We are nearing the end of February and it still hasn’t snowed. I am truly heartbroken. Everyone I know is all ready for spring, but not me. I will still be wearing cozy sweaters and jeans for as long as possible.
Sense it hasn’t snowed, I have only had one cup of hot cocoa. Only one! It’s an atrocity. So to make up for it, I made these cookies.
They taste just like a cup of warming hot cocoa, complete with loads of marshmallows. Using malted milk powder adds a buttery and saltiness to them which is just perfect.
Describe these Cookies to Me
Taste: These cookies taste just like the name suggests: like a cozy and creamy mug of hot cocoa. They have melted bittersweet chocolate, cocoa powder, and actual hot cocoa mix. This gives them that sweet creamy flavor of hot cocoa. I also use marshmallow fluff swirled in the cookies to give them that extra little sweet flavor that we all associate with hot cocoa. The addition of malted milk powder adds a saltiness and buttery flavor to the cookies, making them melt in your mouth.
Texture: These cookies are best enjoyed fresh out of the oven when those marshmallows and stretchy and the cookie is gooey. But once they cool down the cookie is a little chewy at first, but melts down into an almost fudge like texture in your texture.
Ease: These are pretty simple. The dough will only take you about 15-20 minutes to whip up, and requires no fussy extra steps. It does need to chill for about 20-30 minutes, but that isn’t long compared to some other cookie recipes. Then you just bake them up and enjoy right away!
How to Make a Cookie Actually Taste like Hot Cocoa
When I was developing this I wanted to make sure that these actually tasted like a mug of hot cocoa, and not just a chocolate cookie. So how do we do this? The key is using hot cocoa mix. There are 3 tablespoons of it in there. I like to use the brand Silly Cow Farms but any kind will work. This gives it that sweet and chocolaty flavor. I also use melted bittersweet chocolate in the dough as well as some cocoa powder. It really does taste like a cozy mug of hot cocoa. And you gotta have the marshmallows. There is marshmallow fluff swirled in the dough, and I like to top the cookies with some mini marshmallows. I pop the cookies back in the oven with the marshmallows on top for one more minute so the marshmallow gets all melty and stretchy.
What does Malt do in These Cookies?
When I decided I wanted to make hot cocoa cookies, I wanted to add something to make them different. I have always loved the flavor of malt. My grandfather would always make my brother and I chocolate malts every time we went over to his house. I really wanted to have that flavor in these cookies. Malted milk powder is relatively easy to find. I got mine off of Amazon. The great thing is that it doesn’t change the texture of the cookies so we can add as much of it as we want. It adds a salty and buttery flavor, which goes hand in hand with the bittersweet chocolate and sweet marshmallow.
Tips and Tricks
Swirl in the marshmallow fluff: In order to get that marshmallow flavor, I swirl in some marshmallow fluff. This gives you gooey streaks of marshmallowy goodness.
Chill the dough: Before we shape these cookies, we have to chill the dough for about 30 minutes. This lets the melted chocolate in the dough solidify a little. When we first make it, the dough will be very sticky, and once we chill it it will be a little less so. However, it will still be a little sticky and hard to handle which leads me to my next tip.
Shaping the cookies: Like I said, the dough is still going to be sticky. When shaping, I recommend coating your hands in flour so that the dough won’t melt into a sticky mess while you are shaping it. Another tip for shaping is to make the cookie dough balls a little taller. These cookies spread a lot, and this will help slow that down a little.
Topping with Marshmallows: In order to get that classic gooey and stretchy marshmallow top, we have to put the mini marshmallows on top of the cookies right out of the oven, and then put them back in for another minute. This slightly melts the marshmallow, making it stick to the cookie and create a gooey texture.
Eat the cookies warm: This is perhaps the best tip of them all: Eat. The. Cookies. Warm. Trust me on this one. They are gooey, fudgy, and just melt in your mouth. And just watch that marshmallow stretch when you take the first bite. Amazing.
Malted Hot Cocoa Cookies
Ingredients
Method
- In the microwave, melt the chopped chocolate in a bowl in 30 second intervals, stirring after each. Make sure the chocolate is completely and evenly melted. Set aside to cool slightly as we prepare the rest of the dough.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, hot cocoa mix, cocoa powder, baking powder, malted milk powder, and salt until combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using either a hand or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar togther on medium speed until fluffy, around 2 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until smooth. Next, pour in the melted and slightly cooled chocolate and beat until combined.
- On low speed, pour the dry ingredients into the wet and beat until just combined. Add the marshmallow fluff in clumps and beat on medium speed for just 5 seconds. You should be able to see streaks of fluff. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. The dough will be thick and sticky. Cover the bowl tightly with cling wrap and place in the refridgerator for 25-30 minutes.
- While the dough chills, preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a slicon baking mat.
- Once chilled, scoop the dough into balls of roughly 1½ tablespoons in size. Place on the baking sheets, at least 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies for 12 minutes, or until just set around the sides. Once baked, remove from the oven and immedietly press 4 or 5 minimarshmallows on the tops of each cookie. Place back in the oven for 1 more minute to soften the marshmallows on top so they will stick. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before transfering to a wire wrack to cool completely, or eat warm. I recommend eating the cookies while they are warm because they will be at their gooeyest, fudgiest state, and the marshmallows will be stretchy and melted.
- Cookies stay fresh at room temperature for up to 5 days. They will start to get chewy after 2 days or so as a result of the moisture from the marshmallow, but they are still delicious!