Nestle Toll House is doing a great job with these holiday-themed cookies. I’m still nomming on the Harvest Apple ones on an alarmingly regular basis (pretty much after every meal), so I’m eager to see how Nestle Toll House Hot Cocoa cookies can measure up. This is the flavor that I was most excited about from the get go, so let’s dive right in!
These are about as different from the Harvest Apple cookies as you can get: Nestle Toll House has crammed chocolate into every bit of this cookie, and then pumped some marshmallow fluff into the middle. Taking them out of the box, these don’t have the immediately pleasant aroma that Harvest Apple did, but there is a deep cocoa smell that seems promising. Their marshmallow insides also look super fun.
The first thing I noticed when they were done was that the super fun marshmallow insides had oozed out onto my baking tray. Not a huge deal, but that’s kind of a pain to deal with. After all, the entire reason that you make break-and-bake cookies is to avoid any real effort. Just thinking about cleaning that tray has absolutely exhausted me. Luckily, I have these Nestle Toll House Hot Cocoa cookies to replenish my strength.
These are some solid cookies. The cocoa flavor is rich and deep, but not overly sweet. The chocolate chips on top add a nice layer of extra chocolate, which was not needed at all, but is certainly always welcome. They definitely made it taste like a cocoa cookie, not just a chocolate cookie. It made me feel fancy and grown-up, which is impressive when you consider that I was wearing PJ’s at 4:00pm and humming the Hamster Dance song as I ate.
The marshmallow doesn’t really add much to these Nestle Toll House Hot Cocoa cookies, though. I understand why they included it–you can’t have a hot cocoa cookie without marshmallows–but I REALLY wish they had used the tiny crunchy marshmallows that you get in cocoa packets instead. Having those sprinkled on top would have made this the most fun cookie of all time. Instead, you get the visual appeal of a gooey marshmallow middle, but no real flavor addition (and a messy baking tray). Also, my favorite thing about hot cocoa is adding Bailey’s to it, which is sadly not an option with these cookies. Overall, the Harvest Apple cookie were way better. They left me wanting more and did a great job on every level. These cookies are just fine, but they don’t leave a lasting impression and they don’t get you drunk.
I have one more cookie review coming your way soon, but it may be slightly delayed because I threw that baking tray in the garbage instead of cleaning it.
Catchiness of the Hamster Dance Song Rating: 9 out of 10
Marshmallow’s Lameness Rating: 8.5 out of 10
Overall Rating: 6 out of 10
Dang! These looked so promising. I completely agree with you, I think had they used real hot cocoa marshmallows (the crunchy teeny tiny ones) would make these a lot more fun! I think those marshmallows would add extra crunch/texture and flavor too. I know the PSL flavor has been completed overused, but I wonder how successful a PSL cookie would be.