These Hot Cocoa Cookies are like a mug of cocoa in cookie form! Rich, chewy hot chocolate cookies are flavored with peppermint & stuffed with a marshmallow. Dunk them in melted chocolate and add a sprinkle of crushed peppermint to take these perfect cookies right over the top!
Why you’ll love these Hot Cocoa Cookies:
- Fudgy Double Chocolate Cookies – These chewy chocolate cookies are rich and fudgy, with chocolate chips mixed into the dough!
- Gooey Marshmallow Center – A whole marshmallow is stuffed in the center of each cookie.
- Peppermint Pieces – Peppermint pieces are mixed into the dough, and sprinkled on top for lots of yummy peppermint flavor!
Ingredient Overview:
- Butter – I always use salted buter for the best flavor, but feel free to use unsalted butter if you prefer.
- Milk – I used 2% milk, but you can use any type.
- Peppermint – Use mini or large candy canes, crushed up.
- Marshmallows – Use regular size marshmallows.
- Flour – Spoon & level your flour for best results. Scooping the measuring cup directly into the flour will give you too much flour. Or use a scale, and weigh 135 grams of all-purpose flour per cup.
- Chocolate Chips – Use semi-sweet chocolate chips rather than milk, so the cookie isn’t too rich.
Ingredient Substitutions:
- Chocolate Chips – Feel free to skip these if you want. Or, use chocolate chunks, milk chocolate chips, or white chocolate chips.
- Marshmallows – If you don’t want to use a large marshmallow in each cookie, use 1 cup of mini marshmallows or marshmallow bits in the dough instead, or omit the marshmallows entirely. If you can’t have regular marshmallows, try vegan ones instead, or omit them and press a hershey’s kiss into the top of each cookie when they’re out of the oven!
How to Make this Hot Cocoa Cookie Recipe Step-by-Step:
Step 1: Make the Cookie Dough. Cream together butter and sugars in a large mixing bowl. Mix in the remaining wet ingredients – the eggs, vanilla, and peppermint extract. Mix in the dry ingredients, and finally the chocolate chips and crushed candy canes.
Step 2: Stuff the Cookie Dough Balls. Portion the balls of dough as directed in the recipe card. Flatten each ball, placing a marshmallow in the center, and folding the cookie back up around it so the marshmallow is peeking out.
Step 3: Bake the Cookies. Roll the cookie dough balls in granulated sugar and bake to chewy cookie perfection as directed in the recipe card below. They’ll look a bit misshapen when they come out of the oven – that’s normal! Here’s my trick –
Use a round cutter to scoot the delicious cookies into a perfectly round shape.
Step 4: Dip Cookies in Chocolate. Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for a bit, then transfer to a wire rack. Dip in chocolate and sprinkle crushed candy cane pieces on the top of each cookie.
You MUST enjoy these with a cup of hot cocoa. Or don’t – because these honestly taste just like a mug of peppermint hot cocoa in a cookie. And, if you’re skipping the extra chocolate on top of the cookies, please enjoy them warm from the oven! These are the perfect cookie to make this holiday season for your holiday cookie exchanges.
Expert Success Tips:
- Chill the Dough – Never skip the dough chilling time – it ensures that the cookies will hold their shape and bake properly.
- Soften Butter – Bring your butter to room temperature before using it – it shouldn’t feel super soft to the touch when it’s room temperature. Your finger should just make a slight indent, and it will still feel fairly cold.
- Cooling the Baked Cookies – These cookies are a tad fragile right out of the oven – let them cool on the cookie sheet for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. If you want to eat some straight off the pan, that is of course, encouraged!
- Oven Thermometer – An oven thermometer will tell you if your oven is actually running at the temperature you set it to. Your oven may not be accurate. Accurate oven temperature is crucial for most bakes, so I leave an oven thermometer in at all times to keep an eye on my oven’s calibration.
- Kitchen Scale – A food scale is the best way to make sure your flour is at the proper weight, since amounts will vary SO widely based on how you measure it, as well as the measuring cup you use, as they are not standardized.
FAQs:
Yes! I recommend making the dough balls and either freezing for 1-2 months, or refrigerating for 1-2 days, without the marshmallow. Thaw frozen dough in the fridge overnight, then flatten dough balls to add the marshmallow, and proceed as directed in the recipe.
No, or there won’t be enough dough to support the marshmallow center.
Yes, feel free to do either.
I don’t think you can swap that in 1:1 for the cocoa powder, because hot chocolate mix has sugar added and cocoa powder does not. You could replace 2 tbsp of cocoa with cocoa mix, but beyond that I’m not sure how it would work without testing it.
Recipe Variations:
- White Chocolate – Feel free to dunk cookies in white chocolate or dark chocolate if you prefer.
- Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies – Omit the peppermint if you simply want the flavors of chocolate and gooey marshmallows.
Serving + Storing this Recipe:
Enjoy cookies warm, or let cool before dipping in chocolate. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 4-5 days, or in the fridge for 7-8.
Special Tools:
- Cookie Scoop – Use this cookie scoop to make your cookies the size I did. It’s technically an ice cream scoop, but it’s the perfect size for large bakery-style cookies.
- Baking Sheets – These are my favorite cookie sheets!
- Silicone Baking Mat – This is my favorite silicone baking mat. It reduces waste because it’s washable!
More Cookie Recipes to Love:
- Bakery-Style Monster Cookies
- Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Bakery-Style Peanut Butter Chip Chocolate Cookies
- Key Lime Slice & Bake Cookies
- Blueberry Lemon Cookies
- Peanut Butter & Jelly Thumbprint Cookies
- Funfetti Cake Batter Cookies
- Cherry Pie Cookies
- Triple Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Did you make this recipe? Snap a photo and leave a comment!
Be sure to follow bluebowlrecipes on instagram and tag #bluebowlrecipes with your photo! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the bluebowlrecipes Facebook page. I’d love to see what you make!
Peppermint Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies
Ingredients
For the Cookie Dough:
- 1 cup salted butter, softened at room temperature 226 grams
- 1 cup granulated sugar 210 grams
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed 107 grams
- 2 large eggs
- 1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp peppermint extract paste Or 1 and 1/8 tsp peppermint extract
- 3 tbsp milk
- 2 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned & leveled 325 grams
- 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 196 grams
- 1/2 cup crushed candy canes about 7 large candy canes
For Stuffing & Decorating the Cookies
- 20 regular size marshmallows
- 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, melted
- 2-3 large candy canes, crushed, for topping
Instructions
- Make the Cookie Dough: In a large bowl, cream butter with an electric mixer on high speed. Add the sugars and mix until well creamed with the butter, about 1 minute. Add the vanilla, peppermint extract, and eggs and mix until just combined. Add the milk, and mix until just incorporated. Add the dry ingredients last, and mix until a slightly wet dough forms. Mix in the candy cane pieces and chocolate chips last, on medium speed.
- Chill the Dough: Chill for 30 minutes to make rolling easier. Scoop the dough into balls 60-65 grams in size, and place in an airtight container to chill for at least 2 hours or up to 48 hours.
- Fill & Bake the Cookies: Preheat your oven to 350° F. Line a few cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Add granulated sugar to a small bowl. Flatten each dough ball, and place a marshmallow in the center. Fold the edges over the marshmallow to seal the cookie back up, leaving the marshmallow peeking out (pictured above). Roll the dough balls in granulated sugar. Place 6 cookies on each prepared baking sheet and bake for 10-11 minutes, one sheet at a time (for the most even bake). The edges should appear just set, and the centers will seem a tad underdone. They'll set up as they cool.
- Cool & Decorate: If skipping the chocolate dip and peppermint sprinkle, enjoy the cookies warm! Or, let them cool and dip in chocolate and top with crushed candy canes.
- Serve + Store: Serve & Store: Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days, or in the fridge for up to a week.
Nutrition
Leave a Reply