Cool and chilly winter weather calls for warm and cozy desserts! These Frosted Hot Cocoa Cookies are thick chocolatey cookies with a chocolate ganache and buttercream frosting. These even have mini marshmallows, Christmas sprinkles, and Hershey chocolate nuggets on top.
Hot Chocolate Frosted Cookies
If you find yourself always wanting hot chocolate, which is more than common during Christmas time. Then, you need to try these cookies! Not only do they have the perfect hot cocoa flavor, but they look the part too! The cookies come out thick and fluffy with a smooth, creamy, and chocolatey topping.
This is a different version than our popular Hot Cocoa Cookies – both are Fantastic!
Key Ingredients You’ll Need
Sugars: You will need three types, brown sugar and granulated sugar for the cookies and powdered sugar for the buttercream frosting.
Chocolate: You will need a chocolate extract, Hershey Cocoa Powder, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and Hershey Chocolate nuggets for all that chocolatey flavor.
Flour: You will need cake flour and all-purpose flour for the best results along with cornstarch and baking soda to allow the cookies to rise properly in the oven and have a thick and fluffy texture.
Toppings: I like to use mini marshmallows, mallow bits, Christmas sprinkles, and chococlate nuggets to add on top, you can look below for some more tasty toppings.
How To Make Frosted Hot Cocoa Cookies
Step 1. Set the oven to 410 degrees and use a silicone baking mat to line two cookie sheets. Add the butter, brown sugar, and sugar into a standing mixer and combine for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs and cocoa extract and combine again. Put the flour, cake flour, cocoa, cornstarch, salt, and baking soda into a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Combine the dry and wet ingredients together gradually until a soft dough forms. Put in the chocolate chips and fold to combine.
Step 2. Portion the dough into mounds using a large cookie scoop and place it on a kitchen scale so that each mound weighs about 3-3.5 oz. Place onto the prepared cookie sheets and press down gently but not too heavily. Continue until you make 5 more cookies. Arrange the other cookies about 3-5 inches apart on the cookie sheet. Place into the oven for 9-12 minutes or until firm around the edges. Take them out and allow them to cool for 10 minutes.
Step 3. Add the butter and vanilla into a standing mixer and combine using a flat beater. Put in 2 cups of powdered sugar and combine on low until pebbles form. Put in the rest of the powdered sugar and cocoa and combine while slowly turning the speed up to medium. Add in the heavy whipping cream and combine until smooth. Put it into a piping bag and place it aside.
Step 4. Add the heavy whipping cream into a small pot and bring to a simmer. Pour the hot cream into a heat-proof bowl with the chocolate chips. Let the ingredients sit for 1 minute, then whisk to combine until smooth. Let it cool for 10 minutes before placing it into a piping bag. Add swirls of the frosting into the middle of each cookie. Cut the end off the ganache piping bag and put some on the tops of each cookie. Put a Hershey’s nugget in the middle of the frosting and top with mini marshmallows, mallow bits, and holiday sprinkles. Serve and enjoy!
How To Store Frosted Hot Cocoa Cookies?
I recommend placing the cookies unfrosted if you can in an airtight container or Ziploc bag for the best storage method. If the cookies are frosted, I would place them in a single layer and not stack them. You can keep these stored at room temperature or in the fridge to last longer.
Tips & Tricks
- You can try other toppings instead of the toppings listed, you can use things like caramel, toffee bits, chocolate chips or shavings, etc.
- You can use regular buttercream if you prefer to not have chocolate, just don’t add the cocoa.
- If you want a deeper and richer cookie, you can use dark chocolate products.
More Hot Cocoa Recipes:
- Nestle Crunch Hot Cocoa Bombs
- St. Patrick’s Day Hot Cocoa Bombs
- Sugar Cookie Hot Cocoa Bombs
- Rum Chata Hot Cocoa Bombs
Frosted Hot Cocoa Cookies
Ingredients
Chocolate Cookie
- 2 cup butter unsalted, cold, cut into cubes
- 2 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tsp chocolate extract
- 1 cup Hershey cocoa powder
- 2 cup cake flour
- 3 cup flour
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- 1 ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Topping
- 3 cup marshmallows mini
- 2 cup mallow bits
- Christmas sprinkles
- Hershey Chocolate Nuggets
Chocolate Ganache ingredients
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
Chocolate Buttercream frosting
- 4 ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 Tbsp chocolate extract
- 4 Tbsp heavy whipping cream
- ½ cup Hershey cocoa powder
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 410 degrees and line two cookie sheets with a silicone baking mat
- Using a standing mixer, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and sugar for about 2 minutes or until light and fluffy
- Beat in the eggs and the cocoa extract until combined
- Using a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cake flour, cocoa, cornstarch, salt, and baking soda until combined
- Gradually mix in the dry ingredients into the wet until a soft dough has formed
- Gently fold in the chocolate chips
- Using a large cookie scoop, scoop out a mound of dough and place it onto a kitchen scale
- Preferably, your cookie dough ball should weigh about 3 – 3.5 oz
- Place onto the cookie sheet and lightly press down but not to much
- Repeat steps to make 5 more cookies
- Place the other 5 cookies onto the cookie sheet about 3-5 in apart incase of spreading
- Bake in the oven for about 9 – 12 minutes or until the edges seem firm
- Remove and allow to cool for about 10 minutes before enjoying !
Frosting Directions
- Using a standing mixer with a flat beater, cream the butter and vanilla until combined
- Mix in 2 C of powdered sugar on low speed until combined, the frosting will look like pebbles
- Mix in the remaining powdered sugar, cocoa and slowly increase speed to medium speed
- Mix in the heavy whipping cream and continue to beat the frosting until it is combined and smooth
- Scoop the frosting into the piping bag and set aside
- Using a small pot, bring the heavy whipping cream to a simmer
- Pour over the chocolate chips in a heatproof bowl
- Allow it to sit for 1 minute before whisking until smooth
- Allow it to cool for 10 minutes before scooping into the piping bag
Decorating cookies
- Using the frosting piping bag, pipe swirls of frosting from the center to the edge of the cookie
- Cut the tip off the ganache piping bag and pipe ganache on top of the frosting
- Place a hershey nugget into the center of the frosting
- Sprinkle mini marshmallows and mallow bits all around the cookie
- Sprinkle holiday sprinkles on top
- Enjoy
Last Step:
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- 1 Piping bag disposable
- Large Piping bag with a medium round tip
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