Go Back
Print Recipe

Christmas Kiss Cookies

Bake up a batch of choco​laty Christmas Kiss Cookies for a merry and bright treat to enjoy or share this holiday season.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time12 minutes
chill time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour 2 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Christmas cookies, dark cocoa, Hersey's Hugs Kisses, Hersey's Kisses, jimmies, sprinkles
Servings: 22 cookies

Equipment

  • mixer
  • tablespoon cookie scoop (#60)

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour spooned and leveled, see notes
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 2/3 cup cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg yolk room temperature
  • 2-4 tablespoons milk or cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup holiday-themed sprinkles, nonpareils or jimmies
  • Hershey’s Hugs or Kisses candies unwrapped, 1 per cookie

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  • In medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder and salt; set aside.
  • Beat the butter with a mixer on medium-high speed until smooth. With the mixer still running, gradually add sugar and mix until smooth.
  • Beat in egg yolk, milk/cream and vanilla extract. Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture until well combined. If dough is dry and crumbly, you add additional milk/cream one tablespoon of milk at a time until dough comes together.
  • Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes until it is easy to handle and less sticky. Longer chill time will make dough hard to scoop.
  • Spread sprinkles into a shallow bowl or dish. Use a tablespoon cookie scoop (#60) to portion out dough and roll into a ball with your hands. Roll dough ball in the sprinkles, placing 2 inches apart on the lined baking sheets.
  • Bake 10-12 minutes; remove from oven and let cool on pans about 3 minutes, then gently press a chocolate kiss candy into the center of each cookie while still warm. Cookies may crack slightly so use a light touch when pressing Kiss in cookie top and press cookie edges back together if this bothers you.
  • Remove cookies to wire rack to cool completely. Store in airtight container at room temperature. Cookies will stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.

Notes

  • This recipe yields 20-22 cookies using a tablespoon cookie scoop.
  • Humidity and moisture will affect baking. Low humidity will cause ingredients to dry out while high humidity will cause flour and dry ingredients to soak up extra moisture. Add more milk/cream 1 tablespoon at a time to your dough to account for low humidity if your dough is dry and too crumbly to hold together.
  • When measuring flour, use the 'spoon & sweep' method: Use a spoon to fill measuring cup with flour to overflowing, then sweep with knife edge to level. Scooping measuring cup directly into flour bag will firmly pack flour resulting in too much flour for recipe.
  • Yolks act as an emulsifier making a creamy dough even before it’s baked. A cookie made with egg yolk will be lighter and chewier than a cookie made with whole eggs.