If you love a nice mug of hot cocoa, then you are going to absolutely adore these Hot Cocoa Cookies. Made with hot cocoa mix, they truly taste like hot chocolate!
With the addition of dehydrated mini marshmallows, you have all the flavor of hot chocolate in these delicious hot cocoa cookies! These make the perfect addition to your Christmas Cookie baking and holiday cookie exchanges!
On a recent trip to Target a new product jumped into my cart…
(2020 – Update: Unfortunately it seems Mallow Bits are very hard to find in stores year. Any freeze dried marshmallows will work. They are easy to find online, though in store can be a bit harder. Check by your hot chocolate area. Also, some brands such as ChocoMaker are now selling what appear to be identical marshmallows as sprinkles, so check the sprinkle isle.
2017 – Fun update, a few months after I shared this post back in 2012, the folks at Kraft reached out to me, and a few months later after much testing on in the Kraft Kitchens, this cookie recipe appeared on the actual Jet-Puffed Mallow Bits container, as well as some of the Swiss Miss Cocoa containers. You can still find it there today!)
Kraft Marshmallow “Mallow Bits”. Clearly I had to buy some. They were available in both vanilla and peppermint, and were on the end of an isle, where all the products you can’t find seem to reside.
While I’m sure they would be great to eat out of the container for lunch, I decided I would work them into a recipe. Hot chocolate cookies sounded like fun.
Hot Cocoa Cookies
The Mallow Bits can be a bit (no pun intended) hard to find. Check both the marshmallow area and the hot cocoa/coffee isle. More often than not I find them with the hot cocoa.
But if you can’t find those, or you like to have things in mass quantities, there is always Amazon. You can get a pack of the Mallow Bits or a different brand of dehydrated marshmallows.
I have to admit, I wasn’t expecting anything spectacular from these cookies.
I mean the only difference from a regular cookie is swapping the cocoa powder for hot chocolate mix – no biggie.
Well surprise surprise, these were GREAT.
Both my daughter and a friend of ours agreed – while they knew they’d be good, they ended up being much better than expected. Woohoo! Here’s how to make them… 
RECIPE FOR COOKIES MADE WITH HOT CHOCOLATE MIX
Hot Cocoa Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 1/4 cups flour
- 4 packages Hot Chocolate Mix not sugar free - or 3/4 cups
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1 cup Marshmallow Bits*
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a mixing bowl, mix butter until light and fluffy. Add in sugars and mix until well combined. Add eggs and vanilla, mixing until just combined.
- Combine dry ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine. Add to wet ingredients and stir to combine.
- Scoop onto baking sheets lined with silicone baking mats or parchment paper, approximately 2-3 tablespoons of dough per scoop, and bake for approximately 9-11 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool at least ten minutes prior to transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Disclaimer
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Robin says
Could you use cocoa mix that already has marshmallows in it?
Christi Johnstone says
Absolutely!
Colleen says
Help! I could not find them in the store, I don’t need a whole pound of marshmallow bits from Amazon! If I absolutely have to use mini marshmallows, should I try cutting them up with kitchen scissors, freezing, then mixing into chilled dough? Do you think that might work?
Christi Johnstone says
Colleen, someone else commented that Swiss Miss makes a Marshmallow Lovers hot chocolate that includes hot chocolate packets and marshmallow packets. Sounds like an ideal option! But no, I would not go through the trouble of cutting up mini marshmallows, though freezing them first could help, just make sure you use a silicone baking sheet or parchment paper. The main problem with the regular marshmallows is that when they melt they can become a bit glue like with the pan, so you want to make sure they are easy to get off.
Melissa says
Hi there- great recipe. I actually bought a container of hot chocolate with marshmallows (not the individual packets) and then sifted all of the powder to separate out the mini marshmallows. My container of Swiss Miss had about 3/4 C of mini marshmallows, which is shy what the recipe calls for, but workable. They turned out great- thanks!
Karen says
I have been all over town looking for marshmallows bits. No success! What else can I use?
Christi Johnstone says
Karen, it seems like they are really hard to find this year. If you can find any other dehydrated marshmallow, that would be my top recommendation. I know some people have found some in the cake decorating department at Party City, the brand is Chocomaker and they are in a container that looks like sprinkles. If you shop online, Amazon has tons of choices.
Gail says
Nuts.com has them for $4.99/lb. Great family company, quick shipping and one stop shopping for all your baking needs and of course, nuts and dried fruit.
eileen g says
everyone is out of stock on the Kraft Jet Puff bits, which makes me think they’ve stopped making them. Any suggestions for a substition?
Christi Johnstone says
Eileen, I’ve noticed they seem impossible to find this year. My top choice to replace them would be any other dehydrated marshmallow. There are many options on Amazon or other online retailers, and it looks like Party City carries some (they would be with the sprinkles, in a container that looks like sprinkles). Hope that helps.
Ruth Ladd says
Going make these for Thanksgiving. Theysoind delicious
Joe Ann Kingdon says
I made these yesterday from the recipe on the back of the Kraft Mallow Bits. They are fabulous! The recipe here says 2 sticks of butter and on the back of the container it says 1-1/4 cups which is what I used. Which is preferred? Thanks.
Christi Johnstone says
Joe Ann, I prefer the recipe as written here on the website. The recipe went on the container back in 2012 I believe, and I’ve tweaked it a bit since then.
Liz says
Yum!! My babe loved these!!!!
Peggy says
I made them today. They are delicious, very chewy and moist. The first test came out as pictured, but the second and third were a bit flatter. Any suggestions?
Christi Johnstone says
Peggy, can you pinpoint what you did different? Sounds like your first batch was as expected, what factors were different with the other batches? For flatter, things such as a hotter oven (do you have an oven thermometer? The temps can really vary), the dough being warmer, measuring differences, the baking sheets being hot vs room temp… there are quite a few factors that can make a difference.
Ducie says
these came out delicious. The first batch was a little bit dry so I used less flour for the second batch and it was good. I put the mini marshmallows on the top of the batter before baking to see how they would look and in another batch I put them on after taking them out of the oven. It just makes them look cuter to be able to see the mini marshmallows. I might try that with the chocolate chips next time too.
Jessica says
These are great. Next time I make them I am going to add a 1/4 cup of Starbucks instant coffee Italian roast to make mocha cookies. I don’t like marshmallows so I don’t add them and I use Nestle dark chocolate chips so yummy ?
Christi Johnstone says
Jessica, I absolutely LOVE your modifications. I think the dark chips sound great, and if added with the coffee – wow, those would be fantastic!