Rocky Road Cookies

If you love that classic rocky road flavor, these cookies bring it all into one soft, chocolatey bite.

They have a rich cocoa base with melty chocolate chunks, crunchy almonds, and soft marshmallows on top.

The centers stay fudgy even after they cool, which is my favorite part about them.

I add half the marshmallows into the dough and press the rest on top during baking, so you get little puffed, golden bits.

They come together in one bowl and bake in around 12 minutes total, so you don’t need much time to make a batch.

Why You’ll Love It

Soft and Fudgy Center – These cookies stay wonderfully soft and gooey in the middle even after they cool down.

Loaded With Goodies – Every bite is packed with chocolate chunks, crunchy almonds, and melty marshmallows.

Rich Chocolate Flavor – The cocoa powder and chocolate chunks give these cookies a deep, brownie-like taste.

Perfect Texture Mix – Soft dough, crunchy nuts, and pillowy marshmallows create the most satisfying bite.

Recipe Ingredients

• 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, Softened
• 1/2 cup Light Brown Sugar
• 1/3 cup Granulated Sugar
• 1 Large Egg
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1/3 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
• 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2 tsp Fine Salt
• 3/4 cup Semisweet Chocolate Chunks
• 1/2 cup Roasted Almonds, Chopped
• 1 cup Mini Marshmallows

Directions

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350 F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Step 2

Beat the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until creamy. Mix in the egg and vanilla until smooth.

Step 3

Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix just until combined.

Step 4

Fold the chocolate chunks, almonds, and half of the mini marshmallows into the dough. Divide the dough into 12 portions and arrange them at least 2 inches apart on the baking sheets.

Step 5

Bake for 8 minutes, then press the remaining marshmallows onto the tops of the cookies. Continue baking for 3 to 4 minutes, until the edges are set and the marshmallows are puffed.

Step 6

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. The centers will remain soft and fudgy as they cool.

My Tips

Add the Marshmallows in Two Stages

You’ll notice half the marshmallows go into the dough and the other half get pressed on top partway through baking. There’s a good reason for this, so don’t skip it.

From my experience, the marshmallows mixed into the dough melt and disappear into the cookie, giving it a soft, gooey center. The ones you add on top later stay puffy and toasted, so you actually see and taste them.

If you dump all of them in at the start, they melt into nothing and you lose that classic rocky road look.

Soften Your Butter the Right Way

Your butter needs to be soft enough to press with your finger and leave a dent, but not melted or greasy. This is what lets it whip up light and creamy with the sugars.

I recommend leaving it on the counter for about an hour before you start. If you forgot, cut it into small cubes and it’ll soften much faster.

Melted butter makes the dough too loose and your cookies will spread out flat and thin instead of staying thick and chewy.

Don’t Overbake or the Centers Get Dry

These cookies are meant to stay soft and fudgy in the middle. The edges should look set but the centers will still feel a little underdone when you pull them out.

My favorite trick here is to watch the marshmallows on top. Once they puff up and just start to turn golden, that’s your sign to take them out.

They keep cooking a bit on the hot baking sheet after you remove them, so pulling them early is exactly what keeps that gooey center you want.

More Recipes

• Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Nutella Stuffed Chocolate Cookies
• S’mores Skillet Cookie
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Lava Cookies
• Biscoff Fudgy Brownies

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do I add the marshmallows in two batches instead of all at once?

If you mix all the marshmallows into the dough at the start, they melt completely and pretty much disappear while baking, leaving you with flat cookies and no gooey pockets.

By folding half into the dough and pressing the rest on top partway through baking, you get those soft, puffed marshmallow bits that stay visible and give that classic rocky road look.