MEXICAN HOT CHOCOLATE COOKIES

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies (Chocolate Snickerdoodles)

Yields about 20 cookies    

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!

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 and 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 and 3/4 cup all purpose flour, spooned and leveled

1 and 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 and 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.
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.

Recipe Notes

You could totally add chocolate chips to this cookie recipe. It would be delicious. I wanted them to taste more like Chocolate Snickerdooodles though, so I left them out so as not to overwhelm the tangy flavor from the cream of tartar.