Milk Jar Cookies: Rocky Road Cookies

Milk Jar Cookies is located in Los Angeles, California. It opened in 2013 and has been a go-to spot for cookie lovers ever since. Courtney Cowan is the owner and chief cookie baker behind Milk Jar Cookies. A former gymnast whose career fell short because of back injuries, decided to pursue her dream of owning a bakeshop while watching the Fierce Five win Olympic gold. Now instead of sticking landings, Cowan is creating gourmet cookies that taste great baked from home or from her bakery. 

Milk Jar’s Rocky Road Cookies are as delicious as they look. We baked them a little differently than the recipe called for. Because I personally don’t love nuts in my cookies, we scratched the almonds and made more of a s’mores style cookie. We also took a torch to the marshmallows after they were cooled to created the campfire look. The end result was a major hit with friends and they all wanted to recipe … So here it is. 

This recipe was take from the Milk Jar Cookies Bakebook by Courtney Cowan. It’s one you’ll enjoy if chocolate and marshmallows are your thing. 

Recipe

Ingredients

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon table salt

11 tablespoons (or 2/3 cup) unsalted butter, cold and cubed 

11 tablespoons (or 2/3 cup) vegetable shortening, room temperature 

1 cup sugar 

1 cup packed light brown sugar

2 extra large eggs, cold

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 

1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips 

3/4 cup silvered almonds 

Mini marshmallows (4 per cookie, approximately 72)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. 

2. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. 

3. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter, shortening, sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract and beat on medium-low speed until mixed with just small chunks of butter remaining, approximately 30 seconds. Every time you mix ingredients, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to be sure all ingredients are included in the mix — every bit matters! Add half the of the dry ingredient mixture and mix on low speed until just incorporated and no flour visible, about 30 seconds. Add half of the remaining dry ingredient mixture and mix on low speed until the flour is incorporated and all butter chunks are gone, approximately 20 seconds. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and is not sticky to the touch, about 20 seconds. Be careful not to overmix — that’s how you get flat cookies. Stir in the chocolate chips and almonds.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop the dough 1/3 cup at a time and place 2 mini marshmallows in the middle of each scoop, making sure they are fully incased in the dough. Firmly roll into round balls approximately 1 1/2 inches in diameter. While the dough ball is still in your hands, top each cookie with 2 more marshmallows, gently pushing them in to keep them in position while they bake. Place 6 cookies on each prepared baking sheet, spacing them out well. Bake on the middle and upper racks of the oven until the marshmallows on top are a light golden brown and you notice hairline cracks forming on the sides, 12 to 14 minutes, spinning each pan 180 degrees and swapping their positions halfway through. 

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then use a wide spatula to transfer them to a wire rack or parchment paper on the counter to cool completely. Let the baking sheets cool before repeating with the remaining cookies. 

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days or freeze for up to a month.