Hot Honey Recipes for Your Holiday Cookie Jar

Choose from chocolate-chip, spiced-jam thumbprint, oatmeal-raisin and molasses cookies, each made with hot honey. Pick a honey whose heat you enjoy. Hot Honey Fever has not kitchen-tested these recipes.

The licensed photographs illustrate ingredients and cookie styles; they do not show the finished recipes.

Before you bake

Do not taste raw dough or batter, even before adding eggs. Flour can carry harmful bacteria, as the FDA explains. Check the heat only in a fully baked cookie, then adjust a future batch if needed.

Do not give honey or foods containing honey to children younger than 12 months. See the CDC’s infant feeding guidance. Check ingredient labels for anyone you plan to serve, including the flour, eggs, dairy and chocolate.

Chocolate-chip cookies with hot honey

Use milk chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate or a mix, cut into chunks.

Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup hot honey
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 12 ounces quality chocolate (milk, semi-sweet, or a mix), cut into chunks

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and hot honey with an electric mixer until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes).
3. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract.
4. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
5. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing on low speed until just combined. Do not overmix.
6. Stir in the chocolate chunks by hand until evenly distributed.
7. Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between cookies.
8. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown and the centers are still soft.
9. Let cookies cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Hot honey thumbprints with spiced jam

Cinnamon, cardamom and orange zest flavor the dough. Fill the centers with apricot jam or marmalade mixed with hot honey.

Ingredients for the cookies

• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons hot honey
• 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/3 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup all-purpose flour

For the filling

• 1/2 cup apricot jam or marmalade
• 2 teaspoons hot honey

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter, granulated sugar, and hot honey until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the cinnamon, cardamom, salt, orange zest, egg yolk, and vanilla extract until well combined.
4. Gradually add the all-purpose flour and mix until just combined, forming a soft dough.
5. Roll the dough into 1-inch balls and place them on the prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart.
6. Use your thumb or the back of a small spoon to press an indentation into the center of each cookie.
7. In a small bowl, mix the apricot jam and 2 teaspoons of hot honey for the filling.
8. Spoon a small amount of the jam mixture into the indentation of each cookie.
9. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden.
10. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Hot honey oatmeal-raisin cookies

This recipe combines regular honey and hot honey with instant oats, raisins and cinnamon.

Ingredients

• 1 cup (100g) instant oats
• 3/4 cup (90g) all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup hot honey
• 1/4 cup raisins

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the instant oats, all-purpose flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt. Stir until evenly mixed.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the melted butter, egg, vanilla extract, honey, and hot honey until smooth.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
5. Gently fold in the raisins until evenly distributed.
6. Scoop small portions of the dough onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing them evenly. Flatten the tops slightly with the back of a spoon.
7. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges turn golden brown.
8. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Hot honey molasses cookies

This recipe specifies unsulphured blackstrap molasses. Blackstrap is darker and more bitter than lighter molasses; King Arthur Baking’s molasses guide explains the distinction. Use the specified type when following these quantities.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsalted room temperature butter
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons hot honey
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup unsulphured blackstrap molasses
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons milk

Method

1. In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter, honey, hot honey, granulated sugar, molasses, and vanilla extract until light and fluffy.
2. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cardamom, and salt.
3. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until just combined. Stir in the milk until a soft dough forms.
4. Optional: cover the dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour before baking.
5. Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
6. Scoop rounded tablespoons of dough and roll them into balls.
7. Place the dough balls 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are set and the centers are still slightly soft.
8. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Choosing the heat

The heat depends on the honey you use. Try a small baked batch before making cookies for a group. Keep the ingredient quantities together when following a recipe; replacing dry sugar with honey changes the liquid balance. Our hot honey baking guide has more dessert ideas.

Packing and storage

Let the cookies cool completely before packing. Pack each type separately in a covered container, with parchment between layers. Label the flavors and ingredients when giving cookies as gifts.

These recipes have no established storage life. For mailed gifts or make-ahead batches, use a tested recipe with storage directions for its finished filling, especially for jam-filled cookies.

For general freezer guidance, Illinois Extension’s storage table lists home-baked cookies separately from raw cookie dough and describes its times as quality guidance at 0°F. Those ranges are not a tested expiration date for this collection.

Bottled hot honey for the ingredient list

Use the hot honey named in your chosen recipe or a bottle whose ingredients and heat suit you. Mike’s Hot Honey Original is one bottled option; we have not tested it in these four recipes.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. The Amazon link below is a paid link; purchases take place on Amazon.

View Mike’s Hot Honey Original, one 12 oz squeeze bottle, on Amazon (paid link). Check the current listing and bottle label before ordering.

More hot honey recipes

• Indulge in Sweetness: Hot Honey-Infused Desserts to Try
• Hot Honey Holidays: 7 Ways to Use Hot Honey at Your Thanksgiving Table
• Keep Warm This Winter with These Hot Honey Recipes
• Beyond Biscuits: 5 Unexpected Ways to Use Hot Honey