These Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies could also be called Chocolate Snickerdoodles. A moist and tender chocolate cookie, with slightly crisp edges and a perfectly crackly top, rolled in cinnamon sugar for the perfect chocolate-cinnamon combo!
I just bought a dresser from someone on Craigslist yesterday. Charlotte and Truman share a dresser, and we’ve been at the point for a WHILE now, where when all of the laundry is done, you can’t exactly shut the drawers without putting your back into it.
The reason I haven’t bothered to buy one before now is because 1) I’m super cheap and 2) the laundry is NEVER all done at the same time. (All the other moms are out there chuckling with me right now, right? Who ever has all the laundry done??) So the work of shutting too-full drawers is a pretty rare occasion thanks to my housework negligence.
Anyway, we show up at this guy’s house to buy the dresser, all 3 kids in tow. He was an adorable old man who was very hard of hearing, who called me immediately every time I texted him with questions about the dresser, instead of texting back. He must have a business flipping dressers because his porch was full of dozens of freshly painted white ones. We load it up into the van, and then his eyes get a sparkle in them and he says, Wait! Do your kids like toys? (Cue the “dun dun DUN” music)
He takes us over to a dresser with a bunch of stuff on top: glow sticks, toy trucks, and 3 of the CREEPIEST porcelain dolls I’ve ever seen, like straight out of Sid’s room in Toy Story level creepy, guys. Chipped fingers, dirt smears, oh and did I mention it smelled like the dude smokes a lot, so they aren’t exactly fresh. He’s like, would your daughter like one of these? And Charlotte’s face lights up, of course. And I say, very politely, No, I don’t think so, thank you. He gives me this look of utter disbelief and says, Why does EVERYONE say that? Nobody seems to want these dolls! They’re nice!
Oh dear. So I say, okay, how much? (Maybe I can convince him we can’t afford it??) And he’s like, That’s the thing, they’re FREE! She can choose whichever one she likes!
So here we are, 24 hours later, with a slightly-less-creepy porcelain doll now that Charlotte has meticulously cleaned it with baby wipes and spent hours dressing the smelly thing in every set of dolls clothes she owns. Why do I buy my children nice things?? Whyy????
How to make Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies
Have you ever had Mexican hot chocolate before? It’s basically regular hot chocolate that has cinnamon in it. (Sometimes people also add chili flakes or chili powder, but that’s not my thing. That would definitely do the job of warming you up though!)
I turned the flavors into Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies. You could also call these Chocolate Snickerdoodles. The recipe is basically a classic Snickerdoodle recipe, just with cocoa added to it. I even used cream of tartar as one of the leavening agents, so that we get that tangy flavor that is unique to snickerdoodles. It tastes so good paired with cinnamon and chocolate! The cream of tartar also makes the top of the cookie crackle a bit, which is just so satisfying.
The best part about this cookie is the fact that we are rolling the cookies in cinnamon and sugar before and AFTER we bake them. Sprinkling with sugar after baking ensures that every bite has that super satisfying sugar crunch, on the edges of a soft and tender cookie. They are so fudgy, especially when you eat them warm. Just look at this gooey goodness:
I also love that this recipe uses all butter (hello flavor!) but requires no chilling. Some of my favorite cookies ever require chilling before baking. But it’s just so hard to wait sometimes. If you are impatient like me, these Mexican hot chocolate cookies are the ones for you.
Make these for your next family cookie night! What, you guys don’t do family cookie night? Ours is every Sunday. Make it happen people, nothing like family and cookies to bring it all together :)
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One year ago: How to Make Ultra Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits
Four years ago: Coconut Layer Cake
Six years ago: Spicy Sausage and Broccoli Pasta
Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies (Chocolate Snickerdoodles)
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks)
- 1 & 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 & 3/4 cups all purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 & 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup granulated sugar, for rolling
- 1 & 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon, for rolling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a couple baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
- In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat butter until creamy, then add 1 and 1/2 cups sugar. Beat for a couple minutes until light and fluffy, remembering to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- Add 2 eggs and vanilla and mix well.
- Add the cocoa powder and flour, but do not mix yet. Make a well in the flour.
- Add the cream of tartar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to the well in the flour, and use a small spoon to blend it in before it hits the wet ingredients. At this point, you can add 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper if you like some heat in your cookies!
- Turn the mixer on low and slowly beat in the flour and cocoa. Mix only until just combined, making sure to scrape the sides and bottom so that it all gets incorporated.
- At this point you can cover and refrigerate the dough for up to 48 hours if you want, but that is optional. You can bake them right away and they will turn out great.
- Shape the dough into rounds about 2-3 tablespoons each. Make sure they are uniform.
- In a shallow bowl, combine 1/4 or 1/3 cup sugar with 1 and 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon. (How much sugar you use is just a matter of preference.) Roll each ball of dough in the cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Place the sugared dough on the prepared cookie sheets at least 2 inches apart.
- Bake at 350 for about 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are set and the middle is soft and still shiny. Every oven is different, so keep an eye on it.
- Let rest on the baking sheet for about 2 minutes.
- Whenever you can manage it considering how hot they are, use a spatula to transfer each cookie back into the bowl with the cinnamon sugar. (Add more cinnamon/sugar as necessary).
- Use your fingers to sprinkle the top of the cookie to make sure it's all coated. You need to do this while the cookies are still pretty hot if you want the cinnamon sugar to stick.
- Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool.
- Eat while still warm! They are so fudgy in the middle and are to-die-for with a glass of milk.
Notes
Nutrition
More cookies you are sure to love!
Cinnamon Roll Sugar Cookies << these are sugar cookies rolled up like a cinnamon roll. SO GOOD.
The Best Bakery Style Double Chocolate Chip Cookies << the. best.
Soft Cinnamon Cookies with Maple Pecan Frosting << these are a huge favorite of mine!
My Favorite Snickerdoodles << this recipes is from years ago and is not quite a classic snickerdoodle (uses brown sugar) but I love the flavor.
More chocolate-cinnamon combos from friends!
Cinnamon Chocolate Brownies from Lemons for Lulu
Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls from Inside BruCrew Life
Chocolate Cinnamon Toast from A Spicy Perspective
Here’s a Gluten Free Snickerdoodle Recipe from my friend Sarah at Snixy Kitchen! She’s an amazing gluten free baker!
I made your layered peanut butter cookies last week. My family was raving that they were the best pb cookies they had ever eaten. I asked my son who will be 53 this week if he wanted your best chocolate cake for his BD. He said no just make me more of those cookies. I added app. 2 tbsp of cream cheese to filling, Thank you for being a very special you.
Ha that is awesome Jecqueline! You know it’s a good cookie when it beats out cake for a birthday party :) I’m so glad you are enjoying the recipes, thanks so much for reading and commenting!
made your layered peanut butter cookies last week. I added app. 2 tbsp. cream cheese to the filling recipe. My family said they were the best pb cookies they had ever eaten. When I asked my 50 yr old son if he wanted a chocolate cake for his birthday this week he said no just make me more of those cookies. Thank again for being such a special you.
The Mexican chocolate cookies look phenomenal. I wanted to leave this comment—thank you for making me LOL with your story about the dresser and creepy doll. I’m sitting at the mall and I literally was laughing out loud!
Haha!! What is it with the creepy dolls and people giving random toys to kids?? This is not even the first time. It is pretty funny to look back on though ;) I hope you get to try out the cookies Jeannette!! Thanks for commenting!!
Easy and delicious. I think double dipping in the cinnamon/ sugar mixture is a bit much. I’ve made it twice and didn’t do that the 2nd time.
Thanks for your tip Robert! I’m so glad you enjoyed them.
Best cookie recipe yet! Came out just perfect and as pictures look.
I’m so happy to hear that Ashley! Thank you for reviewing! These cookies never get old :)
Love your recipes..
Thank you Joan!
These might be the best snickerdoodles I have ever seen!
I have had nothing but compliments on these cookies. It was a big hit! They are soooo good!
So happy to hear that Toni! Thanks for reviewing!
These are fantastic! I did add 1/2 tsp of cayenne to the recipe as this is in traditional Mexican hot
chocolate. I also made them smaller and baked for 9 minutes. I took them to work and they were a hit! I did a test run with a few cookies to determine the best time for baking with my oven. It is essential to not over bake snickerdoodles.
Great idea Nina, I love that you can handle a little heat! And you are right, over baked snickerdoodles is the saddest thing! I’m so glad you liked the recipe :) Thanks for commenting!
I made these last night as a reduced-sugar variant (type 1 diabetic here), and they came out great! I made them somewhat large and only got 15…err, 14…um, 13 out of the batch. :) Next time, I’ll try reducing the volume of each cookie a tad bit more to get a few more onto the pans.
Great idea Jamie! 13 giant cookies sounds pretty amazing to me :) Thanks for commenting!
These were amazing ! The only thing I didn’t like was that the amount of cinnamon rolled onto the outside of the cookie left a bit of a dry taste in my mouth… I’m currently making the next batch with 1 tsp of cinnamon in the batter and the remaining 1/2 tsp to roll on the outside. They are soooo good tho
That’s a good work around Halobunz! The cinnamon in the recipe is just to taste. Thank you so much for coming back to tell me you made them!!
I dont have cream of tarer is that going to make a big difference?
Hi Marcia! Yes, cream of tartar adds flavor in addition to leavening.
I just made these, and they were delicious! I added a generous pinch of cayenne, and that is just right for a little kick, but not too overpowering. I will certainly make them again.
Hey Kristen, I’m so glad you got a chance to make them! Good idea with the cayenne, sounds delicious. Thank you so much for coming back to review, you are a food blogger’s dream :)
Of course you post this right after i started keto! These will have to go in my, try for later recipes.
Noooo so sad! Put them on your treat list, you are going to love them! Good luck with keto!
Do you think adding a little cayenne would be a mistake, and if not how much? 1/4 tsp? Thanks! Looking forward to trying your recipe!
Hey Colleen! Cayenne would be the perfect addition to make these even spicier! How much you add is a matter over personal preference. I would start with a 1/4 teaspoon (or even an 1/8 teaspoon?) and move up from there. Taste the dough and see what you think, and I would even bake a test cookie or two to see how you like it. Great question!
When your daughter is 27 and comes home for a visit she’s going to say something like this, “Hey Mom, do you remember that time we went to that guy’s place for a dresser or something and he gave me a doll?” And you’re going to say something like, “Oh, yah, I do. You washed that doll and dressed it and really seemed to love it.” And in that moment you and your daughter will share a lovely memory.
You are so right Joan!! I need to have a more sentimental attitude, clearly!! Right now all I can think is, oh boy one more toy to trip over. haha! Thanks for the perspective :)