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These delicious yet so easy Hot Chocolate Lace Cookies are the perfect holiday cookie. Made with double the vanilla and sweet brown sugar. These cookies are crisp, buttery, and perfectly sweet with hints of caramel throughout. They’re generously sandwiched with a sweet and creamy hot chocolate ganache that truly makes these cookies roll your eyes back delicious. The secret is in the combination of vanilla and brown sugar, which keep these cookies incredibly flavorful, crisp, and so delicious. Fun and easy to bake, delicious to eat, a great homemade gift, and a festive addition to your holiday cookie box!
Such an easy holiday cookie for you guys today! Sometimes I love a more involved cookie. But come December, I also like to have a few recipes on hand that really take no time at all.
Enter these lace cookies. I’ve literally been dreaming these up since last December. I had every intention of sharing them before the end of the holiday season, but as always December flew by. I never got the chance to share these delicious “hot chocolate” stuffed lace cookies so I decided to save them.
The idea and the inspiration.
Funny enough the idea for these cookies all came from a cookie I shared in 2012, Nutella Oatmeal Lace Cookies. If you love a good trip down memory lane…or just a laugh. Read through this blog post. It’s so crazy to see how much I’ve really grown up over the years!
I remembered those lace cookies as being delicious, especially with that Nutella filling. I wondered if I could create a similar cookie but without the oatmeal and with the addition of a creamy hot cocoa center.
The Details.
I tested them out…several times, and while these cookies took a while to perfect, I finally got them right. Honestly, they’re even more delicious than I had envisioned.
For any of you who might not be familiar, lace cookies are very thin cookies usually made from either nuts or oatmeal. They’re meant to be VERY thin and crisp and are often sandwiched with fillings like chocolate or buttercream.
It’s a classic Christmas cookie and one that’s so easy to make.
First, melt the butter on the stove, then stir in the brown sugar. Cook a minute, then add the vanilla. Stir in a bit of almond flour and a pinch of salt. Let this mix cool, then add an egg white.
And that’s your dough! It’s going to seem runny at first, but let the dough sit for ten minutes and it will stiffen slightly as it cools.
Now, these cookies are not like other cookies. For one, the dough is on the greasy side, so just be aware that a little butter around the sides of the dough is OK.
And second, we are making these dough balls small. One teaspoon dollops of dough to be exact. The cookies will spread a lot in the oven, thus the need for smaller size dough balls.
And lastly, stuff them with hot chocolate!
Well, kind of. Once the cookies cool completely, sandwich them with a thicker, creamier version of hot chocolate. It’s not quite hot chocolate, but all the same flavors.
And it makes for a truly delicious lace cookie filling!! Or keep it simple and spread each cookie with sweet milk chocolate. You can’t go wrong either way!
And trust me, these cookies are GOOD. Crisp and sweet on the outside, but the filling is soft and creamy. There are hints of browned butter and caramel, as well as sweet vanilla and even a touch of espresso.
All together they’re just delicious! Like grab a third…or fourth cookie (my mom says she did) kind of good.
As mentioned, these are the perfect easy Christmas cookie to bake up. You can enjoy them yourself or gift some to friends and family. No matter who you’re gifting them to, they will be loved.
These aren’t your average cookie, but such a nice switch up!
So with that, let’s bake cookies on a December Friday night and enjoy them while watching your favorite holiday movie. Then take the leftovers and share them with friends. You’ll make everyone’s day.
‘Tis the season for giving after all! And let’s be real, there isn’t much else to do these days anyway! Embrace it!
Looking for other holiday cookie recipes? Here are my favorites:
Slice n’ Bake Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Cookies
Chai Spiced Santa Cookies with White Chocolate Frosting
Lastly, if you make these Easy Hot Chocolate Lace Cookies, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Hot Chocolate Lace Cookies
Servings: 16 cookies
Calories Per Serving: 317 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) salted butter
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg white
- 3/4 cup almond flour
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 12 ounces melted milk chocolate (optional)
Hot Chocolate Filling
- 8 ounces semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional)
Instructions
- 1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Once melted, whisk in the brown sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook 1 minute. Remove from the heat and transfer to a bowl. Whisk in the vanilla. Add the almond flour and salt mixing until combined. Let cool 5 minutes, then stir in the egg white. Let the dough sit 10 minutes to thicken. 2. Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.3. If you can roll the dough into balls, add 1 tablespoons water to thin. The dough should be thiner and look like my photo above. 4. Drop 1 teaspoons size amounts of dough on prepared baking sheet, placing each 3 inches apart. Bake for 7-9 minutes until golden brown around the edges. The butter will be bubbling up around the cookies, this is OK. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cook completely. 5. To make the filling. Combine chocolate and cream microwave-safe bowl and microwave, stirring every 45 seconds, until melted. Stir in the vanilla and coffee powder. Let cool 10 minutes, until slightly thickened and spreadable. 6. Sandwich each cookie with the chocolate filling or melted milk chocolate. Store cookies in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Notes
Nut Free Cookie: try my Oatmeal Lace Cookies.
All-Purpose Flour: I did not have success when I tested all-purpose flour, so I would recommend sticking to a nut flour or using the Oatmeal Lace Cookies.
Cookies did not turn out anything like the pictures. Cookie was way too thick and filling was way to thin.
Hi David,
I am so sorry to hear you are having issues with these cookies! For a thinner cookie, try adding a touch of cream, that should help! For the chocolate, I would reduce the cream for the right consistency. I hope this helps! xx
Can these be made ahead? Or can the dough be frozen then baked? Thanks
Hi Cynthia,
You could make the cookies and then freeze them, once thawed you can add the chocolate filling. I hope this helps! Happy Thanksgiving! xx
I have made this recipe many times and love it….I would love some pointers on how to get the cookies to be lacey? Mine always come out like a solid cookie no matter how closely I follow the recipe.
Love this recipe! So simple yet so good! I had a lot of extra chocolate filling so recommend cutting that in half. Tiegan, any idea of what I can do with the leftover? 🙂
Hi there! You could use it to drizzle on cookies or you could drizzle on pretzels or popcorn! 🙂 xT
Flavor – perfect! But my cookies are chewy and not crisp as they are supposed to be. Not sure where I went wrong, but I followed the recipe to a T. Any tips?
I’ve never made these kinds of cookies before and they came out perfectly!! So delicious too! Thank you for the recipe! I’m making the monster ones next!
Thank you so much for giving this recipe a try! So glad to hear you enjoyed it! xT
Hello,
I LOVE your recipes but this one was not a success. It cost a lot of money to fail! I read the reviews and mine too puffed up. 15$ for almond flour here in BC Canada, 6$ for butter and a sugar strike, (I invested the last of my light brown sugar) I was all in! Everything looked as it should but the cookies puffed and were white. I saw a reviewer say the same thing and your response was use less flour. Well I added more of the other ingredients except egg and flour and salt to balance it out and still terrible. I wonder if you were more specific in the type of almond flour? I used Bob’s Red Mill perhaps it is too fine. Maybe you could add this to your recipe so others know that it won’t work? Maybe you have different almond flour in the US. Anyway, I appreciate your time and amazing recipes I just wanted others to know that this one needs tweaks. I had to throw out the double batch I made!
Hey Jenn! I am so sorry this recipe didn’t turn out for you! Thank you for this feedback, I really appreciate it! xT
I’ve made this today and didn’t work from the very start. My melted butter was separating from the brown sugar and as soon as I put the almond butter everything became a huge hard caramel ball. Had to throw everything in the trash. What a waste!
Then after searching, I saw another recipe saying that if that happens we should remove the pan from heat and vigorously whisk until it is all combined. If I knew it…
Oh no I am so sorry about that!! Yes, I would remove from the heat or turn down the heat to make sure everything is getting incorporated! xT
Hi! Can I sub a different flour for the almond flour?
Hi Alexandra! The almond flour helps these cookies have that thin texture, so just know that if all purpose flour is used the cookies might come out a little bit thicker/puffier! xT
Turned out great! Easier than I expected!
Hey! Thank you so so much! Love to hear that you’re enjoying this recipe 🙂 xT
This recipe ended up being much easier than I imagined—yay! I plan on making again and maybe even drizzling the top of the finished cookie sandwiches with extra chocolate, since I had extra, and I think that would look pretty!
Hey! Thank you so so much! Love to hear that you’re enjoying this recipe 🙂 xT
Didn’t work. Tried twice, and neither time did they spread like the pictures. Will try another recipe.
Hey Tina! I’m so sorry this recipe didn’t turn out for you! Did they just puff up and not spread? I would maybe add a little less flour if they’re not spreading/thinning out! Let me know how I can help 🙂 xT