Cocoa Cookies
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You’ll love these simple yet gorgeous cocoa cookies full of cocoa flavor, hints of coffee, and crackly tops! They are outrageously delicious, easy to customize, fun to make, and perfect for the holidays.
Published in Dec 2024/updated in Dec 2025
Bakers, we are all about Christmas cookies at the moment, right? I’ve recently re-shared my orange chocolate cookies and Italian fig cookies, but this beautiful collection of Christmas cookie recipes would not be complete without cocoa cookies!
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I decided to get to work and start experimenting. I wanted a one-bowl recipe that was easy to make but full of deep cocoa flavour and with a crisp, addictive texture.
And I’m so excited to say these cocoa cookies are everything I wanted them to be!
A touch of coffee and vanilla maximises the cocoa flavour. At the same time, the demerara sugar on top, although optional, is just perfect for creating a thin, delicious crust that is quite eye-catching.
But these cocoa cookies are also a breeze to customize. They can be made into cutout shapes, rolled into balls, topped with sprinkles, or mixed with walnuts or chocolate chips to make delicious, easy chocolate cookies… chocolate craving, anyone?
Plus, they keep well and are perfect for sharing.
Whether you’re baking a batch for a cookie exchange or leaving them out for Santa, I promise these cocoa cookies will be a hit!
List of the ingredients
- Cocoa powder
- Butter
- Sugar
- Egg
- Flour
- Cocoa Powder
- Coffee + Vanilla extract
- Baking powder + salt
How to make cocoa cookies
(Note: this is a quick description; the full recipe is at the bottom of the page)
- Whisk flour, salt, and cocoa powder in a medium bowl.
- Beat the butter with the sugar, vanilla extract, and coffee.
- Add the dry ingredients and beat just until combined. Refrigerate the cookie dough for about 1 hour to firm it up.
- Shape the dough balls (about 1 Tablespoon, or 20 grams).
- For a delicious crisp top, I recommend rolling the cookie balls in demerara sugar (optional).
- Gently flatten each cookie ball using your fingers (see photo below).
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 13-15 minutes.
Recipe notes
cocoa cookie Ingredients
Unsalted butter: The recipe starts with butter at room temperature.
Sugar: You can use dark brown sugar or caster sugar, as it incorporates well into the batter (here in the UK, caster sugar has finer grains than regular sugar). I used demerara sugar, a coarse-grained, tan-coloured sugar, for the coating. I don’t recommend using powdered sugar as you would for crinkle cookies; it doesn’t work well. Regular (granulated) sugar will do for both batter and coating if you wish
Egg: Using one whole egg in the dough provides structure, making it more compact and easier to roll out.
Vanilla extract + instant coffee: This combination is a flavor-booster, providing aroma and a deeper chocolate flavor. I recommend not skipping the coffee.
Flour: Unbleached all-purpose flour (aka plain flour) works just fine for this recipe.
Cocoa powder: Unsweetened, good-quality cocoa powder to maximise a rich chocolate flavor (Dutch-process cocoa is excellent). And I know quality cocoa can be a little pricey, but it’s SO worth it.
And then baking powder and salt.
Storage Tips
- Cookie dough: Of course, the cocoa cookie dough can be frozen! You can prepare it in advance and freeze it to save time during the Christmas rush. Thaw it in the refrigerator, then proceed with the recipe.
- Cocoa cookies: They keep very well for about 7 days. Store them in an airtight container, such as a metal tin, at room temperature to keep them fresh. Additionally, for longer storage, you can freeze them for up to 1 month.
More cookies & BIscotti for you!
If you are looking for more biscotti & cookie recipes, here you’ll find a lovely collection of irresistible treats perfect for Christmas! Below are a few of my favorite recipes:
- Easy almond cookies
- Vegan biscotti with almonds
- Easy coconut cookies
- Fig cookies (Italian cucciddati)
- Almond biscotti (Italian Cantucci)
- Chocolate biscotti
- Lemon biscotti
- Chocolate chip biscotti
- Coconut chocolate chip cookies
- Ricotta chocolate chip cookies
If you make these chocolate orange cookies, let me know! Leave a comment, rate it, or tag a photo #theclevermeal on Instagram. I would love to hear from you!
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Cocoa Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup (115 grams) Unsalted butter, softened to room temp
- ⅔ cup (135 grams) brown or white sugar
- 1 medium-sized egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee
- 1 ⅓ cup (160 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (50 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup demerara sugar, optional
Instructions
- Add the flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder to a bowl and whisk until combined. Next, add two teaspoons of hot water to a bowl, and stir in the instant coffee until dissolved. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, using a handheld beater or a a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until very soft and creamy for 1 minute. Add the sugar and beat it together at medium to high speed until smooth and creamed for another minute. Reduce the speed, add the egg, and beat until combined.
- Next, add the vanilla and coffee to the mixture. During these steps, you might need to stop and scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl, then beat again.
- On low speed, beat in the flour and cocoa mixture until thoroughly combined, but do not overmix.
- Transfer the cookie batter to a bowl, cover it with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes, ideally 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C and line 2 large preparred baking sheets with parchment paper or leave them unlined (but do not grease the pan).
- Remove the cookie dough from the fridge and roll it into 24 balls before baking. Each portion should weigh 20 grams/0.7 oz to make them the same size, or measure about one tablespoon of dough or a cookie scoop. Roll them in demerara or regular sugar (optional), then, using your fingers, gently press them to flatten them slightly.
- Bake for about 13 minutes, a maximum of 15. Remove from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely. Enjoy the cool cookies for your favorite cup!
