These chocolate blossom cookies are rich, chewy, and fudgy with a light and crisp outside crust and a gooey Hershey's kiss center. They're the chocolate lovers version of a classic peanut butter blossom and such a fun Christmas cookie to make!
what are blossom cookies?
Blossoms are a classic cookie typically served around Christmastime! The cookies are baked, then while they're fresh from the oven, Hershey's kisses are pressed into the centers. The warm cookie dough will fall down with the kiss and slightly crackle around the edges for that classic blossom look. The most popular version is peanut butter flavored but today we're making a chocolate blossom cookie.
These cookies are rich, SO chocolaty, perfectly moist in the centers and almost feel like a brownie cookie. The edges are crisp and made even better with the added crunch from the sprinkles. The Hershey kiss center is warm and gooey but can be left to set to a firm chocolate consistency for a customizable texture!
how to make chocolate blossom cookies
This cookie dough is super easy to whip up and the blossom cookies can be ready within about 30 minutes start to finish! In order for the cookies to come out perfect every time, here are my top tips for making these chocolate blossoms:
1. Measuring the dry ingredients: Whenever you're measuring dry ingredients that are very fine (like flour or cocoa powder) it's always best to measure them by weight or (if using cups) by "spooning and leveling" them. Spooning and leveling involves using a spoon to scoop the flour / cocoa into your measuring cup then using a flat utensil (like the handle of the spoon or a flat knife) to sweep off any excess. Don't scoop the measuring cup directly into your bag of flour or cocoa! This can pack it in and will give you more weight per cup, which ultimately causes the cookies to come out dry.
2. Room temperature butter and egg: Make sure to give the fridge ingredients enough time to come up to room temperature so that they mix together properly. Not only is it easier to incorporate room temperature ingredients together, it also contributes to the texture of the cookies! When you cream room temperature butter with sugar, air is incorporated into the mixture - cold butter will not allow the air bubbles to form and neither will overly soft butter. When properly creamed together, this process ensures the cookies have an even rise and a light texture. Typically 1 hour at room temperature is the perfect amount of time for an ingredient to come up to temperature but this depends on how cool your home is.
3. Mixing the cookie dough: Avoiding overmixing is usually a famous tip for cakes, but it's just as important when making cookies. Any recipe that involves flour will usually advise against overmixing and that's because it will overwork the gluten in the flour. Overworked gluten will produce tougher cakes and pastries. So for a perfectly delicate cookie, mix just until you have a streak free cookie dough! On the other hand, make sure you whip the butter and sugars together sufficiently until they're light and fluffy to ensure you incorporate enough air into the dough. This will ensure the cookies spread perfectly as they bake!
4. Portioning and coating the dough: The cookie dough will be a little sticky but it should hold it's shape when scooped. To make portioning out the dough a lot easier, use a cookie scoop and drop the dough directly into the bowl of sprinkles then toss to coat all sides. The less your fingers have to come in contact with the plain dough, the easier it'll be to work with as it won't be sticking to your hands.
5. Baking: This goes without saying, but keep an eye on the cookies to ensure they don't overbake. Since chocolate cookies don't necessarily brown around the edges, you'll know when the cookies are baked after the centers have puffed, the surface is matte, and a few cracks form in the cookie. As soon as the cookies come out of the oven, the butter and sugars will be warm, which makes the dough malleable until it cools and sets up. When the dough is hot, you can use a knife to gently push in any wonky edges to get a perfectly rounded dough.
6. Cooling: Allow the dough to cool ever so slightly before adding in the kiss but not TOO much! Overly hot cookies will melt the kiss and overly cool cookies will set up and no longer be malleable enough to press the chocolate into them. After wedging in the chocolates, transfer the cookies to a wire rack so they can finish cooling properly. If they cool completely on the baking sheet, they can still overbake from the residual heat of the pan.
coating options for blossom cookies
You can roll the cookie dough in whatever you like before baking them or just leave them plain if you prefer. For these cookies, I rolled some of them in Christmas colored nonpareil sprinkles, some in chocolate jimmies, and some in sanding sugar. But you can choose just one or two types to roll them around in. You could also roll them in granulated sugar or just bake them plain without any coating.
And the best part? You can use different colored sprinkles for different holidays and celebrations! Pastel colors for Easter, orange and black for Halloween, red and pink for Valentine's day, rainbow sprinkles for birthdays, themed colors for weddings, you name it!
baking blossom cookies
When it comes time to bake the blossom cookies, make sure to give them a bit of space between each one to allow them to spread and to allow for air to circulate. Because of the sprinkle coating, the cookies will slide around on the parchment paper - so just be careful they don't move while you're transferring them into the oven.
To tell when they're done baking, the cookies should be puffed and no longer shiny on the surface. The tops should also be slightly crackly. Take them out then let them cool ever so slightly before wedging in the kisses.
If the cookies are too hot, the kiss can melt into a puddle. But the cookies need to be warm so that the dough is still soft and so the bottom of the kiss can partially melt and stick. Once the cookies cool, they'll set and you won't be able to wedge the kisses in.
FAQs
Do you have to coat the cookies in sprinkles?
Nope! You can just scoop and bake the plain cookie dough for a perfectly delicious treat!
Can you use another type of cocoa powder?
Unsweetened cocoa powder is slightly more acidic when compared to Dutch process or black cocoa. As a result, it helps react with the baking soda and allows the cookies to rise. Replacing it with another variety of cocoa powder could impact how they spread, so I would stick to natural unsweetened cocoa for this recipe.
Can you swap out the brown or granulated sugar?
The amount of granulated and brown sugar in this recipe helps contribute to the texture and spread of the cookies. So again, I would keep everything as is.
How do you serve blossom cookies?
You can serve these cookies a little warm for the kiss center to be extra gooey and melty or let them set up completely to room temperature for a firm chocolate center. Either way, the cookie dough is the perfect balance of crisp, chewy, and tender!
How do you store blossom cookies?
After they've cooled completely to room temperature and the kiss centers have firmed up, cover the cookies with plastic wrap and keep stored at room temperature. Blossom cookies will keep for about 5-7 days.
check out these other recipes!
• Stacked Christmas Sprinkle Cookies
• Chubby Gingerbread Man Cookies
• Nutella Chocolate Lava Cookies
• Chai Spiced Snowflake Cookies
• Iced Butter Pecan Cookie Bars
• Giant Sugar Cookie Cake
Lastly, if you made this or any of my recipes, be sure to leave a comment and review below! I love hearing your thoughts! Also tag me on Instagram @eatsdelightfulblog so I can see what you're making.
Print
Chocolate Blossom Cookies
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 25 cookies
Description
A chocolate lover's Christmas cookie! These chocolate blossom cookies are rich and fudgy with a crisp outside and a gooey Hershey's kiss center.
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups (162g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- ½ cup (45g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (115g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (100g) light brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- sprinkles for rolling (I used Christmas colored nonpareil sprinkles, chocolate jimmies, and sanding sugar)
- 25 milk chocolate Hersey's kisses, unwrapped
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt to combine. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar. Use an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to cream together until light and fluffy (about 1-2 minutes on medium speed). You can also do this by hand with a wooden spoon but it will be a workout!
- Add in the egg and vanilla and whisk to combine.
- Add the dry ingredients and fold together until you have a soft, streak free dough. It will be a bit sticky but should hold its shape when you scoop it. If it doesn't hold a ball shape, pop the cookie dough into the fridge for 20-30 minutes or until firmed up enough to work with.
- Fill a small bowl with sprinkles. You can roll the cookies in just one variety of sprinkles or do an assortment if you prefer. You'll need about ½ - 1 cup total of sprinkles (this will depend on how big or small the sprinkles are).
- Use a small 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to pick up and drop a ball of cookie dough into your bowl of sprinkles. Toss to coat all sides in the sprinkles then place the coated cookie dough ball onto your parchment lined baking sheet.
- Repeat with the remaining dough, making sure to leave at least 2-3 inches of space between each cookie on the baking sheet.
- Bake the cookies in the center of your preheated 350F oven for 9-12 minutes or until they're puffed, the surface is no longer shiny, and the edges are slightly cracked. While they bake, unwrap the Hershey's kisses.
- Cool the cookies for 1 minute on the baking sheet then wedge the kisses into the center of each cookie. The center of the warm cookie dough should sink down with the kiss and hold it in place. This needs to be done while the cookies are still hot or the dough will set up and won't sink under the kiss.
- Carefully transfer the cookies onto a wire rack and repeat the process to finish up the remaining cookie dough.
- Cool the cookies before serving - these can be served warm for a gooier center or room temperature for a firm chocolate center.
Enjoy!
Heather says
Hello! I am planning on making these for a cookie exchange. Can I make the dough 1 day ahead, refrigerate, and then the next day bring to room temperature, scoop, roll, and bake? Thanks!
Mimi says
Hey Heather! That's totally fine! You could also bake them straight from the fridge for a slightly thicker cookie 🙂
Vicki Wettig says
oh, my goodness! These cookies are so delicious and fudgey (if that is a word). I made them for a Christmas Carol get-together at church. I doubled the recipe and added a scant teaspoon of Expresso powder to ramp up the chocolate just a bit. I'm not going to ask the parents how their children slept, lol!
Mimi says
Ohhh I LOVE the idea of adding in espresso! I'm so happy you liked them! Merry Christmas!! ❤️🎄