Food and Recipes Desserts Cookies Hot Cocoa Cookies 5.0 (2) 2 Reviews Rich and decadent hot cocoa cookies have a brownie-like texture with a gooey topping of marshmallow. By Catherine Jessee Catherine Jessee Catherine Jessee is an Assistant Digital Food Editor at Southern Living. She is a writer, editor, and recipe developer with a passion for Appalachian foodways, culture, and history. Prior to joining the Southern Living, Catherine tested and developed recipes for print and digital publications like EatingWell, Food & Wine, Real Simple, Serious Eats, Southern Living, and more. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Published on December 5, 2024 Recipe tested by Southern Living Test Kitchen Recipe tested by Southern Living Test Kitchen The Southern Living Test Kitchen has been publishing recipes since 1970, four years after the first issue of Southern Living Magazine appeared on newsstands. The Southern Living Test Kitchen team includes a team of professionals with deep expertise in recipe development, from pastry chefs and grilling experts to nutritionists and dietitians. Together, the team tests and retests, produces, styles, and photographs thousands of recipes each year in the state-of-the-art test kitchen facility located in Birmingham, Alabama. Learn more about the Southern Living Test Kitchen Save Rate PRINT Share Close Photo: Brian Woodcock; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Lydia Pursell Active Time: 50 mins Chill Time: 1 hr Total Time: 3 hrs Yield: 3 dozen Jump to recipe Rich and fudgy, with gooey, velvety pockets of melted chocolate, this hot cocoa cookies recipe captures everything you love about hot cocoa in a cookie. It has a brownie-like texture, and a crackled top just like brownies too. The marshmallow topper really drives home the hot chocolate flavor, but also lends the cookie a contrasting texture and added bit of sweetness. A final dusting of cocoa powder and these cookies are ready for the Christmas tins. Learn how to make hot cocoa cookies. They're Santa's favorite! Ingredients for Hot Cocoa Cookies Most of the items for this recipe are baking staples that you probably already have in the pantry: Butter: A buttery cookie requires plenty of butter, in this case unsalted to better control the amount of salt in the dough.Semisweet chocolate chips: The chips lend the cookies a rich chocolate flavor and brownie-like texture, but also help adhere the marshmallows to the cookies.All-purpose flour: Gives the cookies their chewy, fudgy texture.Unsweetened cocoa: Helps bring the dough together and intensify the chocolate flavor. Plus hot cocoa requires, well, cocoa. Baking powder: The leavener helps the dough rise, giving the cookies a lighter texture. Salt: Balances out the sweetness of the cookies, and helps bring out the chocolate flavor of the dough. Light brown sugar: Sweetens the cookie and provides a subtle molasses flavor. Large eggs: Binds the dough together. Vanilla extract: Much like salt, vanilla helps round out the cookie and teases out other flavors in the dough. Marshmallows: What’s hot cocoa without a marshmallow on top? Feel free to use different types, like peppermint marshmallows, that you might find around the holidays. Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley How To Make Hot Cocoa Cookies These soft and fudgy cookies require a quick chill before baking, but otherwise are fairly quick and easy to make: Melt: Heat butter and 2 cups of the chocolate chips in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until melted. Set the mixture aside to cool.Make the dough: Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate large bowl, whisk together brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add the cooled chocolate mixture in 3 additions, whisking vigorously until completely incorporated. Whisk in the flour mixture, and then fold in 3/4 cup of the remaining chocolate chips. Chill: Cover and chill the dough for one hour, or until firm. Scoop: Preheat oven to 325°F. Line three large baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop dough into 36 portions (about one heaping tablespoon each) and roll into balls. Place 12 dough balls, 2 inches apart, on each prepared baking sheet.Bake: Bake until the tops of the cookies are cracked but centers are still soft, about 10 minutes.Top: Remove the cookies from the oven, and immediately press three chocolate chips into the center of each cookie. Top the melted chocolate with a marshmallow (cut-side down), pressing gently to adhere. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for five minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely.Finish: Lightly dust cocoa over cooled cookies. Our Tips For Outstanding Hot Cocoa Cookies Here are a few helpful hints from our Test Kitchen to ensure every batch of these cookies come out perfectly. Chill out: Chilling the dough is essential because it’s actually more of a batter. You’ll need the down time in the fridge to completely firm up the dough and make it easy to work with. You might want to use gloves for rolling the dough into balls because your hands can get quite messy as the dough warms up. Strike while they’re hot: Pressing the chocolate chips into the cookies while they’re still hot helps ensure the chocolate melts, the marshmallow adheres, and the cookie gets that nice crackle.Ditch the knife: Use scissors to more easily cut the marshmallows in half. How To Store Hot Cocoa Cookies The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to two days. The dough can also be made a day in advance, and stored in the refrigerator overnight. If baking straight from cold, the cookies might need an extra three to five minutes in the oven, but if you allow the dough to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes, they should bake up closer to the directed time. Cook Mode (Keep screen awake) Ingredients 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips, divided 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa, plus more for dusting 1 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. kosher salt 1 cup packed light brown sugar 3 large eggs, at room temperature 1 tsp. vanilla extract 18 marshmallows, halved crosswise Directions Melt butter and chocolate chips: Heat butter and 2 cups of the chocolate chips in a medium saucepan over medium, stirring often, until melted and combined, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and let cool 10 minutes. Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Julia Bayless Make and chill cookie dough: Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl until combined. Whisk together brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl until well combined. Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Add cooled chocolate mixture to brown sugar mixture in 3 additions, whisking vigorously until completely incorporated. Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Whisk in flour mixture. Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Fold in 3/4 cup of the remaining chocolate chips. Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Cover and chill dough until very firm, about 1 hour. Scoop cookie dough: Preheat oven to 325°F with racks in top third and lower third positions. Line 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Scoop dough into 36 portions (about 1 heaping tablespoon each); roll into balls. Place 12 dough balls at least 2 inches apart on each prepared baking sheet. Partially bake cookies, then rotate: Place 2 baking sheets in preheated oven, and bake until tops are cracked but centers still seem soft, about 10 minutes, rotating baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through cook time. Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Add marshmallows and chocolate chips: Remove cookies from oven; immediately press 3 of the remaining chocolate chips into the center of each cookie. Place a marshmallow, cut side down, over chocolate chips, and press gently to adhere (cookies will crackle and spread slightly). Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Let cool on baking sheets 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely, about 45 minutes. Repeat with remaining cookies, chocolate chips, and marshmallows. Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Lightly dust cocoa over cooled cookies. Store in a sealed container at room temperature up to 3 days. Jen Causey; Food Stylist: Ruth Blackburn; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley Rate It Print