20 Ridiculously Chocolatey Recipes for Holiday Baking Season

Chocolate cake in pan — Photo: Pooja Makhijani

Everyone on earth loves chocolate. This is an exaggeration, of course, but even the rare chocolate hater out there has to admit that it’s hard to imagine a holiday season without the stuff. Where would we be without the peppermint chocolates and dipped pretzels that form the basis of party spreads and holiday gift exchanges everywhere? If you’re looking for inspiration as you head into the kitchen for this year’s baking marathon, you’ve come to the right place. Behold, The Takeout’s most chocolatey recipes of all time.

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Chocolate-Mayo Cupcakes

This recipe for Chocolate-Mayo Cupcakes is excerpted from The Mayonnaise Cookbook by Erin Isaac, which features 50 different recipes starring a magical (if much maligned) condiment. The recipe takes advantage of mayo’s eggs and oil to create a rich cake batter that only calls for a few staple ingredients, but results in a moist, rich chocolate-chocolate cupcake. Spring for the most luscious store-bought chocolate icing you can get your hands on to make these cupcakes pop. Get the recipe for Chocolate-Mayo Cupcakes here.

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Chocolate-Covered Pretzels

It’s easy to make your own chocolate-covered pretzels using a number of different varieties of chocolate. But the best move is to stir in two extra secret ingredients alongside the melted chocolate: butterscotch chips and peanut butter. These add nutty, caramel notes to a tried-and-true flavor combination, and the peanut butter adds an overall silky texture to the pretzel coating. Bag these up in cellophane and hand them out as host gifts this season. Get the recipe for Chocolate-Covered Pretzels here.

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Copycat Thin Mints

One thing that makes this recipe for Copycat Thin Mints such a perfect holiday project is that they require only three ingredients and can be made in bulk for large-scale giveaways. Giving them away as gifts, you’ll also be treated to the face everyone makes when they find out what makes the center such a dead ringer for actual Girl Scout Thin Mints cookies. Can you guess what it is from the photo above? Get the recipe for Copycat Thin Mints here.

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No-Bake Brownies

This retro recipe for No-Bake Brownies comes to us courtesy of North Country Cabin Cooking, a Midwest cookbook full of dishes designed for vacation-goers who don’t want to go to too much trouble in the kitchen—but even in the dead of winter, it’s a dessert designed for maximum convenience. Semi-sweet chocolate chips and a small amount of coffee lend a surprising richness and complexity to these “brownies” (almost more like refrigerator fudge), so you’ll want to slice these into small squares. They’re dense and filling, and the bite-size portions means that a single batch can feed a crowd. Get the recipe for No-Bake Brownies here.

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Mega Chocolate Malted

The problem with most modern malts is that they skimp on the malted milk powder. This Mega Chocolate Malted seeks to remedy that: it prioritizes malt above all else, to remind us of why the chocolate malted is so great in the first place. This is not a milkshake recipe; it’s more of a cross between a mocha Frappuccino and a float. But with each sip, you’re treated to full, robust cocoa flavors—a crowd-pleasing treat all around. Get the recipe for the Mega Chocolate Malted here.

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Ganache Thumbprints

The rich chocolate centers of these Ganache Thumbprints appear to stare straight back at you—go ahead, be mesmerized by them. This recipe comes to us from Thalia Ho’s cookbook WILD SWEETNESS: Recipes Inspired by Nature, and its ingredient list is surprisingly simple, given the show-stopping results. Get the recipe for Ganache Thumbprints here.

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Abuelita’s Surprise

Chocolate and booze is a beautiful combination. The Abuelita’s Surprise is the perfect beverage to sip during the holiday season, but its flavors are irresistible enough to enjoy year-round as well. Fireball, a key ingredient in this drink, is the only way to go when it comes to spiking Mexican hot cocoa. It melds with the rich dark chocolate and cinnamon flavor of Abuelita and renders the warm goodnight you’ll never want to do without. Get the recipe for Abuelita’s Surprise here.

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Homemade Jos Louis Cakes

Snack cakes sitting on a wooden cutting board, with one bitten cake on a red napkin — Homemade Jos Louis Cakes

Most Canadians are familiar with Jos Louis snack cakes, little round sponge cakes filled with vanilla cream and dipped in chocolate that can be easily found in supermarkets up north. Think of them like American Ding Dongs, and now picture yourself making an ultra-rich version of them in your own kitchen. This recipe involves covering the cakes in a chocolate glaze, and while you will get messy, you will also end up with perfectly picturesque cake squares that will wow whomever is lucky enough to taste them. Get the recipe for Jos Louis Cakes here.

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Breakfast Stout Muffins

Three chocolate muffins on a white plate — Breakfast Stout Muffins

Always trust a recipe that calls for at least 1/2 cup of Dutch-process cocoa powder. These muffins are meant to evoke the combination of cocoa flavors, coffee notes, and quiet sweetness that make breakfast stouts sing, without making you feel like you’re getting tipsy or eating a straight-up cupcake first thing in the morning. But perhaps best of all, the recipe only calls for one cup of stout, so you’re going to have plenty left over for sipping. Get the recipe for Breakfast Stout Muffins here.

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Nutella Pizza Ring

If Nutella is popular in North America, it’s a veritable necessity in European households—particularly in Italy, from whose culinary culture this recipe draws its inspiration. Thom and James Elliot of the Pizza Pilgrims restaurant chain and the recent cookbook Pizza have shared the recipe for one of their bestselling items, a ring made of Neapolitan pizza dough filled with Nutella and ricotta and baked to golden perfection. Serve with vanilla ice cream... or maybe more chocolate. Get the recipe for Pizza Pilgrims’ Nutella Ring here.

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City Bakery–Style Hot Chocolate

Image for article titled 20 Ridiculously Chocolatey Recipes for Holiday Baking Season — Graphic: Allison Corr

City Bakery in New York City was famous for its hot chocolate, a mythical substance for which residents and tourists would line up down the block in the middle of winter. The bakery closed its doors in 2019, but this recipe is a loving memorial to some of the greatest hot chocolate in America, using an entire pound of milk and semisweet dark chocolate to create a rich, thick mug of comfort. Get the recipe for City Bakery-Style Hot Chocolate here.

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Matcha Chocolate Chunk Cookies

For those who like their chocolate a bit more tempered, look no further than these Matcha Chocolate Chunk Cookies. Matcha is a delicate flavor, and too much sweetness can overpower its subtle sweet, savory, and umami notes. So in this cookie recipe, the bitterness of the matcha powder works alongside the sweetness of the chocolate, creating a balanced and comforting dessert. Get the recipe for Matcha Chocolate Chunk Cookies here.

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Wacky Cake

This cake is specifically designed to be so easy a child could make it: simple ingredients, no specialized tools, no raw eggs, and easy cleanup make it the perfect rainy-day activity for you and your kids. It’s a never-fail recipe and a crowdpleaser, one that you can serve warm straight from the oven or spend hours decorating with frosting and nonpareils. Get the recipe for Wacky Cake here.

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Miso-Black Garlic Chocolate Chip Cookies

We don’t think that these slightly exotic cookies are going to replace your regular rotation of Tollhouse when you get that craving, but it’s a great recipe when you’re seeking something new and unexpected for your next gathering, or to bring as a gift to the adventurous eaters in your life. Black garlic, paired with the sweet dough and bittersweet chocolate in this cookie, takes on the same role a raisin or dried cherry would, adding a bit of fruitiness. Why not give them a try? Get the recipe for Miso-Black Garlic Chocolate Chip Cookies here.

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Whipped Nutella Fun-do

The dessert dip is an underappreciated—and more importantly, underutilized—category of party food. This Nutella cream cheese dip combines everyone’s favorite chocolate-hazelnut spread with whipped cream, whipped cream cheese, powdered sugar, and spices to create a snack reminiscent of fondue. Use graham crackers, sliced fruit, and pretzel sticks for dipping, or let your guests get creative (Ritz crackers, perhaps?). Get the recipe for Whipped Nutella Fun-do here.

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Ben & Jerry’s Superfudge Brownies

In 1996’s In the Kitchen with Miss Piggy, Miss Piggy herself doesn’t cook (she’s far too glamorous for such a thing), so she has called upon her celebrity friends to contribute to the collection. Enter Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, better known as Ben and Jerry, who were kind enough to share their iconic recipe for Superfudge Brownies. Our slightly revised version adds espresso powder and milk chocolate chunks to appeal even more to chocolate lovers. Get the recipe for Ben & Jerry’s Superfudge Brownies here.

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Beer & Pretzel Caramel Cookie Bars

We know the word “chocolate” doesn’t appear in the name of these Beer & Pretzel Caramel Cookie Bars, but that’s because the name could hardly fit everything else that’s great about them. Rest assured there is a layer of rich chocolate ganache that sits between gooey pretzel-studded beer caramel and a sprinkling of crushed pretzels and sea salt. It all adds up to one giant candy bar, somewhere between a Twix and a Take 5. Get the recipe for Beer & Pretzel Caramel Cookie Bars here.

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Homemade Dark Chocolate Syrup

This recipe takes less than three minutes to assemble, and after that, you’ll never want to go back to the store-bought bottled stuff again. It starts with the basic chocolate syrup formula, but the addition of brown sugar, espresso powder, and a pat of butter make it a silky, complex kitchen staple you’ll want to use in chocolate milk, egg creams, ice cream sundaes, and anything else you can think of. Get the recipe for Dark Chocolate Syrup here.

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S’mores Dip

S’mores Dip seems like something that’s been around forever, but in fact, as best we can tell, the dip first appeared in 2012 on the blog What Megan’s Making. Since then, it’s taken off around the internet, and various recipes offer tweaks depending on whichever aspect of s’mores you like best. Our version, served in a cast iron skillet, leaves the broiled tops of the marshmallows beautifully golden brown for a photogenic dessert that’s a lot less messy than eating the classic fireside sandwich. Get the recipe for S’mores Dip here.

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Brown-Butter Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chef Dana Cree of The Publican in Chicago was kind enough to share this recipe for her life-changing cookies—and that’s not a description we’d use lightly. The brown butter is the linchpin of the whole process, because its liquid state hydrates the flour in a way that produces crisp edges and a gooey center. These cookies are much easier to make than you’re anticipating, and vegetarians will be happy to learn that they taste just as great without the bacon. Get the recipe for Brown-Butter Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies here.

20 Ridiculously Chocolatey Recipes for Holiday Baking Season

Nutella dip, muffins, brownies, cakes, cocoa—the list goes on.

Chocolate-Mayo Cupcakes

Chocolate-Mayo Cupcakes

Chocolate-Covered Pretzels

Chocolate-Covered Pretzels

Copycat Thin Mints

Copycat Thin Mints

No-Bake Brownies

No-Bake Brownies

Mega Chocolate Malted

Mega Chocolate Malted

Ganache Thumbprints

Ganache Thumbprints

Abuelita’s Surprise

Abuelita’s Surprise

Homemade Jos Louis Cakes

Homemade Jos Louis Cakes

Breakfast Stout Muffins

Breakfast Stout Muffins

Nutella Pizza Ring

Nutella Pizza Ring

City Bakery–Style Hot Chocolate

City Bakery–Style Hot Chocolate

Matcha Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Matcha Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Wacky Cake

Wacky Cake

Miso-Black Garlic Chocolate Chip Cookies

Miso-Black Garlic Chocolate Chip Cookies

Whipped Nutella Fun-do

Whipped Nutella Fun-do

Ben & Jerry’s Superfudge Brownies

Ben & Jerry’s Superfudge Brownies

Beer & Pretzel Caramel Cookie Bars

Beer & Pretzel Caramel Cookie Bars

Homemade Dark Chocolate Syrup

Homemade Dark Chocolate Syrup

S’mores Dip

S’mores Dip

Brown-Butter Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies

Brown-Butter Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies