Yummy Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookie Recipe

Sometimes, I get in the most random mood and want to bake all the things. Last week, I was feeling spontaneous and decided to switch it up and bake something new. Then it hit me: Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies. Because what else would I crave in the middle of the summer?

This recipe is adapted from Dash of Texas, which I found through Pinterest. I did tweak a couple things and add my own bit of flair (and personal thoughts) to this recipe. Hope you love it as much as I did.

     Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup white granulated sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 ¾ cup white flour
• ½ cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper (more or less as desired)
• 1 ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• Powdered sugar for topping (as desired)

     Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In a large bowl, beat softened butter until whipped (about a minute). It should look light and fluffy when done correctly. (I used an electric hand mixer, but if you have a stand mixer, that would be good, too.)
3. Add granulated sugar and continue to beat for another minute.
4. Add vanilla to mixture and continue beating.
5. Add one egg at a time to the mixture, allowing the egg to mix completely before adding the next one.
6. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and cayenne until mixed well.
7. A little at a time, mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
8. Add chocolate chips into mixture. (I find it easiest to mix these in by hand/spatula, not electric mixer.)
9. Roll the dough into 1" balls and place on cookie sheet. Flatten dough slightly with your hand. Place balls about 2" apart on sheet.
10. Bake for about 14 minutes on the center rack of the oven. (Cooking time may vary slightly.)
11. When cookies are done baking, let cool for about a minute and then add powdered sugar dusting.

This recipe yielded 3½ dozen cookies, which was way more than I expected, but the perfect amount to share with everyone.

Depending on who you're making these for, you may want to increase or decrease the amount of cayenne in the recipe. ¼ tsp was the sweet spot for me.

This recipe was such a hit with my boyfriend, boyfriend's parents, and my coworkers. I can't wait for Christmastime to roll around so I can remake these for all of the cookie swaps.

Let me know if you attempt this recipe and your results!