Double Chocolate Valentine Cookies
Thick, chewy double chocolate cookies with slightly crisp edges and extra large scoops of chocolate chips plus pink and red M&Ms. These make the ultimate Valentine cookies for sharing with anyone you adore!
Whether you’re baking for your family, to share with galentines, to make coworkers smile, or just for the pure fun of it, these sweet and chocolatey Valentine cookies are sure to bring cheer wherever they go. With a rich, fudge-like dough and plenty of chocolate chips and colorful M&Ms mixed in, these are an easy way to brighten anyone’s day.
These cookies are just slightly adapted from a base double chocolate cookie recipe published by Sally of Sally’s Baking Recipes. They are truly delicious and a great dessert for all occasions!
Ingredient & Substitution Notes
Here are a few notes and shopping tips about the ingredients you’ll need. Find full amounts in the print-friendly recipe card below.
- All-purpose flour. I have not tested this with a 1-to-1 gluten-free flour, but a friend has and tells me it worked perfectly.
- Cocoa powder. You want the regular, natural unsweetened cocoa powder, such as Hershey’s. Not Dutch-processed for this recipe.
- Baking soda and salt.
- Butter. I usually use unsalted butter, but using salted will not be a problem if that’s what you’re used to – if so, cut the amount of added salt in half. Or, don’t! It’s a minor thing.
- Granulated white sugar and brown sugar. The brown sugar can be light or dark.
- Two large eggs.
- Milk. Any type. I most often use 2% or almond milk, but anything works. It just adds a bit of extra moisture to the cookie dough.
- Vanilla extract.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips and pink and red M&Ms. Feel free to substitute dark chocolate chips or chocolate chunks, and switch up the M&Ms to other colors as you like. The M&Ms can also be regular-sized or mini. The only thing I personally avoid is using M&Ms, which are milk chocolate, together with milk chocolate chips, because that combination can taste overly sweet to the average person.
This dough does need to be chilled for about 2 hours prior to baking, so plan for that in advance!
Variations
The base of this recipe — the thick, chocolate cookie — has a rich flavor and lends itself beautifully to any number of mix-ins, so feel free to experiment with mix-ins as you like. Some ideas beyond chocolate chips and M&Ms:
- Walnuts, pistachios, peanuts, or macadamia nuts.
- White chocolate chips or chocolate chunks.
- Sprinkles. These can be mixed into the batter and/or pressed into the top just before baking.
- Dried cranberries or other dried fruits.
- Pretzels. Broken up into small pieces first.
- Mini marshmallows.
- Toffee bits or broken up pieces of Heath, Kit-Kat, or other candy bars.
Storage
Allow these cookies to cool completely to room temperature, then store tightly covered at room temperature for 3-4 days.
Related Recipes
Other favorite Valentine’s treats include this adorable heart-shaped cookie cake, chocolate pretzel bark, strawberry-frosted chocolate sugar cookies, red velvet cupcakes, and heart-shaped brownies. All quick, easy, and sweet ways to mark the day!
Care to browse other favorite cookie recipes? Try my favorite “stay soft” chocolate chip cookies, bakery-style chocolate chip cookies, chewy ginger molasses drops, crisp oatmeal cookies, or “melt in your mouth” Amish sugar cookies.
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Double Chocolate Valentines Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 cup packed brown sugar light or dark
- 2 large eggs
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 and 1/3 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 and 1/2 cups seasonal M&Ms regular or mini
Instructions
- In a large bowl or bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar together on medium-high speed until they are creamed together and light and fluffy. Add the eggs, milk, and vanilla extract, then scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat again on medium-high until evenly mixed.1 cup butter, 1 cup granulated white sugar, 1 cup packed brown sugar, 2 large eggs, 2 Tablespoons milk, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture and beat on low speed just until combined.2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 and 1/3 cups unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Add the chocolate chips and M&Ms, and stir in by hand.1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1 and 1/2 cups seasonal M&Ms
- Chill the dough for about 2 hours. If you leave the dough in the refrigerator for 3 hours or more, plan to let it rest at room temperature for 15-20 minutes to make it easier to scoop and roll. (See note about an option to scoop, then chill the cookies.)
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
- Scoop the dough into portions of roughly 1.5 Tablespoons each, then roll into smooth balls and arrange 2-3 inches apart on cookie dough sheets. Bake for 11-12 minutes, until the edges are set but the centers are still soft.
- Press extra chocolate chips and M&Ms into the cookie tops immediately after removing from the oven, if desired for looks. Let cookies cool for 5-10 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Notes
- Store cookies tightly covered at room temperature for 3-4 days.
- If you prefer, you can scoop and roll the cookie dough into balls prior to chilling. Place the dough balls on a plate or baking sheet, chill for 2 hours, then bake as directed.
- Dough balls can also be frozen for up to 3 months and baked from frozen, adding 2-3 minutes to the baking time.
- Recipe slightly adapted from Sally’s Baking Recipes (adding M&Ms, adjusting chill time and yield based on my experience).
These cookies turned out great. The only thing that really differed from expectations was the yield. I don’t have a cookie scoop, so the measurements weren’t precise, but what I estimated to be about 1 1/2 TBS ended up becoming 58 cookies. I’m not complaining, and it didn’t impact the cooktime (I landed at 11 minutes instead of 12), just an FYI 🙂
Hi Melissa! I’m so glad you liked the cookies but yes WHOA 58 is a lot, haha! Sounds like I will have to make these again and re-test the exact yield for me, as well. Darn! In the meantime, I hope you found some worthy neighbors or friends to share them with. 🙂 Happy Valentine’s Day and thank you for taking the time to share your experience!