Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

These Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies are full of spicy, chocolatey flavor and easy to make. Like any good hot chocolate, the cookies are topped with mini marshmallows, which brown to gooey, stretchy perfection. A perfect Christmas Cookie, they are fun to put on cookie plates for neighbors or coworkers!

Pair these with our  Gingerbread Loaf, White Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies, and Molasses Crinkle Cookies for entertaining or neighbor gifts. You'll have a well-rounded variety with a lot of fun flavors.

How to Make Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

1. Start by creaming the softened butter and sugar together on medium speed for about 2 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat on high speed for 1 more minute.

2. Then add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, and salt and mix just until combined. Measure in the chocolate chips and stir using a spatula, just until combined.

3. Spoon dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. The dough mounds should be about 1.5 tablespoons in size and 1.5" apart. Place in the refrigerator for about 8-10 minutes. After refrigerating, use your finger to make an indent in the center of each dough mound.

4. Dampen your finger slightly to prevent it from sticking. Finally, place 3 mini marshmallows or ⅓ of a large marshmallow in the indentation. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the top is matte and the edges are set. Be careful not to overbake!

Hint: After a LOT of testing, we found that three mini marshmallows worked much better than large marshmallows, as far as looks and aesthetics are concerned.

Recipe

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

Nicole

The cookies are soft and chewy Mexican hot chocolate cookies topped with a gooey stretchy marshmallow for the perfect winter cookie.

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5 from 6 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Servings 20 cookies

Calories/serving 143 kcal

Ingredients

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter softened
• ▢ 1 cup sugar
• ▢ 2 eggs
• ▢ 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 cup flour
• ▢ ¾ cup cocoa powder
• ▢ 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• ▢ 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ ¼-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper ¼ just gives the slightest hint of a kick of spice, whereas ½ teaspoon is more noticeable.
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ cup semi sweet chocolate chips
• ▢ mini marshmallows

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350*F.
• Cream the softened butter and sugar together on medium speed for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat on high speed for 1 minute.
• Add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cayenne pepper and salt and mix on low just until combined. Measure in the chocolate chips and stir using a spatula, just until combined.
  
• Spoon dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet, about 1.5 tablespoons in size. Place in the refrigerator for about 8-10 minutes.
• After refrigerating use your finger to and make an indent in the center of each dough mound. Dampen finger slightly to prevent from sticking. Place 3 mini marshmallows or ⅓ of a large marshmallow in the indentation. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the top is matte and the edges are set. Be careful not to overbake! 
  
• Enjoy!

Notes

Many people don't like spicy chocolate. If you don't like cayenne and chocolate together, simply leave the cayenne pepper out.

These cookies taste great when cooled, in face almost better than when they are warm. Store at room temperature in an airtight container up to 3 days. 

Freeze in an airtight container for up to 2 months. I like to put them in the freezer while they are still slightly warm- doing this makes them soft and chewy when they thaw.

After a lot of testing to see what worked best, we found that 3 mini marshmallows worked much much better than 1 large or part of a large marshmallow as far as looks are concerned.

Don't over bake these cookies. Remove them from the oven when the edges are set and the tops are matte, then allow them to cool and continue baking for at least 5 minutes on the cookies sheet before transferring to a cooling rack.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookieCalories: 143kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 2gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.3gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 24mgSodium: 92mgPotassium: 98mgFiber: 2gSugar: 12gVitamin A: 146IUVitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 14mgIron: 1mg

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Substitutions and Variations

We love switching things up when we're in the kitchen. Try any of these variations for something a little different with your hot cocoa cookies.

• Without Chocolate Chips- Sometimes I prefer these without chocolate chips! Simply leave out the chocolate chips if you don't want them.
• Marshmallow Bits - To make these even more fun, add in 1 cup of Marshmallow Bits for even more of that hot cocoa feel.
• Hershey's kisses hot cocoa cookies - Instead of marshmallows on top, top with a Hershey's kiss or even a Hershey's hot cocoa kiss! We recommend pairing this with the marshmallow bits variation.
• Mild - Take out the cayenne pepper for non-spicy Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies
• Extra Spicy - We like these extra spicy and sometimes double or even triple the cayenne pepper.
• Peppermint - These are really fun as Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cookies Recipe. Add 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract (not oil or flavor, or you'll get different results) at the same time as the vanilla, then omit the cinnamon and cayenne pepper. Add 3 chopped-up candy canes to make them extra special!
• Peppermint (alternative) - Leave out the cinnamon and cayenne and substitute the chocolate chips for Nestle Peppermint Chips.

Storing and Freezing Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

The cookie dough can be made up to 2 days in advance, stored in the refrigerator. If freezing the dough, form it into dough balls before freezing. Place frozen dough balls on a cookie sheet and allow to thaw for 20 minutes before baking. May need to bake longer.

These store well in an airtight container for up to 3 days. You're in luck if you have leftovers, because these taste great the next day!

Store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months. These cookies are delicious frozen! Place in the freezer while still slightly warm. When thawing, they will be soft and chewy.