Hot chocolate cookies are what I reach for when I want something warm, chocolatey, and deeply soothing, but also chewy and gooey. These cookies bake up soft and fudgy, and the marshmallows melt just enough to mimic that gooey top layer you get on a mug of cocoa. I can make a batch of these in about half an hour, and the recipe leans on everyday ingredients I usually already have in my pantry.
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I grew up with instant cocoa packets as an after-school ritual during the rainy season (no snow where I grew up in the Bay Area), and these cookies tap into that same sense of ease. The hot cocoa mix in the dough adds a nostalgic flavor without taking over, and the marshmallow on top reminds me of the way I used to dump in too many minis. The cookie itself tastes richer than the drink ever did, and even more because it is a chewy, chocolatey cookie.
The dough is thick and a little sticky, but it rewards you with that fudgy, brownie-like center everyone loves. It’s the kind of cookie that makes a cold evening feel like a bonus rather than a punishment.
You can play around with if you want. I sometimes swap in dark chocolate chunks to make them a little less sweet, or use mini marshmallows when I want them a little messier. You could even add a pinch of cayenne or ground cinnamon for a subtle heat if that’s your style.
Ingredients Notes
This recipe uses pantry staples, but a few ingredients make a real difference in flavor and texture.
Good cocoa powder and a small scoop of hot cocoa mix give the cookies that hot chocolate flavor without relying on extracts. But hot chocolate mix adds more than just cocoa flavor here. Because it contains sugar, milk solids, and cocoa powder, it softens the dough and helps the cookies bake up fudgy rather than crisp. It also deepens the chocolate flavor without making the dough dry.
Chocolate chunks melt a little slower than chips and they pool into uneven pockets, which creates more variation in texture and sweetness throughout the cookies.
Large marshmallows create that classic gooey cap, but mini marshmallows work fine if that’s what you have. For each cookie, you can substitue 3 to 5 mini marshmallows for one large marshmallow half.
How to Make Chewy, Fudgy Hot Chocolate Cookies with Gooey Marshmallows on Top
These cookies may look dramatic with their marshmallow tops, but making them couldn’t be more straightforward. Here’s how:
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- Cream the butter and sugars in a large bowl, and then beat in the eggs and vanilla.
- Whisk the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, and then mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until the dough forms.
- Stir in the milk to soften the dough slightly and fold in the chocolate chunks to distribute them evenly.
- Scoop the dough onto lined baking sheets, leaving plenty of space.
- Bake the cookies soon after shaping. If you let them warm up too much, the butter will become too soft, causing excess spreading. Bake the cookies until the edges just begin to set.
- Remove the tray from the oven and press a marshmallow half, or several mini marshmallows, into each cookie, then return the tray to the oven. Adding the marshmallows partway through baking keeps them from melting completely into the dough and helps them stay visible, soft, and lightly toasted on top.
- Bake briefly again until the marshmallows puff but the cookies are still soft in the center.
- Let the cookies cool on the tray before moving them.
Expert Tips for Making Fudgy Hot Chocolate Cookies
Baking these cookies is simple, but a few small choices can improve the texture. Here are my favorite tips.
- Bake the cookies as soon as you've shaped the dough on the sheet pan. If they flatten too much, it’s usually because the dough sat out for too long and the butter became too soft.
- Pull the cookies out while the centers still look slightly underdone to keep the texture soft.
- Use high-quality chocolate chunks for the best flavor.
- Let the cookies rest on the tray so the marshmallows set without sliding off.
Why are my hot chocolate cookies cakey?
Hot chocolate cookies turn cakey when there’s too much flour or they’re baked too long. Measuring flour carefully and pulling the cookies while the centers still look soft keeps them dense and fudgy.
More Cookies You’ll Love
These cookies make a great afternoon treat, bake sale offering, or addition to a holiday cookie platter. Some others you might want to add include Chocolate Caramel Thumbprint Cookies, Cinnamon Sugar Cookies, Flourless Chocolate Cookies, or Honey Cookies. They’re are all easy-to-make recipes, and always hit the mark.
Old-fashioned Quaker Oatmeal Cookies and Ginger Snap Cookies are classics that are always well received. My Pecan Pie Cookies, Black Sesame Cookies, and Toffee Cookie Bars offer something a bit different. They’re perfect when you want to shake things up a little.
Hot Chocolate Cookies
Robin Donovan
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons hot cocoa mix
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1½ cups semisweet chocolate chunks
- 12 large marshmallows cut in half, or 1½ cups mini marshmallows
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, then mix in the vanilla.
- In another bowl, whisk flour, cocoa powder, hot cocoa mix, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Mix until just combined.
- Stir in the milk to slightly loosen the dough.
- Fold in chocolate chips. The dough will be thick.
- Scoop 2 to 3 tablespoon portions (big cookies are best here!) onto the prepared sheets, leaving space between for spreading.
- Bake for 8 minutes, then quickly pull out the tray.
- Gently press half a marshmallow (or a few minis) into the center of each cookie.
- Return to oven and bake for another 3 to 4 minutes, until the marshmallow is puffed and edges are set but centers are still soft.
- Cool for 5 minutes on the tray, then transfer to a rack.
I was going to make these, but no where on the page can I find what temperature to set the oven. It says cook time is 12 minutes, but at what temperature?
I’m so sorry! I have corrected this. The temp is there now.