Marshmallow Swirl Cookies
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Marshmallow Swirl Cookies are what I make when there’s a table of people to feed, and I want a chocolate cookie that works for a mixed crowd. The cocoa dough stays soft and chewy, and the melted marshmallow streaked through it bakes into gooey pockets.
The marshmallow pressed on top is what makes them, turning sticky and lightly toasted in the oven. Swirl the melted marshmallow in with a light hand so it stays in visible streaks instead of sinking into the dough.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Two kinds of marshmallow pull their weight here. One batch gets melted and streaked through the cocoa dough, and a second piece sits on top of each cookie and bakes into a sticky, lightly toasted cap.
- They bake in ten minutes flat, which keeps the centers soft and chewy rather than dry.
- There’s no dough to chill either, so you mix, swirl, scoop, and bake, and the whole thing only takes about 35 minutes start to finish.
- You’ve probably got most of what you need already: flour, cocoa, butter, sugar, and eggs, plus a bag of marshmallows.
Ingredients You’ll Need
You’ll need all the ingredients shown in the photograph below.
- Vegetarian marshmallows. This is the one ingredient to check at the store. Most marshmallows are set with gelatin, which comes from animals, so a standard bag isn’t vegetarian. Look for a bag labeled vegetarian or vegan, usually set with carrageenan or agar, and scan the ingredients for the word gelatin. You need 2 cups, some melted into the dough and some kept back to top the cookies.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder. The three-quarters of a cup of cocoa is where the chocolate comes from. Natural cocoa works well here because it pairs with the baking soda in the dough. If cocoa cookies are your thing, my double chocolate chip cookies start from the same base.
- Unsalted butter. Bring the cup of butter to room temperature so it creams smoothly with the sugar. Cold butter leaves lumps that never fully work in, and room-temperature eggs blend the same way.
How to Make Marshmallow Swirl Cookies
A complete printable recipe and the measurements in both US customary and metric are available in the recipe card below.
Mix the cocoa dough
Sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt so the cocoa doesn’t clump. Cream the room-temperature butter and sugar for about four minutes until soft and pale, then beat in the eggs and vanilla.
Fold in the dry mix with a spatula just until the flour disappears, and stop there, since over-mixing is what turns these cookies dense. Unlike my chocolate crinkle cookies, this dough needs no chilling, so you can move straight on to the marshmallow.
Melt the marshmallows
Melt the marshmallows in a small pot over low heat until creamy, and keep some back to top the cookies. Use low heat and a pot with room to spare, because marshmallow scorches fast and expands as it warms. It also sets quickly once melted, so have your dough ready and work with it straight away.
Swirl, scoop, and bake
Stir about a quarter of the melted marshmallow into the dough with just a few strokes, only until you see streaks. Scoop the dough with an ice cream scoop onto a lined sheet and press a piece of marshmallow onto each one.
Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 10 minutes, then pull them while the tops still look soft and the surface has turned from shiny to matte, since they firm up as they cool. Let them cool on a rack.
If you want to get ahead, the cocoa dough can be mixed and kept covered in the fridge, then brought back to room temperature before you swirl in the warm marshmallow, since the marshmallow stiffens the moment it hits cold dough.
For another cocoa cookie you finish on top, my soft thin mint chocolate cookies take the same kind of dough with a peppermint frosting instead of marshmallow.
Recipe Notes and Expert Tips
- Keep the marshmallow piece on top, not buried. Marshmallow pushed down into the dough tends to melt out or vanish as it bakes. Sitting on top, it stays soft and visible.
- Swirl, don’t stir. A few strokes keep the marshmallow in streaks. Keep going, and it blends into the dough, and you lose the swirl the cookies are named for.
- Warm the marshmallow back up if it stiffens. It sets fast while you work, and a few seconds of gentle heat loosens it again so it swirls cleanly.
- Judge doneness by the surface, not the clock alone. On dark cocoa dough you can’t see browning, so watch for the shine to turn matte and pull them at the ten-minute mark while the centers still look soft.
- Line the sheet. Marshmallow is sticky, so parchment or a silicone mat lets the cookies release and saves you a scrubbing job.
Recipe Variations
- Mini marshmallows swap in for the cut pieces and behave the same way, melting a touch faster, so keep an eye on them. It’s a supported swap that doesn’t change the bake.
- Folding a handful of chocolate chips into the dough gives melty chocolate next to the marshmallow. The chips don’t change the timing or the set, so it’s a safe, supported addition.
- Dutch-process cocoa in place of natural deepens the color and shifts the rise a little, since it reacts differently with the baking soda. It works because the leavening here is forgiving, though the natural cocoa is the tested one.
- A s’mores version is untested here: roll the scooped dough in crushed graham crackers before baking for a campfire note. I haven’t made them this way, so treat the bake time as a starting point and watch them closely.
How to Store Leftovers
Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days; warm one for a few seconds to bring back the gooey marshmallow. They’re softest the day they’re baked, and the marshmallow firms up as it cools, the way a toasted marshmallow does, so that quick warm-up is worth it.
To freeze, layer the baked cookies with parchment in an airtight container and keep them up to 3 months, then thaw at room temperature. If you’re taking them to a potluck, pack them in a single layer, because the sticky marshmallow tops will cling to each other if you stack them warm.
What to Serve With Marshmallow Swirl Cookies
These are rich, so I keep what goes with them simple. A cold glass of milk is the obvious partner, and they’re just as good next to black coffee that cuts the sweetness. Warm one and set it against a scoop of vanilla ice cream and you’ve got an easy dessert.
If you’re putting out a cookie platter, something colorful next to these dark cookies helps. My soft and chewy cookie monster cookies bring bright blue and plenty of chocolate, and they suit the same kind of party spread.
FAQs
Most aren’t, and it catches a lot of people out. The usual setting agent is gelatin, which is animal-derived, so a plain bag won’t do for a vegetarian. The ones to buy say vegetarian or vegan on the front and use a plant-based setting agent instead, so a quick read of the label is all it takes.
It was either swirled in too thoroughly or baked too long. Stir the melted marshmallow through with only a few strokes so it stays in streaks, and always press a separate piece on top, because marshmallow on the surface holds its shape while marshmallow mixed deep into the dough melts away.
They’re gooiest the day they’re baked. As they cool, the marshmallow firms up, much like a toasted marshmallow does, so warm a cookie for a few seconds before serving, and the soft, gooey texture comes back.
I wouldn’t swap it in blind. This recipe is built on melted marshmallows, which set as they cool, while jarred Fluff stays loose and behaves differently in the dough. I haven’t tested the cookies with Fluff, so I can’t promise the same swirl and texture.
More Cookie Recipes to Bake
If you’ve got a batch of these cooling and want to keep going, here’s where I’d look next.
- Soft and chewy chocolate chip cookies. The ones to bake when you want the classic without the cocoa intensity.
- Easy peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. My pick when I want peanut butter carrying the dough instead of marshmallow.
- Soft spiced gingerbread cookies. What I bake once the weather cools and a spiced cookie suits the season.
- Christmas sugar cookies. These are what I make when there’s decorating to do with kids at the table.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 tablespoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups vegetarian marshmallows
Video
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180ºC). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt together.2 cups all-purpose flour, ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon salt
- In a big bowl, cream the butter with the sugar until soft and super creamy (about 4 minutes).1 cup unsalted butter, 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- Add the eggs and vanilla extract and continue mixing until fully incorporated.2 large eggs, 1 tablespoons vanilla extract
- Add the flour and cocoa mixture and mix with a spatula just until fully combined – don’t over mix.
- In a small pot, melt the marshmallows until creamy (reserve some to top the cookies).
- Add about ¼ of the marshmallow mixture to the cookie dough and mix a couple of times (just until you see a swirl), scoop the cookies with an ice cream scoop and place in the tray, top with a piece of marshmallow.2 cups vegetarian marshmallows
- Repeat the process until you’ve used all the melted marshmallow.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Let them cool in a rack.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
why melt so much marshmallow if you only swirl in 1/4 of it? Save some whole marshmallows to put on top of cookie before baking…. I don’t understand the directions. what do you do with the rest of the melted marshmallow?
I can see how that step was confusing. I’ve reworded it.