Chocolate Cookies with Marshmallow & Walnuts

Dough goes in at 375, and you’ve basically got 12 minutes before they puff up and smell like actual chocolate. The marshmallow’s trapped in the middle — that’s the whole thing.

Why You’ll Love These Chocolate Cookies

They’re easy. Mix, scoop, freeze, bake. No special technique. Walnut cookies that don’t taste like health food. The chocolate chunks and bittersweet mix covers it. Marshmallow in the center stays soft even after they cool — the candy bar pieces on top get melty and stick around. Hot cookies plus cold fork equals cleanup. But worth it. Takes 52 minutes total because the freezing. Actually cooking is like 30 minutes if you don’t count waiting for the oven.

What You Need for Walnut Chocolate Cookies

All-purpose flour. A cup and a quarter. Nothing special. Unsweetened cocoa powder — the kind that looks like dust. Not the hot chocolate mix. A third of a cup. Baking soda. Half a teaspoon. Salt too, quarter teaspoon. Both go in the dry stuff. Milk chocolate chunks and chopped bittersweet chocolate. Use actual baking chocolate, not candy bars yet. Seven tablespoons of butter melted with three ounces of the bittersweet. Gets silky. Granulated sugar and brown sugar. Two thirds cup of the white, a third cup of brown packed down tight. Vanilla extract. One teaspoon. Two eggs. Room temperature helps but not required. Three quarters cup chopped walnuts — plus two extra tablespoons for topping. This is why they’re walnut cookies. Cookie scoop. Makes them even. One and a half tablespoon size. Marshmallows. The big ones halved for the center. Five mini ones per cookie for the top. A candy bar — any milk chocolate bar works — chopped into pieces.

How to Make Easy Chocolate Cookies with Marshmallow

Flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt. Whisk them together in a bowl. Throw in the milk chocolate chunks. Stir until the chunks are coated, not floating around. Set it aside.

Melt the butter and chopped bittersweet chocolate over low heat. Stir it a bunch. Takes maybe five minutes. Let it cool until it’s warm but not hot — if it’s too hot the eggs scramble when they go in later. That’s bad.

Sugar goes in now. Both kinds. The vanilla. The cooled chocolate-butter. Mixer on medium-high. Blend it for a minute. Should look thick and creamy, like brownie batter.

Drop to low speed. Add one egg. Beat it in. Add the other egg. Beat that in. Don’t rush this part or the batter gets weird.

Medium speed again. Add the dry ingredients slowly. Just mix until you can’t see the flour anymore. Overmix and the cookies turn tough. Not what you want.

Fold the walnuts in by hand now. No mixer. Just a spatula and some patience.

Line two baking sheets with parchment. Use the scoop. Grab two scoops of dough. Roll them into a ball shape. Flatten the first one a little. Put a halved marshmallow on top. Cover it with the second flattened scoop. Seal the edges. Roll it gently so the marshmallow’s totally inside.

Space them out. Two to two and a half inches apart. If they’re touching they’ll stick. Freeze them for 30 minutes. Non-negotiable. The marshmallow needs to stay put during baking.

How to Get Chocolate Cookies Crispy on the Outside, Soft in the Center

Oven to 375. Bake 11 to 13 minutes. You’re looking for the edges to set and the centers to puff slightly. Smell matters more than time. When it smells like chocolate but not burnt, pull them out.

The trays are hot. Working fast now — press five mini marshmallows on top of each cookie. Scatter four pieces of chopped candy bar around those. Sprinkle the extra walnuts.

Let them sit on the sheet for five minutes. The marshmallow oozes a little. The toppings melt into it. The cookies are soft but they hold. They’ll look sticky. That’s the point.

Move them to a rack after five minutes. Let them cool the rest of the way. If you eat one too early you’ll burn your mouth and it’ll fall apart. The patient ones stay together.

Rocky Road Cookies with Walnuts — Tips and What Goes Wrong

Marshmallow leaks out if you don’t seal the dough properly. Pinch the edges. Roll it smooth. Cracks mean failure.

Freezing skips it and the middle oozes into the pan. Just do it.

Cocoa powder matters. Bad cocoa tastes chalky. Good cocoa tastes like chocolate. Hershey’s works fine. Don’t overthink it.

The candy bar on top burns if you bake too long. 12 minutes is safer than 13. Check at 11 and see. Every oven’s different.

Brown sugar makes them chewier. All white sugar makes them cakier. The mix is the point.

Chocolate Cookies with Marshmallow & Walnuts

By Emma

Prep:

15 min

Cook:

12 min

Total:

52 min

Servings:

24 servings

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk chocolate chunks
• 7 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 ounces bittersweet baking chocolate, chopped
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts plus 2 tablespoons extra
• 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop
• 24 halved large marshmallows
• 5 mini marshmallows per cookie (about 120 total)
• 1 candy bar (milk chocolate, chopped into pieces)

Method

1. 1 Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Toss in chocolate chunks and combine evenly. Set aside.
2. 2 Melt butter and chopped bittersweet chocolate over low heat in a saucepan, stirring frequently until smooth. Let cool to just warm, not hot—keeps eggs happy later.
3. 3 In a mixer on medium-high speed, blend granulated sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, and cooled chocolate-butter mix about one minute. Should feel creamy and thick.
4. 4 Drop speed to low; add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Avoid rushing here to keep batter silky.
5. 5 Add dry ingredient mix in increments at medium speed. Stir just till combined; overmixing will toughen cookies.
6. 6 Fold 3/4 cup chopped walnuts gently, no mixer now.
7. 7 Prep two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.
8. 8 Use cookie scoop. Hold 2 scoops of dough, roll into balls, flatten slightly. Place a halved large marshmallow on bottom ball.
9. 9 Cover with second flattened scoop, seal edges well, roll gently to encase marshmallow fully. Cracks mean leaks during bake.
10. 10 Space balls 2 to 2 1/2 inches apart on trays. Freeze for 30 minutes—a must to keep marsh inside during baking.
11. 11 Oven to 375°F. Bake 11 to 13 minutes. Edges set, centers slightly puffed, smell chocolaty but not burnt.
12. 12 Pull out hot trays. Quickly press 5 mini marshmallows atop each cookie, scatter 4 chopped candy bar bits around marshmallows, then sprinkle extra walnuts.
13. 13 Let rest 5 minutes on sheet. Marshmallow oozes, topping melts; cookies sticky but hold shape.
14. 14 Transfer to wire rack to cool fully before digging in to prevent mess.

Nutritional information

Calories

321

Protein

4g

Carbs

36g

Fat

19g

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Frequently Asked Questions About Easy Chocolate Cookies

Can you make these without walnuts? Yeah. Skip them. You lose the texture thing but the cookie’s still good. The chocolate chunks do the heavy lifting.

How long do they stay fresh? Three days in a container. They get softer. By day four the marshmallow inside goes weird and crunchy. Not the good kind.

Can you use different marshmallows? The halved big ones work because the size fits inside the dough. Those mini ones work for the top because they melt fast. Other sizes throw off the whole thing. Stick with what’s written.

What if you don’t have a cookie scoop? Tablespoon. Takes longer but it works. They’ll be slightly wonky but taste the same.

Do you need to freeze them that long? 30 minutes minimum. The dough needs to be cold or the marshmallow moves around during baking. Sometimes it still does anyway. Haven’t figured out why but it happens.

Can you bake these ahead? Make the dough, freeze it in balls. Bake them later. They’re better fresh — 12 minutes from cold to done. But they keep.