Chocolate Hugs Cookies
These chocolate hugs cookies are soft and fudgy, with a fun Hershey’s hugs candy in the center. They’re perfect for holiday baking and cookie cravings all year long!
If you love the classic peanut butter blossom cookies, then you have to try these chocolate hugs cookies! The last time I baked the classic original, I knew I wanted to try a chocolate version. So I tweaked my soft and chewy chocolate cookies, added a Hershey’s Hugs chocolate in the center, and absolutely LOVED the result.
The cookies are thick and fudgy on the inside with a nice sugary crunch on the outside, and the chocolate/white chocolate combo Hugs candy in the middle is such a delicious finishing touch. I may enjoy these cookies even more than the original!
How to make chocolate hugs cookies
- Prepare cookie dough according to recipe instructions (below).
- Portion into rounds and roll in sugar.
- Place on prepared sheet pan and gently press down on the tops so they are slightly flattened.
- Bake at 350°F just until cookie is puffed and starts to crack, about 8-9 minutes.
- As soon as cookies come out of the oven, place Hugs candy (or other chocolate candy) in the center, pressing down slightly.
- Let cookies cool before serving.
Cookie tips
- The cookie dough for this recipe will be very thick, but will hold together. This keeps the cookies tall and soft.
- Do you know how to measure flour correctly? If the dough is too crumbly and won’t come together, you likely accidentally added too much flour.
- Make sure to have Hugs candies unwrapped and ready to go when the cookies are done baking as you’ll need to work quickly while they are still hot.
- Freezing the Hugs prevents them from melting into a puddle. This is feedback I got from multiple readers! While cookies are baking, unwrap and freeze until you need them.
- You can use any kind of chocolate candy for the center of these cookies— Hershey’s Kisses, Rolos, Reese’s peanut butter cups. Any chocolate candy that will fit in the center of a cookie will work!
- If the cookies bake up a little misshapen, simply use a spatula to press them back into a circle after you’ve added the Hugs to the center of the cookies. You can only do this while they are soft and pliable.
baking tip:Make sure butter is at the right temperature
For best results, let your butter sit on the counter for 30-60 minutes (depending on the temperature of your kitchen). Cutting the butter into cubes increases surface area, speeds up the process, and ensures it softens evenly. I never recommend microwaving your butter, but as an absolute last-resort you can microwave in 5-second bursts, rotating it after each burst.
More chocolate cookies
- Soft and Chewy Chocolate Cookies
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
- Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies
- Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies
Chocolate Hugs Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (170 grams) unsalted butter , at room temperature
- 1 ½ cup (300 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups (240 grams) all-purpose flour
- â…” cup (60 grams) cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Additional Granulated sugar , for rolling
- 24 Hershey's Hugs candies
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium high speed until light and creamy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs, followed by the vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to the mixer and mix until just combined.
- Portion into rounded tablespoons (I use a #40 1.5 Tbsp scoop) and roll into balls. Roll in granulated sugar and place onto prepared sheet pan. Press down on the tops of the cookies to flatten them slightly.
- Bake until edges cookies are puffed and start to crack, about 8-9 minutes.
- While cookies are baking, unwrap Hugs candies and put them in the freezer until you need them. This way they won't melt into a puddle on your cookies.
- As soon as cookies come out of the oven, place a Hershey's Hugs in the center of each one, pressing down slightly. Let cookies cool before serving.
- Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for several days.
These were awesome. I made them with the Candy Cane Kisses. A tip from another website – Ali at gimmesomeoven.com – suggests unwrapping and freezing the kisses before you start the recipe. This keeps them from melting into a puddle when you put them in the cookies.
This is great feedback! I will add this tip to my recipe. Thanks Lindsay! 🙂
I will be baking these with a friend. Recipe: preheat oven to 350. Body of post: preheat to 375. Which do you prefer. Thanks much!
My apologies Kim for the typo! If there is ever a discrepancy, you can always trust that the recipe at the bottom has been triple checked and is accurate. I’ve fixed the issue now. 🙂
My only issue is that the Hugs melted and got misshappened before the cookies got a chance to cool. They taste great, but the Hug turned into a puddle of sweetness.
Perfection! I made these cookies and followed the instructions exactly. The instructions read “eggs” but the recipe calls for one egg only (correct). Also used Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder. The dough is stiff and I did not refrigerate it before baking, but it’s winter and my home is at 68. I used a #40 Vollrath scoop (they are the best!) and it made 28 cookies. I rolled the balls in homemade vanilla sugar instead of plain granulated. Used parchment and 9 minutes in the oven. Waited 5 minutes before adding the kisses to avoid meltdown. These were perfection. Fudge-like on inside, not too sweet and just the right amount of chocolate flavor. Next time I’ll use peppermint kisses, but any would work.
I made these with my kids. They turned out amazingly! We ate them warm and it had almost a brownie texture with a yummy melted white chocolate sweetness for extra delight. I highly recommend! ?
This is a good one. Lovely chocolatey flavor and texture.
These are by far THE BEST Chocolate cookies ever. So fudgy, good. I love the stripped hug in them.
Thanks for the feedback, Shannon! 🙂
This is abosolutely delicious. Thanks for sharing