The annual cookie exchange tradition is a delicious excuse to show off your baking skills (and eat all of the cookies). My friends and I turn it into a competition to see who can make the most delicious, mind-blowing cookies, and we keep upping the ante every year.

This Hot Cocoa Toasted Marshmallow Cookie is my secret stunner, and when infused with cannabis, it’s even that much sweeter. It’s an excellent cookie contender for holiday cookie exchanges, homemade edible gifts, or a whole batch just for yourself because you’re not going to want to share.

Check out the recipe below!

Hot Chocolate Marshmallow Cookie Recipe

These chewy, fudgy chocolate marshmallow-filled cookies are like sipping a mug of creamy hot chocolate with marshmallows. Infused using infused chocolate bars, they’re best enjoyed warm while the chocolate and marshmallows are gooey and melty.

Time to Prepare: 1 hour 30 minutes (1-hour chilling time)

Makes 16 approximately 3-inch cookies, 5mg THC each*

*To increase the dose, substitute more infused chocolate with the semisweet chocolate chunks

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 tablespoons chocolate malt powder (or malted drink mix like Ovaltine, Milo or Horlicks)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks

16 pieces of 5mg infused chocolate bars

1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs, room temperature

8 large marshmallows, cut in half lengthwise (toasted)

For Rolling:

1/4 cup coarse sugar (with large crystals, raw sugar, or Turbinado sugar)

Flaky Sea Salt for finishing

Instructions:

1. Sift together dry ingredients in a medium bowl: 1 cup flour, ½ cup cocoa powder, 2 tablespoon chocolate malt powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and ½ teaspoon salt. Set aside.
2. Over a double boiler, or in a microwave-safe bowl, melt the 1 cup of semisweet chocolate and 16 squares of 5mg pieces of cannabis chocolate and stir until smooth and runny. Keep warm, set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the softened ⅓ cup butter and ¾ cup sugar together until smooth and creamy. Add 2 eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, mix until well blended.
4. Pour in the melted chocolate and mix until incorporated and it looks like a shiny chocolate batter. Add dry ingredients and mix slowly until just incorporated and there are no flour streaks. The batter will look similar to brownie batter.
5. Chill the batter in the refrigerator for 1 hour to rest and make it easier to scoop. While the cookies are resting, use a culinary torch or broil setting on your oven, to lightly toast the marshmallow halves until golden brown. Set aside.
6. Preheat the oven to 340 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a baking mat or parchment paper. Pour coarse sugar into a small bowl. Scoop the dough into balls with a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop. With your fingers, split the cookie ball in half.
7. Place a marshmallow half in the center of the cookie ball and sandwich it with the other half of the batter. Flatten and shape the cookie batter around the marshmallow, roll and flatten into a hockey puck shape. Roll each puck generously in the coarse sugar. Place on the baking sheet at least 2 inches apart.
8. Bake at 340 degrees F for 15-18 minutes until the cookies have flattened and look crinkled on top. You may or may not be able to see melted marshmallows leaking out through the cracks. Remove from the oven and sprinkle each cookie with a pinch of flaky sea salt.
9. Cool cookies on the baking sheet for five minutes so they’re easier to lift off the baking sheet, then remove to a rack to cool completely.

Then, you can repeat this process with any remaining dough and store all of your cookies in an airtight container.

Best enjoyed warm. To reheat, microwave the cookie for 10-15 seconds or warm in a toaster oven for a few minutes.

Best Cannabis Infused Chocolate to Buy

We recommend looking for fair trade sourced chocolate infused with hash or rosin since this is the best quality in terms of flavor profile and effect.

We should note, though, chocolates infused with hash or rosin do have that “weedy” flavor and smell. If you’re into that, it pairs very nicely with the chocolate and toasted marshmallow and even complements the flavors to balance out the sweetness. Both milk or dark chocolate will work, so feel free to use whichever you prefer.

However, if you’re sensitive to the taste, you can try infused chocolate bars made with isolate or distillate because they will not have the cannabis taste and aroma. These are also the most common type found in dispensaries — ask the budtender for their favorites and recommendations!

Marshmallows! Plain, Toasted, or Burnt?

A steaming mug of hot chocolate isn’t complete with marshmallows. I like big ones, I like mini ones, I like them in fluff, I like them toasted and burnt. This chocolate cookie with marshmallow recipe uses large marshmallows! If you want to bump it up an extra notch (flavor + potency), make these cookies with Mellows cannabis-infused gourmet marshmallows.

I toast the marshmallows before sandwiching them between the chocolate cookie batter and I highly recommend not skipping this step. It’s magic and takes this cookie from good to great.

Chocolate Malt: What is Malt?

To give the cookie its signature sweet, creamy, caramelized flavor, I added chocolate malt powder into the batter. I grew up drinking Ovaltine or Milo for breakfast as a kid, and I like how it gives these cookies an extra creaminess thanks to the malt.

Malt is a cereal grain, typically barley, that, once sprouted, is dried (in a process called malting). Once dried, malt is often ground into a slightly sweet powder, interchangeably referred to simply as malt or sweet meal. Learn more about malt and how it works in baked goods and desserts on Food52.com.

By Christina Wong

Christina spent over a decade in the food & restaurant industry working with well-known chefs and restaurants in Los Angeles. A creator, baker, and creative consultant, her work won a Clio Cannabis Award in 2020. She bakes infused culinary cannabis creations at Baking With Chickens, and hosts a culinary cannabis cooking show “BAKED With Chickens” on YouTube.