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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.
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.
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.
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!
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
I made these last Christmas and again today for our family Christmas. They were a huge hit last year and again have come out perfect. I love this recipe!
Hey Becky,
Happy Holidays! Thank you so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!?? xTieghan
These are fantastic and everyone has enjoyed them – I need to make a second batch! But my cookies became chewy – they were crispy when they first came out. Any idea what I did wrong? They still taste yummy so no real issue.
Hi Renate,
Happy Holidays! Thank you so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! They will become chewy after day 1 of baking. ?? xTieghan
Forgot to rate it 🙂
Thanks again Hannah!
This recipe was INCREDIBLE and actually really pretty easy to make !!! It sounded good but it tasted even better than I thought it would. Glad my mom and I decided to try it out.
Hi Hannah,
Happy Holidays! Thank you so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!?? xTieghan
Loved this recipe! However, the metric measurements are way off. I had to start over (not a big problem) but would definately look into it!
Hi Nikki,
Wonderful! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! So sorry about the metrics! Happy Holidays!?? xTieghan
Can coffee extract be used in lieu of espresso powder for the hot chocolate filling?
Hi Mindy,
I’ve never tried this, but I think it should work well for you! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Wow! Mine may not have been as pretty because my chocolate mixture didn’t settle as nicely, but these are some of the most delicious cookies that I have ever made. I would say you can probably double the dough amount for the chocolate filling quantity. They also are maybe not the best option for a box because they can be messy. This was a trickier recipe, but they are so yummy! Love it!
Hey Halie,
Wonderful! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for giving it a try! Happy Holidays!?? xTieghan
Everything had great flavor, but my cookies were chewy instead of lacy and there was way too much ganache for the amount of cookies that were made and it felt kind of wasteful. The ganache also never really set leaving the cookies super messy unless they were cold. Not a great fit for a cookie box. They’ll get all over everything else. I usually have great luck with all your recipes! This one just wasn’t quite right.
Hi Stephanie,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am sorry it was not enjoyed. xTieghan
I consider myself a good baker but I cannot get these to come out right! They look so delicious. My problem is with butter and brown sugar. I boil for a minute just as described and when I transfer to a bowl, it separates and is a disgusting mess. I tried boiling less, tried boiling longer. I don’t get it. Any help would be appreciated!
Ps- this is the one and only recipe I’ve tried from you that I hasn’t been effortlessly amazing!! Haha! So probably user error!
Hi Sarah,
I am so sorry, these cookies really are tricky. Are you using high heat and ensuring that the mixture only boils for 1 minute? Let me know if you have tried that! xTieghan
I’m here to give people hope… ☺️ I tried these, was worried I would also have trouble as some others have mentioned with the lacing. Happy to announce they turned out great! I had an uneven amount of cookies in the end, so I got to try one without the chocolate and it was SOOO good! Once sandwiched, amazing as well! Thanks for the amazing recipe!
Hi Alexis,
Thank you so very much for giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Happy Holidays!??
Can I make these ahead of time. How long will they be good for?
Hi Anna,
These are good for up to 4 days in an airtight container. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
You have listed in the ingredients 12 oz of melted milk chocolate (optional)
what do I do with that?
Seems like it’s an alternative to the hot chocolate filling (step 6).
Hi Lenore,
If you would like your cookies to be chocolate, then you would add this to the batter. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
I just made these and a standard lace cookie recipe to see which one we liked more for the cookie box, and yours won! In the oven, both baked at 350, these two recipes reacted much different. Yours had soft bubbling the other explosive boiling. Yours spread as expected and kept the round shape, the other ended up being big blogs(when they came out I quickly used a cookie cutter to round them before they cooled). Taste was the nearly the same, but it was the crispy edge chewy middle texture that made your recipe the winner. A few questions. Most others lace cookie recipes I found had corn syrup and yours did not, what does the corn syrup do and why did you leave it out? Also, what does the egg white do? I found no other recipe that had that. Lastly yours was the only one I found that had us boil the butter and sugar before incorporating the other ingredients, no other recipe called for boiling any of it just slowly melt to combine. Why the boil vs melt? Would love to understand some of the science behind the recipe! Thanks!
Forgot to rate! Yes winner especially with the hot chocolate filling!
Thanks again Alex!
Hi Alex,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. I really prefer not to use corn syrup in my cooking which is why I tried to make the recipe without it. The egg white helps to thin the batter creating the lace look of the cookie. I found the boiling helped creating a nutty caramelized flavor. Thanks again for making the recipe. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
Followed the directions to a “T”… these did not lace and are very greasy and my dough looked exactly like your picture. So idk where I went wrong here and I am an experienced baker. Edges were burnt while middle did not bubble and my thermometer was reading spot on at 350. Taste is good but they are not visually appealing so they will not make the cookie box this year.
Hi there,
So sorry you did not enjoy the recipe, these tend to be a little tricky, thanks for giving them a try! xTieghan
Hello,
I am going to try this recipe.. I don’t have almond flour can I substitute?
Love your recipes
Thank you.
Hi Claudia,
Sorry, you need almond flour for this recipe. Please let me know if you give it a try! Happy Holidays! xTieghan