you take them out of the oven 🙂 Then you put them back in for a few minutes.
Hello! The recipe for this isn’t coming out on my phone right. It’s only showing half (vertically) of the recipe so I cant read each step completely. Any chance you could email it to me before Saturday? Thank you! Would love to make these!
yikes! sorry about the recipe being cut off! I fixed it! For some reason when my blog was redesigned this year it started cutting the mobile version of the recipe off if the phone wasn’t flipped on it’s side. But it should be fixed now. <3 I will also e-mail you a copy to have!
The dough is chilling. Wondering do I push the marshmallows into the cookie or do I lay them on top?
Hey Becky!
I just kind of lay them on top and maybe press down a little. I don’t really push them down. I just want them to kind of sit on top and melt a little bit when they go back into the oven.
Hey! So is the butter salted or unsalted? The recipe just says “butter”. Thanks!!
Unsalted 🙂
Hi! im currently making these cookies right now and was wondering how long I’m supposed to wait for the melted chocolate to cool. Its been like 30 mins, does it need to be completely cooled before mixing it into the brown sugar, eggs, and vanila mixture? Thanks in advance!
Just coolish, you don’t want it to be super hot. I just normally wait until I can touch it with my finger without burning myself. 30 minutes should be plenty of time. If you need me in the future for a time sensitive question please reach out to me on social media! I’ll see that while I’m out and about 🙂
I really can’t tell you what I love most about this post. (Arguably) Christmas cookies after Christmas? The mouthwatering taste of hot chocolate transformed into incredibly looking cookies? Or, the fact that you made these for your brother’s birthday (lucky fella!). I won’t even try to narrow it down to just one of these reasons, let’s just say for now that I am in love with these gorgeous cookies!!!
I was looking for a fun and unique Christmas cookie recipe and this one caught my eye. I made them today and they are delicious!
YAY! I’m so glad that you liked them!!
YAY Patty! I’m so happy that you loved them!
Hi I’m making these now and I just pulled them out after putting the marshmallows on. The marshmallows are all puffy. Is that normal. Will they go down as they cool?
Yep it’s normal. Marshmallows puff up when they are heated. 🙂 They’ll go down as they cool 🙂
Hi Angie!
I made these cookies over the holidays and they were a favourite amongst my family and friends.? I made a Soft Frosting Ganache instead of the frosting since you mentioned it was very sweet. If you’re interested, the ratio I used was 1:2, one part chocolate to two parts whipping cream.
ooooo that Soft Frosting Ganache sounds amazing! yum! glad you liked the cookies!
I have made these several times now and am abut to make them for a Christmas In July party. They are always a huge hit.
So glad to hear that!!
About how long will these cookies keep? If I want to bake ahead. Also, could they be frozen, and then thawed and glazed? Thanks and Merry Christmas!!
Hey Carmen,
I don’t know if I could freeze these because of the Marshmallows. I think defrosted marshmallows would be kind of blah, plus the way they’re made they’re really soft in the middles and I don’t know if that would be the same once frozen and thawed. Once they’re made though, you can keep them an air tight container for about a week. Merry Christmas!
I’m currently making these.. I just put them in the fridge to chill.. they kind of reminded me of brownie batter… I feel like this is wrong.
That’s what it’s suppose to look like 🙂 It’ll firm up in the fridge 🙂
A new favorite !! I made 3 batches last Christmas ! They are permanent addition to my Christmas cookie list . I am starting my 2017 Christmas Cookie baking tomorrow . Hot chocoate cookie are at the top ofmy list !
Thank you and Merry Christmas !
Carol
YAY!!! I’m so glad to hear that Carol!!! Merry Christmas!!!
Thanks Angie for the wonderful recipe! They came out awesome! Merry Christmas!!!!!!
So glad to hear that! Merry Christmas!
When I am rolling these after about 6 cookies they are really sticking to my hands. Any suggestions?
I have this problem too. I normally just work through it and then wash my hands after rolling about 12 or so but if it’s sticking too much I would run your hands under ice cold water after rolling about 5 or so.
hello! I don’t have a stand up mixer, so this could be done by hand with a whisk right? the only factor being time? thanks and merry Christmas:)
You can totally mix it by hand although it may take a bit of arm strength. Do you have an electric hand mixer?
I just made these for an office cookie swap. They DISAPPEARED. so so good!!!!
So glad to hear that!
I made these last year and they froze beautifully. Everyone who tried them loved them!
So glad to know that they freeze well! Thanks for letting us know! So glad y’all loved them.
Hello! you mentioned the changes you made, more brown sugar, chocolate extract and mini marshmallows but the origianl recipe used 1/4 cup cocoa and your recipe calls for 1/2 cup cocoa. Is that correct? Just checking since it wasn’t mentioned as a change. Also, why did you up the brown sugar? Thank you!
Yes it’s correct. I changed the brown sugar amount because I like the taste of brown sugar more than white sugar in chocolate desserts.
Hello! you mentioned the changes you made, more brown sugar, chocolate extract and mini marshmallows but the origianl recipe used 1/4 cup cocoa and your recipe calls for 1/2 cup cocoa. Is that correct? Just checking since it wasn’t mentioned as a change. Also, why did you up the brown sugar? Thank you!
Yes it’s correct. I changed the brown sugar amount because I like the taste of brown sugar more than white sugar in chocolate desserts.
This may be a silly question, but is Cocoa extract the same as Chocolate extract?
Similar but not exactly the same. I’ve had people use the Cocoa extract and love it and some have hated it and preferred the chocolate. I haven’t tired the Cocoa
Can I let the dough cool over night before baking?
You sure can! Normally when I put the dough in the fridge overnight, I just take it out and let it sit on the counter while the oven pre-heats just so it’s a little easier to scoop.
Okay, picked up all the ingredients to try this recipe out this weekend, then realized when I got home that I forgot the mini marshmallows. I do however have marshmallow crème at home for a different recipe… do you think a small dollop of that on top of cookies will work okay?
I’m not sure that would work but I’ve never tried it that way. If the marshmallow creme will form like a film over the top under the broiler this could possible work If you try it and it does, let me know!
My glaze turned out like icing instead of a glaze. Was my water just not hot enough?
It does turn into an icing once it starts to dry. Just add a little more hot water and stir to loosen it back up 🙂
This will be my 4th Christmas making these cookies! My family can’t get enough of them. I’m wondering if the recipe can be doubled?
It can be 🙂
These were delicious!!!! Made them before Christmas and everyone loved them!
So happy to hear that!!!
These cookies are adorable, and they are going to look so good on my cookie tray this year! That is, if they last that long. LOL I’m a sucker for chocolate and so is pretty much everyone I know.
Hi! Should you use light brown sugar or dark? I see the picture shows dark, but the list of ingredients just says brown sugar. Thanks!
You can use either. 🙂 I’ve made them with both
Thanks! Making these today!
Where can I find chocolate extract and those snowflake sprinkles? Thanks
I’ve seen chocolate extract at Kroger and Walmart or you can order it online. I’m pretty sure that I found those snowflake sprinkles at Walmart 🙂
Can you use unsweetened cocoa powder due the cookies?
There is already unsweetened cocoa powder in the recipe
I was looking for a Christmas cookie recipes for my jobs Christmas party bake off and came across this recipe! These hot chocolate cookies look simple to make and very delicious! Thanks for posting this recipe! Looking forward to making these for the party!
For the hot chocolate cookies could you use unsweetened coco powder?
There is already unsweetened cocoa powder in the recipe
Hello! This looks like an amazing recipe and I’d love to make it as dessert for my family dinner! I read through all the comments and didn’t see anything about flour substitutes. I’m looking to use some kind of gluten free flour as a couple in my family are celiac. Any suggestions?
Hey Alana, I don’t do a lot of gluten free baking but I know that Bob’s Red Mill is a great for gluten free flours. I’m not sure which one to use here though.
Help! I’m making these for a Christmas party tonight. I mixed them up and put them in the fridge. They look like a thick brownie batter. Is that what it’s supposed to look like?
Hey. Yes that’s what the batter is supposed to look like. Sorry, our baby is in NICU right now so I just saw this.
Every year I try a new cookie to add to the rotation. I just made these and they were a flop. I followed the directions exactly – but would have hoped for more clarity in the directions or blog on how to test if the cookies are done before adding the marshmallows or, if needed, make sure dough is on the cool side (re-chill in between bathes). Had to throw out the cookies- they were not done on the inside even though I let them sit on the sheets to continue cooking. Wasted quite a bit of ingredients and time, unfortunately.
They’re supposed to be gooey on the inside! Noooo those were exactly like they were supposed to be. Did you try one before you threw them away? Hundreds of people have been making these, they’re my most popular recipe. They’re not supposed to be hard. They’re supposed to be the softness of like a toasty brownie with a gooey hot chocolate center!
These cookies taste nothing like any hot chocolate I’ve ever had. What they DO taste like, however, is the cookie version of a deliciously fudgy, decadent brownie! And the best part of brownies – IMO – the corner with it’s perfectly crunchy outside and lovely chewy inside! Mmmm!! As I tried the cookies before adding the marshmallows, glaze, etc., I saw no need as they were perfect as is. Call them hot chocolate cookies if you must, but here they will be forever known as fudgy brownie cookies. ????
I like to think of them as hot chocolate cookies because they are warm, soft and chocolatey and have melted marshmallows on top like a nice warm mug of hot coco
Made these cookies for my annual cookie tins and they were AMAZING. They tasted just like hot chocolate with a fudge twist. They also stayed fresh for almost a week after being made. I’ll be making these again. Thank you for the great recipe.
I love hot chocolate cookies. I like them sweet!
My daughter and I just made these and they are delicious! Gave a dozen to a neighbor and she already asked for the recipe. My question: The glaze is very sweet and I wondered if I shouldn’t have used unsweetened cocoa powder in the glaze as I used in the dough. Many thanks!
It is a very sweet glaze. I use the same unsweetened cocoa powder in both the cookies and the glaze. if you find that the glaze is too sweet just add a little less the cookies or you could also try using less powdered sugar (which would also mean less hot water) to make it less sweet 🙂
Thanks so much , Angie! These cookies are AMAZING, We all loved them and I will be making more to bring to my Grandkids in Nova Scotia for Christmas!
Do you know how many calories are in the cookies? I have to hold myself back from eating too many!
Hi Leona! I’m so happy to hear that you loved the cookies! I hope your grandkids love them too! I don’t know how many calories are in each cookie, I haven’t calculated it but I try not to mix calorie counting and Christmas cookies too often haha. 🙂 I hope you have a wonderful holiday!
Hi! Can I make the dough a day ahead of time and refrigerate about 24 hours?
You sure can! Just make sure to cover it so it doesn’t dry out.
We LOVE these cookies!! What would be the best way to make these gluten free?
Hi Vieka,
I don’t do any gluten free baking so I’m not sure what would work best with these.
These cookies are beautiful and taste amazing! I’ve made 3 batches this year. Instead of sprinkles on my last batch, my mom found some peppermint shavings. They were sooooo good and I love the way the peppermint looked on top!
Oh my gosh! I love the idea of the peppermint shavings on top!
I make these every year and always a hit. I’d like to make them bigger using an ice cream scoop. Has anyone tried? I’m wondering how much longer to cook them?
Can these cookies be frozen?
They can be!
YUM!! Followed your recipe exactly as written!! These lil’ jewels are keepers, for sure!!
I’m so happy that you liked them!!! They’re a favorite around here.
These are the best cookies ever! I’ve made them for several years and even won a cookie exchange with them! Tomorrow I’m taking them to the church camp kids. Last year I took 2 different cookies but everyone wanted these! Thanks so much for this recipe!