I’ve always wanted to make a chocolate lava cake.
I still haven’t made one, but cookies stuffed with chocolate that flows like lava is more than okay.
If you’re craving chocolate, these are the cookies to make because there’s chocolate incorporated three ways: Nutella, chocolate chips, and dark chocolate chunks. They’re rich, bold, and supremely fudgy.
The cookies are thick, slightly chewy on the outside with super soft and tender interiors. The puddles of melted chocolate keep the cookies extra moist.
The cookies are baked in a muffin pan so you don’t have to chill the dough. They’re ready in 30 minutes and perfect when you need chocolate in a hurry.
The recipe is adapted from Soft and Chewy Nutella White Chocolate Chip Cookies, a reader favorite. Form 12 equal-sized mounds with the dough, place them into the muffin pan, and stuff each mound with a chunk of dark chocolate.
Chocolate chunks melt in a free-flowing way as opposed to chocolate chips which have stabilizers in them that prevent easy-melting. For a true lava-like center, use a hunk of dark chocolate from a baking bar or candy bar. I used Trader Joe’s 72% Pound Plus bar.
The cookies rise while baking, but once out of the oven they sink in the center as they cool from the chocolate chunks weighing down the centers.
If you take them out of the muffin pan when they’re still warm, they’ll have a tendency to flatten and almost ‘break’ into bite-sized pieces. It was so easy to grab a piece, then another, and another.
Sinking your teeth into the squishy soft, super chocolaty interior is what dreams are made of.
A friend said she felt euphoric after there. I guess there’s some truth to the proverbial ‘chocolate high’ after all.
Pin This Recipe
Enjoy AverieCooks.com Without Ads! 🆕
Go Ad Free
Chocolate Lava Nutella Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened (1 stick)
- heaping 1/3 cup Nutella, stir well before adding
- ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch salt, optional and to taste
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 12 1/4- ounce chunks dark chocolate, divided (one chunk per cookie; I used Trader Joe’s 72% Pound Plus bar and 1/4-ounce is half of one square)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 12-cup standard-sized muffin pan with cooking spray or floured cooking spray; set aside.
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large mixing bowl and electric mixer) combine the butter, Nutella, sugars, egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until creamed and well combined, about 4 minutes.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, optional salt, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the chocolate chips, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds.
- Using a large cookie scoop, 1/4-cup measure, or your hands, form approximately 12 equal-sized mounds of dough, roll into balls, and flatten slightly.
- Transfer dough to prepared pan, placing one mound of dough in each cavity. Tip – Strategically place a few chocolate chips right on top of each mound of dough by taking chips from the underside and adding them on top.
- Stuff one 1/4-ounce chunk of dark chocolate in the center of each cookie, pressing the chocolate down so it’s flush with the top of the dough; repeat for all remaining cookies.
- Bake for about 11 to 12 minutes, or until edges have set and tops are just set (I bake for 11 minutes exactly); don’t overbake. Cookies will rise in the oven, but fall as they cool.
- Allow cookies to cool in pan for about 15 minutes before carefully removing. They should pop out easily but if they don’t, rim each muffin cavity with a table knife to help dislodge. Cookies will have a tendency to flatten and break apart somewhat after being removed from muffin pan.
- Cookies are best warm and fresh but will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 4 months, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
- Adapted from Soft and Chewy Nutella White Chocolate Chip Cookies
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
©averiecooks.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
Related Recipes
Soft and Chewy Nutella White Chocolate Chip Cookies – Thick, rich, chocolaty cookies that are so soft you won’t be able to resist them!
Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter-Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookie Cups – Two kinds of PB in one thick, soft and chewy cookie
Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Cups – The browned butter adds so much incredible flavor
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Cups – Supremely soft cookies & impossible to spread or goof up
Nutella Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies – Nutella and peanut butter are used in the dough based, along with big chocolate chunks
Quadruple Chocolate Soft Fudgy Pudding Cookies – For true chocolate lovers, these super soft cookies are loaded with chocolate
Caramel-Stuffed Quadruple Chocolate Cookies
Andes Mint Chip Soft Fudgy Chocolate Cookies – Big, thick, fudgy chocolate cookies with a hint of mint and loads of chocolate in every bite
Dark Chocolate Chunk and Peanut Butter Chip Chocolate Cookies – Rich, soft chocolate cookies with chocolate chunks and peanut butter chips
Thick and Soft Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies – Richly and intensely chocolate-flavored cookies with NO Flour, NO Butter, and NO White sugar used. They’re thick, dense, soft, chewy and like peanut butter brownies
Soft and Chewy Brownie Cookies – A soft, scrumptious, and nearly flourless brownie-like batter is baked into cookies that are rich, decadent, and lined with hidden chunks of dark chocolate
Black & White Cookies: Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip & Dark Chocolate Dark Brown Sugar – The best of both worlds in one cookie
Chocolate Lover’s Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Muffins with Nutella
Nutella-Swirled Peanut Butter Chip Blondies
One of the first things I remember cooking when I first started getting into baking was a chocolate lava cake. I think it was from a Vegetarian Times cookbook and I remember following the recipe exactly (yes, I did that at one time!) and thinking that NO WAY would there be any pudding-like deliciousness in that cake. But LO. There was.
I made that recipe many many times, but it did not have nutella. Sad but true.
I love the muffin tin cookies too. Do you know why you don’t have to chill the dough?
(I never got your replies to my recent comments and I thought you were ignoring me. Turns out I’d typed my email wrong.)
Turns out I’d typed my email wrong <--- that's something I'd do LOL. And no, would never ignore you! Don't have to chill b/c since they're not being baked free-form on a baking sheet where they could spread and are instead in a muffin tin, whether the dough was warm, cool, or sideways, it really wouldn't matter. And that cake sounds delish!
These are INTENSE…in such a good way! I love anything with a gooey, chocolaty center!
Intense is the right word for these, you are so right!
Lava cakes are so cool and I wish I had the guts to make one! I just know mine would be a hot mess and not in a delicious, fudgy way, haha. These cookies take the guesswork and pain out of making a cake into something even more delicious — because who doesn’t want a thick, chewy chocolate chip cookie with molten fudge in the middle?!
take the guesswork and pain out of making a cake into something even more delicious = and taking the guesswork/pain out of ANY unknown recipe, yeah, that’s what I’m all about :)
I think these are what my dreams are made out of.
I love gooey center anything! I am going to make this but sub the Nutella for peanut butter. My daughter is allergic to treenuts, and we LOVE peanuts. Which strange enough she is not allergic too. <— Thank goodness because we love some peanut butter!!
Glad they’ll work for you!
That lava center is perfection, love these cookies. Pinned!
Thanks for pinning, Laura!
Ooh. I’m sure it’s been scientifically proven that combining chocolate and Nutella help with hormonal balance. Therefore, it is my duty to make and eat these for my health.
These are pure PMS food :) Or 3am food after a long night out…or really anytime but you know, certain times they just taste extra good. :)
Chocolate lava cake is my favorite, I love the idea of trying chocolate lava COOKIES! And the fact that you used Nutella makes these even better!
Hold the phone… you can put lava-y goodness in a cookie?! And it can have Nutella in it?! And it will be monstrously satisfying because it’s in a muffin pan?!
*Mind. Blown.* This looks amazing!
Thanks, Jessica!
Chocolate puddles are what dreams are made of. Oh my goodness Averie, you seriously outdid yourself on these. This is my new definition of fudgy. Just look at them! I can’t even … :)
Thank you! :)
These are some of the most beautiful cookies I’ve seen on your blog!
In the directions it says to mix in the butter – how much butter goes into these cookies? It seems that the measurement has been left out :)
Ohmygosh, thank you! I cut/paste from the recipe these cookies were adapted from and I guess I cut off the butter! It’s 1/2 cup and it’s fixed now! Thank you!
Lava cake is my idea of heaven, but with nutella and in cookie form… They look so irresistible with that pool of melting dark chocolate and the muffin size! What is better than a triple chocolate cookie? A lava triple chocolate cookie of course!
Oh my goodness!! These look amazing! I’m craving for chocolate right now!
Pools of melted chocolate can never be bad!
Oh goodness, I have a nutella problem right now and these are totally calling my name!
Thank you for pinning :) and you and me both with the Nutella problem!
I am all about the lava cake, and these cookies look WAY better :) my kiddos would flip to come home to these
Mine did flip :)