These Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cookies Are the Ultimate Winter Treat — Get the Recipe

Sarah Fennel is turning to her oven to capture the sweet, comforting flavors of hot chocolate — but with a holiday twist.

Her hot cocoa-inspired recipe includes a decadent chocolate-peppermint cookie base, covered with melted, bittersweet chocolate and covered with roasted marshmallow. "The marshmallow on top is toasted to perfection, adding a warmth that makes you feel like you’re cozied up by a campfire with a mug of hot chocolate," the Broma Bakery food blogger says.

"They are chewy and soft, thanks to the brown sugar in the dough, and have an almost brownie-like consistency," Fennel continues about her "one-bowl, no chilling required" treats featured in her cookbook Sweet Tooth.

"The richness of the chocolate is balanced by the fresh flavor of the peppermint and the toasted marshmallow really takes the flavor profile to the next level."

Related: Jessica Seinfeld Shares Her Recipe for ‘Stunningly Delicious’ Lemon Pistachio Cookies

The treats — which she describes as "familiar in flavor but unexpected in form" — should be slightly underdone when you take them out of the oven. “They’ll continue to bake and firm up as they cool on the hot sheet pan,” says Fennel, who looks for set edges and “soft and spongy” centers.

Sarah Fennel's Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cookies

1 cup packed light brown sugar

½ cup (4 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 large egg, at room temperature

2 tsp. vanilla extract

¾ tsp. peppermint extract

1½ cups (about 6⅜ oz.) all-purpose flour

⅓ cup (about 1 oz.) Dutch-process cocoa powder

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. table salt

1 cup (about 6 oz.) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips

12 jumbo marshmallows (from 1 [16-oz.] bag)

Crushed candy canes

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Position racks in upper and lower third of oven. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Beat together brown sugar and butter in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down sides as needed.

3. Add egg, vanilla and peppermint extract; beat on medium-high speed until light and pale in color, about 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down sides as needed.

4. Add flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt; beat on low speed until just combined and no streaks of flour remain, about 1 minute.

5. Use a 1½-ounce cookie scoop to portion dough into 12 equal mounds (about 3 tablespoons). Roll dough into balls using lightly greased hands (dough may be sticky); divide evenly between baking sheets, spacing balls at least 2 inches apart.

6. Bake in preheated oven until cookies have puffed and are set around edges but still somewhat soft in centers, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating pans 180° and between top and bottom racks halfway. Remove from oven; cool slightly on baking sheets, about 15 minutes.

7. Once cookies have cooled slightly, increase oven temperature to broil with rack about 7 inches from heat source.

8. Microwave chocolate chips in a small microwavable bowl on high in 30-second intervals, stirring between each interval, until chocolate is fully melted, 1 to 2 minutes.

9. Spoon and spread about 2 teaspoons melted chocolate over each cookie, leaving a ½-inch border around outside edges. Squish marshmallows flat between your palms; place one marshmallow on top of chocolate on each cookie.

10. Broil, 1 baking sheet at a time, on middle rack of oven until marshmallows are golden brown and melted, 1 to 2 minutes. (Keep an eye on them because they will toast very quickly.) Remove from oven; gently squish marshmallows further, if desired, and sprinkle cookies evenly with crushed candy canes. Cool slightly before serving.

Makes: 12

Active time: 35 minutes

Total time: 1 hour

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