Chewy Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies Recipe

Cookies are one of my favorite desserts, and I love to play around and have fun with new ideas. When I first made these chocolate marshmallow cookies, I had to hide them to keep my husband from eating them all before I could take photos.

No. I’m not joking.

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I love that these make a soft and chewy cookie, with a deep and dark chocolate flavor thanks to the combination of Dutch processed cocoa powder and instant espresso powder. The marshmallow semi hidden inside adds sweetness, plus the fun of the gooey marshmallow.

As the cookies bake, the top cracks, so you can see the marshmallow hidden inside for a fun look that tastes amazing. It’s like hot chocolate in cookie form.

This isn’t quite as quick as the scoop and go cookies I make – my personal favorites being molasses cookies and lemon cookies – but a five minute rest and then stuffing the marshmallows inside doesn’t take much time. I get it done before the oven finishes preheating in my house.

Why do I need my ingredients at room temperature when I make cookies?

When you are making cookies, it is important to make sure that all of your ingredients are at room temperature. Room temperature ingredients help to combine more easily and quickly, creating an evenly distributed cookie dough.

Cold butter or eggs, for example, will not blend into the other ingredients as easily.

The texture of the cookie dough can also be affected; cold ingredients may make the mixture too hard, resulting in dense cookies or cake-like texture. Room temperature ingredients also help keep a consistent baking time since everything is heated equally throughout.

 You want your butter softened but not melted for this recipe. It should easily beat into the sugar to form a smooth paste.

Set your butter on the counter at least a half hour before you plan to make the cookies. If you forget, microwave it in 10 second intervals, flipping it a quarter turn (top to side) each time just until you can gently squeeze it.

Pull out your eggs an hour or so before you plan to bake. Eggs can safely sit out for two hours, so be aware of this.

If you forget, you can set your eggs in a cup of warm water for five minutes while you prep other ingredients. This gently warms the egg without cooking it.

What is Dutch process cocoa?

Dutch process cocoa is a type of cocoa powder that has been treated with an alkalizing agent to reduce its natural acidity. This process gives the cocoa a milder, smoother flavor and darker color than regular cocoa powder.

Dutch process cocoa is often used in baking recipes that call for chocolate, such as brownies, cakes, and cookies like these chocolate marshmallow cookies. 

 Although many recipes that use Dutch process cocoa powder use baking powder over baking soda, we do not in this recipe.

Why?

First, we have the addition of the instant espresso powder, which is acidic, so the base of the baking soda helps smooth this out.

Second, baking powder tends to create cookies that are more thin and crispy, but we want our cookies to stay chewy and cake-like, which is the effect we get from baking soda.

If you do not have Dutch process cocoa, you can use your natural cocoa powder. Your cookies will be lighter and less of a dark chocolate flavor, but this will still work just fine.

Why do I need to use unsalted butter?

When baking, you generally want to use unsalted butter unless the recipe specifies differently.

Salted butter has different salt content by brand, so you don’t know how it will taste with the butter you have at home. Using unsalted butter means you control how much salt goes into your recipe.

Along those lines, the recipe is written for unsalted butter, so using salted butter and then adding salt will result in a cookie with too much salt.

Why do you add instant espresso powder?

Coffee creates a deeper, darker flavor in chocolate when you pair them. While instant espresso powder isn’t mandatory, it definitely boosts the chocolate flavor.

And for this recipe, we don’t add enough that you taste chocolate. If you want to have more of a mocha feel, you can double the espresso powder.

You want to use instant espresso powder, not ground espresso (or coffee) when you make this. If you use grounds, it will be crunchy while instant coffee and instant espresso dissolve and do not leave any sort of texture behind.

While this recipe is written for instant espresso, you can also choose to use instant coffee. It will not be quite as strong, so you might want to add a little bit more.

You can also use brewed coffee. If you want to do this, brew it as strong as you possibly can, and let it cool to room temperature. You want to use this in place of the vanilla extract and not in addition to. If you use it in addition to the vanilla, you will have the wrong texture for your cookie dough.

You can also choose to skip this entirely. it is an optional ingredient, but it does add a rich chocolate flavor that I prefer.

What size marshmallow should I use?

For these chocolate marshmallow cookies, you want to use full size regular marshmallows. Think the size that you use for a traditional s’more on the fire.

You can substitute mini marshmallows, but they are not as easy to work with. If you use mini marshmallows, you probably want to put five to six marshmallows per cookie.

When I use the regular marshmallows, I do cut them in half so that they fit into the cookie appropriately. I use my (clean) kitchen scissors, and that works well.

Don’t go for the giant size marshmallows that they now make. those are simply too big and will not fit inside your cookie.

Can I freeze these chocolate marshmallow cookies?

Yes, you can absolutely freeze these chocolate marshmallow cookies!

To freeze them, make sure that you separate the cookies with parchment paper or wax paper between the layers. The marshmallows will otherwise otherwise pick up bits of the cookies above them, and that is not the texture that you want.

They also tend to stick together if you don’t separate them. Once you have them in layers, place them in a tightly sealed container and freeze for up to three months.

To thaw the cookies, simply remove the cookies you want to enjoy from the container and leave them on the counter for an hour. I put my cookie into the microwave for five to 10 seconds to soften it, but that is optional.

How do I keep the marshmallows from leaking?

As you might imagine, the marshmallows expand as they heat. If you do not have your cookie completely sealed, they will leak from your cookie and spread onto the cookie sheet.

The easiest way to do this is to do a preliminary seal of the cookie with a marshmallow inside it. I then roll it gently in my hand like I would a meatball.

When I do that, I find that any weak seams or places that are not completely sealed will open up. Pinch those together again to ensure that it seals and roll again gently until you have no openings after you roll the cookie.

How to Make Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies

First, make sure that your unsalted butter and eggs are at room temperature. You want your butter softened, but not melted.

Add the butter to your mixing bowl along of the granulated sugar and the brown sugar. Cream butter with the sugars until this comes back together and is lightened in texture and color.

Scrape down the bowl to ensure that you mix everything together as you go. Add the egg, vanilla extract, espresso powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat again until the mixture is fluffy.

Add the cocoa powder, and mix gently so that it does not fly everywhere. Add the flour, and stir just until combined.

Set the bowl with the cookie dough into your fridge for 5 to 10 minutes. You don’t want the dough in there any longer or it will be too stiff to easily flatten and form around the marshmallow.

While the dough is chilling, line your baking sheets with either parchment paper or a silpat.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. You also want to prep your marshmallows by cutting them in half with  clean kitchen scissors.

Remove the bowl from your refrigerator. Use a standard cookie scoop to scoop out some of the dough.

Gently flatten it in your hand then place a single marshmallow half in the center of that piece of dough.

Fold the edges over and pinch them closed. Gently roll this in your hand to form the dough into balls.

If you see any bits of marshmallow visible, pinch those places closed and again roll the ball of dough. Place the cookie ball onto your prepared baking sheet.

Repeat for each of your cookies.

These cookies spread, though not excessively. Be sure to  space them appropriately.

Place a single cookie sheet into the oven, and bake them for eight to ten minutes. You want the tops to have cracked, but they will still be very soft.

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for at least 5 minutes before you remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.

These cookies are best within the first two days. After the first day, I love to heat them in the microwave for 5-10 seconds.

Store them in an airtight container separated into layers with parchment paper or wax paper for up to four days.

Bookmark this recipe to make these chocolate marshmallow cookies again!

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