These Lava Cake Cookies are an over-the-top treat with a gooey, lava hot fudge center, easy to make in under an hour! No chilling is required! I’ve included options for regular cookies that are perfect all on their own or bakery-sized cookies that are great for topping with a scoop of ice cream and fresh berries!
Better Than Crumbl Molten Lava Cookies
If you’ve ever had a molten lava cake, then you know you’re in for a real treat with these Lava Cake Cookies! Especially since they’re homemade using your favorite hot fudge sauce!
Don’t be nervous about making these Molten Lava Cake Cookies with a hidden center; this recipe walks you through simple step-by-step instructions that anyone can easily follow! And the result is totally worth it, especially when you top it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream! 😉
What Is A Lava Cookie?
A lava cookie is made with chocolate cookie dough and a hot fudge filling. As the cookie bakes, the hot fudge turns molten, making it so that when the cookies are broken open, the gooey, fudgy center gives you a lava experience!
Lava Cake Cookies Ingredients
- All-Purpose Flour
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Instant Chocolate Fudge Pudding Mix
- Powdered Milk
- Salt
- Baking Soda
- Granulated Sugar
- Salted Butter
- Large Egg
- Large Egg Yolk
- Whole Milk
- Pure Vanilla Extract
- Hot Fudge Sauce – Use Smucker’s or Mrs. Richardsons – you want it to be thick!
- Powdered Sugar
This Crumbl Molten Lava Cookies copycat recipe pairs ordinary pantry staples with pudding mix, powdered milk, and hot fudge to make rich, moist cookies with a gooey center! Use your favorite hot fudge sauce for the best cookies you know you’ll love!
You can even make homemade hot fudge sauce to use in this cookie recipe. To do so, you’ll want to allow it to cool before using it so that it doesn’t affect the cookie dough!
Substitutions & Variations
- Salted Butter – Unsalted butter can be used in place of salted butter. Just add an additional 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the dough if you make this swap!
- Sugar – Feel free to use light brown sugar or dark brown sugar instead of granulated. I developed the recipe to use granulated because that’s what most classic lava cakes are made with.
- Powdered Milk – While this ingredient doesn’t impact the cookies’ structure, it adds a great depth of flavor! If needed, it can be left out.
- Whole Milk – Whole milk creates cookies with a soft, tender crumb and rich flavor, but if needed, you can also use the milk you have on hand.
- Cookie Size – Choose between regular-sized cookies or large cookies!
- Toppings – I love dusting these lava cakes with powdered sugar, but you can also melt chocolate melting wafers to add a chocolate drizzle to them. For serving, you can top them with hot fudge, whipped cream, or ice cream.
- Filling – These cookies can be made with lots of different filling variations! From chocolate truffles, caramellos, or even peppermints!
How To Make Lava Cake Cookies
Step 1: Whisk the all-purpose flour, unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 box instant chocolate fudge pudding mix, powdered milk, salt, and baking soda together in a medium bowl. Set the bowl of dry ingredients aside.
Step 2: In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the granulated sugar and salted butter and cream using an electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
Step 3: Beat one egg into the butter mixture until combined. Then, beat in the additional large egg yolk, whole milk, and pure vanilla extract. Mix just until combined.
Step 4: Incorporate half of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Then, add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until thoroughly combined.
Step 5: Portion the cookie dough out using a cookie scoop into 2-ounce portions.
Step 6: Gently form each portion of cookie dough into a bowl shape.
Step 7: Place a teaspoon of hot fudge in the well of the cookies.
Step 8: Gently fold and work the dough up and around the sides and top of the hot fudge sauce. To seal the dough, pat and pinch the dough together and then roll it between the palms of your hands to make a smooth ball.
Step 9: Place the lava cookies with the sealed side down onto baking sheets that are lined with parchment paper.
Step 10: Bake in the preheated oven until the edges are just set and the top has a matte look. The cookies may look slightly underdone, but this is normal, as they will finish cooking as they cool. Cool the cookies on the baking pan before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Step 11: Dust the Lave Cake Cookies with powdered sugar while they’re still warm.
Helpful Recipe Tips For Making Lava Cake Cookies
- Measuring Ingredients Correctly – To prevent adding too much flour by accident, learn How To Measure Flour correctly by choosing from two easy methods! This kitchen hack is a simple way to avoid dry, crumbly cookies resulting from too much flour!
- Sealing The Dough – Sealing the dough is an important step to prevent the hot fudge from spilling out during baking! To do this, gently work the cookie dough up around the filling and then pinch it to seal. Rolling the cooking ball in your hands afterward will encourage the seal to stick together even more.
- Two Baking Sheets – If you only have a 9×13-inch baking sheet, you’ll want to use two baking sheets to bake this recipe in two batches. This is because the cookies need to cool on the baking pan before being transferred to the wire rack. You also want to ensure that the cookies aren’t added to a hot baking sheet, as this will change the cookie’s structure.
- Space While Baking – Leave about 2 inches of space between the cookies on the baking sheet for regular-sized cookies. For larger cookies, give them about 4 inches of space. Space between the cookies will ensure they don’t run into each other while baking!
- Doneness – These cookies look slightly underdone when they come out of the oven, which is normal! They’re very soft right after baking but will firm up while they cool. To check for doneness, look for the cookie’s edges to be just set and for the tops to have a matte appearance.
How To Serve Lava Cake Cookies
These cookies can be enjoyed as is. But if you’re looking for the ultimate Lava Cake Cookies experience, then place a warm cookie in a shallow bowl and add a few blackberries, raspberries, or strawberries beside it.
Then top the cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or chocolate if you love a super chocolatey dessert! For a finishing touch, add a heaping dollop of Homemade Whipped Cream on top!
How To Store Lava Cake Cookies
Store these cookies in an airtight container in a single layer. If you need to store them in two layers, then use parchment paper to separate the layers to prevent the cookies from sticking together.
Keep the cookies at room temperature and enjoy them for up to 3 to 4 days. I have found that any longer than that, and the cookies start to dry out a bit.
Lava Cake Cookies FAQs
Are Lava Cakes Raw?
No, there isn’t anything raw in these lava cakes. The gooey “lava” center is hot fudge, not raw, undercooked batter or dough.
How Long Do You Cook A Lava Cake?
This will depend on how large you make your lava cake cookies. For regular-sized cookies, the baking time will be about 8 to 10 minutes. However, if you opt for large cookies, the baking time will be 10 to 12 minutes.
Keep in mind all ovens bake differently, so you want to also look for signs of doneness and not just go off baking time.
Can These Lava Cake Cookies Be Made Ahead Of Time?
Yes, these lava cake cookies keep for up to 4 days. Though for best taste and texture, I’d recommend making them up to 1 day in advance.
How Do You Reheat Lava Cake Cookies?
These lava cake cookies can be reheated in the microwave or the oven. Only heat until warm to regain that warm, gooey hot fudge enter!
Let’s Connect!
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Molten Lava Cake Cookies
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour 232g
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder 50g
- 1 (3.4oz) box instant chocolate fudge pudding mix 110g, unprepared
- 2 tablespoons powdered milk 10g
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup granulated sugar 220g
- ½ cup salted butter softened, 113g
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 additional large egg yolk room temperature
- 2 ounces whole milk room temperature
- 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup hot fudge sauce
- powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. If you only have a 9×13-inch baking sheet, you'll want to use two baking sheets for two batches.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together 1¾ cups all-purpose flour, ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 (3.4oz) box instant chocolate fudge pudding mix, 2 tablespoons powdered milk, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon baking soda. Set aside.
- Add together 1 cup granulated sugar and ½ cup salted butter to a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and cream for 1 minute.
- Add in 1 large egg and beat until combined. Beat in 1 additional large egg yolk, 2 ounces whole milk, and 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract and mix just until combined.
- Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat just until incorporated. Then add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Scoop the dough with a #24 cookie scoop into 16 2-ounce portions. Gently press the dough flat and then shape it into a bowl shape. Place a heaping teaspoon of the ½ cup hot fudge sauce (about .2 ounces) in the well (or a heaping tablespoon in 4-ounce portions of dough if making larger cookies). Do not heat up the hot fudge first.
- Then gently use your hands to fold and work the dough up and around the sides and top of the hot fudge sauce. Pat and pinch the dough to seal it and roll it between your palms to make a smooth ball.
- Place the cookies on the baking sheet, usually with the sealed side down. Place cookie dough at least 2 inches apart for regular cookies or 4 inches apart for large cookies on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes for regular cookies or 10 to 12 for large cookies until the edges are just set and the top has a matte look. The cookies will look slightly underdone; this is normal as they will continue to cook as they cool.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 15 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack with a spatula to cool completely. These cookies are very soft right after baking and will firm up while they cool.
- Dust with powdered sugar while warm.
Notes
- See full step-by-step photos for preparing these cookies in the blog post.
- Use Smucker’s or Mrs. Richardson’s hot fudge sauce, you want it to be thick and unheated for best results.
- Regular instant chocolate pudding can be used if you can’t find chocolate fudge. Do not use cook and serve or premade pudding in these cookies.
- How To Store: These cookies are best stored in an airtight container at room temperature. They can then be enjoyed for up to 3 to 4 days. Any longer, and I find that the cookie starts to dry out a bit.
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
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Comments & Reviews
Adrienne says
Can these cookies be frozen?