These fun Reese’s peanut butter hot chocolate cookie cups combine sugar cookie cups with a peanut butter and chocolate filling, all while looking like the cutest hot chocolate cups! They’re simple to make, fun to eat, and have a classic flavor that peveryone will love!
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Hot Chocolate Cookie Cups
My youngest loves hot chocolate and anything associated with it. Hot chocolate cupcakes, hot chocolate muddy buddies, and even hot chocolate dip.
So I thought it would be fun to make little Christmas treats that look like hot chocolate and not surprisingly, he loved them!
And I hope you do too!
If you’ve ever made sugar cookie cups (like in these mini fruit tarts), these fun hot chocolate cookie cups take that idea one step further by adding a chocolate peanut butter center and hot chocolate decorations on top!
These are a super fun addition to any Christmas treat plate (kids love the candy cane handle!), are great for cookie exchanges, and really just a good option any time you want a treat during the holiday season!
They’re one of my favorite cookie recipes to bring to Christmas parties because they’re simple and cute!
Why you’ll love this
- Easy – this only uses 5 ingredients including store-bought sugar cookie dough balls to start!
- Festive – these festive hot chocolate cookie cups look just like a mug of hot chocolate, there’s not much more festive than that!
- Fun to make – whether you make these by yourself or with the help of your family or friends, these are actually fun to make! There’s something satisfying about pressing the peanut butter cup in the middle!
Ingredient Notes
Ingredient Notes
- Frosting – I used a can of white frosting for the whipped cream look on top but you could use homemade buttercream frosting or really any stabilized frosting. Just remember if you use a frosting that needs to be refrigerated (one with heavy whipping cream or cream cheese) that will mean the hot chocolate cookie cups do too!
- White chocolate chips – you can use any sort of melting chocolate either white, milk, or dark. You will just use these to add the candy cane handles onto the cups. You can also just stick them right into the peanut butter cups, but adding them with chocolate will make them more stable.
- Sugar cookie dough – I used store-bought Pillsbury sugar cookie dough that comes with 24 cookies to a sheet. You can really do this with any sugar cookie dough, the store-bought balls just make it easier.
- Peanut butter cups – any peanut butter cups will work, Reese’s are just my personal favorite. Make sure they’re the miniatures, not the really mini unwrapped ones.
- Mini candy canes – make sure you’re using mini candy canes. I know it can be tempting to use full-size candy canes if you have them, but they’re really too thick for these treats. The mini candy canes are the perfect size!
How to make these festive hot chocolate cookie cups
These cute little treats are so simple to make! I’ve included step by step instructions and photos below. You can also find specific measurements and directions in the recipe card at the very bottom of this post!
1 – make the cookie dough cups
- Begin by preheating the oven to 350 degrees and spraying 24 mini muffin tin cups with non-sticky cooking spray. You don’t want to use a regular muffin tin, it’ll be too large.
- Separate each of the pieces of the sugar cookie dough and place each one into each muffin tin.
- Push the cookie dough into each tin. The easiest way to do this is to use the back of a small spoon or small measuring cup and push that into the cookie dough or you can use your finger as well to create the cup shape. It should create a small well in each tin and look like little sugar cookie cups.
- Place the cookies into the oven and bake for 12-14 minutes or until the cookie cups are golden brown. After they’re done baking let the sugar cookie cup base cool to room temperature.
2 – Prep the Decorations
While the cookies are baking, it’s time to prep all of your decorations so you’re ready to make your hot chocolate cookie cups as soon as they’re baked!
- Unwrap the Reese’s peanut butter cups.
- Cut the top of the hook off of the mini candy cane using a serrated knife.
- Set aside the stick of the candy cane that was cute off to use for stirring sticks later on.
Tip!
The easiest way to cut off the hook from the candy candy is to use gentle sawing motion as you cut the hook off. You’ll likely break one or two of the candy canes, but this will keep you from breaking them all!
3 – Add the Peanut Butter Center
- Remove the cookies from the oven once they’re done baking and immediately add a Reese’s peanut butter cup to the center of the cookies, pressing it down slightly.
- Let the cookie cool to room temperature a little before adding a candy cane stick into the Reese’s peanut butter cup.
- Once the cookie cups are cooled, carefully remove the hot chocolate cups from the muffin tins and place them on a cooling rack.
Tip!
To make it easier to take the cookies out of the muffin tins, place the cookies in the muffin tins into the freezer and let them cool for about ten minutes. This will also let the Reese’s cup set into the cookie. When you’re ready to remove them from the tin, run a thin knife or spatula around the edges then gently pop them out.
4 – Finish the Cookie Cups
- Place the white chocolate into a microwave safe bowl and microwave in 30 second increments until the chocolate is completely melted. Make sure to stir in between each 30 second interval. This will be the glue to stick the candy cane “handle” onto the cookie cups.
- Once the cookies are cooled, use the candy cane handles and dip the ends into the white chocolate and then stick the handle onto the side of the cookie cups vertically. Your cookie should now look like a mug with a candy cane handle on the side of each cookie cup.
- Repeat this same step for all of the cookies until they all look like hot chocolate mugs. Let all the mugs dry for about ten minutes to allow the white chocolate time to set completely.
- For the finishing touches on these hot chocolate mugs, pipe white frosting onto the rim of the mug and use your favorite sprinkles to add on top of the piped frosting to add some decoration.
Once the candy cane handles are on the sides of the cup and set, your cute little cookie cups are done and ready to enjoy!
Expert Tips & Storage Information
Make sure the cookie cups are completely cooled before you add the candy cane handles. If not, the white chocolate will melt rather than setting and your handles won’t stay.
Store leftover hot chocolate cookies room temperature for up to five days in an airtight container.
Add miniature marshmallows (or tiny marshmallows that are used in hot cocoa balls) on top of the hot cocoa cookie cups instead of whipped cream as an alternative topping if you don’t want to have to pipe the whipped topping on!
Recipe FAQs
What if my candy cane handle won’t stick to the cup?
Pop the candy cane handle up on the top of the cookie cup, not just on the side. This will help to give it more of a surface to stick to. You can use the white chocolate underneath and on the side of the candy cane edge.
Can I use my own homemade cookie dough?
You can try this with your own homemade sugar cookie dough, but I recommend using the store-bought cookie dough because I know it works. Many sugar cookie doughs are a little different and will spread and bake differently than the store-bought.
More Festive Christmas Cookies
If you like making easy Christmas cookies that are festive and cute, try one of these fun recipes next!
- Strawberry jam cookies – simple sugar cookies with a strawberry jam filling!
- Candy cane cookies – these sugar cookies get a fun and festive twist that makes them look just like candy canes!
- Peppermint sugar cookies – super soft sugar cookies topped with a fluffy peppermint frosting! This is maybe my favorite Christmas cookie recipe I have!
- Melted snowman cookies – sugar cookies topped with you guessed it, a melted snowman! These are cute Christmas cookies kids will love!
- Grinch cookies – these cute cookies look just like the leaning tree in the Grinch movie!
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Hot Chocolate Cookie Cups
Ingredients
- 1 pack ready to bake sugar cookie dough 24 cookies
- 24 Reese’s peanut butter cups miniatures
- 24 mini candy canes
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
- 1 tub white or vanilla frosting
- holiday sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Then in a muffin tin spray each muffin tin with non stick cooking spray.
- Seperate each of the pieces of the sugar cookie dough and place each one into each muffin tin. Create a crater by pushing the cookie dough into each tin using a thumb or tablespoon.1 pack ready to bake sugar cookie dough
- Place the cookies into the oven and bake for 13 minutes or until the cookie cups are golden brown. Cool to room temperature.
- While the cookies are baking start to unwrap the Reese’s peanut butter cups. Cut the top of the hook off the mini candy cane off using a serrated knife. This will be used as the handle for the hot chocolate “mugs.”24 Reese’s peanut butter cups miniatures, 24 mini candy canes
- After the cookies are done baking remove them from the oven and add a Reese’s peanut butter cup to the center of the cookies. Let the cookies cool then add a candy cane stick into the Reese’s peanut butter cup.
- Place the cookies in the muffin tins into the freezer and let them cool for about ten minutes.
- Melt the white chocolate in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments until melted.1 cup white chocolate chips
- Use the candy cane handles and dip the ends into the white chocolate and then stick the handle onto the side of the cookie cups vertically. Repeat this same step for all of the cookies until they all look like hot chocolate mugs. Let all the mugs dry for about ten minutes.
- Pipe white frosting onto the rim of the mug and add your favoite holiday sprinkles on top.1 tub white or vanilla frosting, holiday sprinkles
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