Hot Chocolate Cookies with Toasted Marshmallow

Yields around 15 cookies

These cookies are a chocolate lover's dream, inspired by rich, decadent hot chocolate. With Dutch cocoa, espresso powder, and chunks of dark chocolate, every bite is packed with bold, chocolate flavor. A touch of milk powder makes the cookies tender and creamy, and toasted marshmallows on top add a festive, gooey finish. A treat as fun to make as it is to eat—thanks, blowtorch (or broiler)!

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

INGREDIENTS

Hot Chocolate Cookies

  • Store-bought or homemade marshmallows

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter (226 g)

  • ¾ cup dark brown sugar (150 g)

  • ¼ cup granulated sugar (54 g)

  • 2 large eggs, room temperature

  • 2 tsp vanilla extract

  • 1 ⅔ cup all-purpose flour (210 g)

  • ⅓ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder, sifted if clumpy (35 g)

  • 2 tsp nonfat dried milk powder

  • 1 tsp espresso powder

  • 1 tsp baking soda

  • 1 ½ tsp kosher salt

  • 8 oz dark chocolate, chopped into medium-sized chunks (60-72% cacao)

DIRECTIONS

  1. If making homemade marshmallows, start with those first. They can be prepared up to 3 weeks ahead and stored in an airtight container.

  2. Place butter in a small saucepan or skillet over medium heat. Stir often until butter foams, then browns, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat, transfer to a large bowl, and let cool for 10 minutes.

  3. Stir both sugars into the cooled butter with a spatula until fully combined. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla until smooth.

  4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, milk powder, espresso powder, baking soda, and salt. Add mixture to your wet ingredients and stir to combine. Fold in all but a handful of the chopped chocolate, reserving the rest to press on top before baking. Let dough chill, tightly covered, in the fridge for at least 1 hour or up to 48 hours.

  5. Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C) and line two sheet trays with parchment paper. Shape the dough into balls using a large cookie scoop (about 3 tbsp each) and place on the prepared trays. Press a couple of reserved chocolate chunks into the sides of each dough ball. Bake for 9-11 minutes, until the edges are set. Once removed from the oven, immediately press a marshmallow into the center of each cookie.

  6. Toast the marshmallows:

    • Using the broiler: Preheat your oven to broil. Once it reaches temperature, place cookies in the oven and watch closely, removing them as soon as the marshmallows are lightly browned. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

    • Using a blowtorch: Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10-15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack set over a sheet tray. If working on a flammable surface, place sheets of foil underneath. Toast the marshmallows, keeping the torch in constant motion. Cool and serve.

  7. Store in an airtight container covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.

RECIPE NOTES & TIPS

  • If you chill the cookie dough for 1-2 days, you’ll end up with thicker cookies. The cookies shown here were baked after chilling for 1 hour and are slightly flatter. When refrigerated, the flour soaks up moisture from the wet ingredients and becomes more hydrated, resulting in a firmer, more concentrated dough. The fats will also solidify, which then melt slower in the oven, causing less spread. If you prefer thicker cookies, I recommend making the cookie dough in advance and baking it 1-2 days later.

  • If following the marshmallow recipe, these are the cookies cutters I used: Star Shaped & Round Shaped cutters. I added 1 tbsp of vanilla paste in place of the extract, and used a 9x9 pan instead of the 8x8 listed in the recipe. Once set, I cut out the shapes, then cut each shape in half using scissors.

  • If using store-bought marshmallows, I recommend buying jumbo ones and cutting them in half.

  • This cookie has a deep, dark chocolate flavor with slight bitterness. If you prefer, you can substitute dark chocolate with milk chocolate chunks instead.