Chocolate Kahlua Bites ~ they’re little mounds of melt in your mouth chocolate shortbread topped with a deep chocolate Kahlua buttercream. (And they’re a snap to make, which just adds to their charm.)
These Chocolate Kahlua Bites are based on one of my all time favorite and deeply personal holiday cookies ever, Melting Moments. I think it’s pretty obvious that sometimes the simplest things are the most irresistible. The thing about these cookies is that they literally do melt in your mouth. The consistency is quite unique, really unlike any other cookie. It has something to do with the butter and the cornstarch. But the little blob of fudge frosting on the top doesn’t hurt, either.
Serve these decidedly adult chocolate Kahlua bites with after dinner coffee for a special treat.
what you’ll need
- butter
- confectioner’s sugar
- unsweetened cocoa powder
- cornstarch
- all purpose flour
- butter
- Kahlua liqueur
- vanilla
- milk or cream to thin the frosting
This is a good recipe if you’re busy because you can easily mix up the dough in the morning before work, and bake off the cookies in the evening. The cookies are small and they don’t spread, so you can fit the whole batch on two trays. The frosting comes together with a few swipes of a spoon in a measuring cup. You can also freeze the unbaked balls of dough; freeze them first on a tray, then transfer them to a zip lock bag.
Get ready to transform a little bit of butter, sugar, flour, cornstarch, cocoa powder and Kahlua into something you, your family, and friends will never forget. Don’t like Kahlua? Substitute vanilla, or any other liquor or liqueur you like. Set these out on a little tray after dinner, sit back, and watch what happens. But be sure to grab a couple for yourself, first.
more Melting Moments cookie variations
If you’re more of a plain vanilla type, see the original MELTING MOMENTS, they’re fabulous too.
- PEPPERMINT MELTING MOMENTS
- COCONUT SNOWBALL MELTING MOMENTS
- CAPPUCCINO MELTING MOMENTS
- CLEMENTINE MELTING MOMENTS
Deep Chocolate Kahlua Bites
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 Tbsp soft unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup sifted confectioner’s sugar, plus more, for dusting
- 1/4 cup sifted unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 Tbsp Kahlua
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- milk , or cream, to thin
Instructions
- Cream the butter, sugar, and cocoa powder together in a large mixing bowl until well blended. Add the cornstarch and flour and mix the dough together until thoroughly combined. Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or longer if desired.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Form small heaps with the dough on a parchment lined baking sheet. I used a 1" scoop. Bake for about 13 minutes. Cool slightly on the pan, and then on a rack. Be careful, these cookies are delicate.
- Mix the soft butter with the cocoa powder and sugar, then add the rest of the ingredients and mix well, until smooth and creamy. Top each cooled cookie with a generous blob of frosting, and dust with powdered sugar.
Nutrition
Don’t forget to pin these Deep Chocolate Kahlua Bites
I just wanted to say other followers of this blog- please, don`t try to bake these cookies (I tried, and will never do again) -they are bitter, because too many cacao and too little sugar. I really appreciate dark (and even very bitter dark) chocolate, but these are tasteless, with cream or without – just wasted products.
How about freezing without icing and ice later
That should work.
You might want to revise the recipe a bit. I can’t imagine why anyone would set the oven at 350 degrees 2 hours or more before baking.
Point taken, I’ve revised the order of things in the recipe 🙂
I can’t wait to make these … I will purchase the mini bottle of Kahlua just to make these! I plan on making the Peppermint ones too!
Those mini bottles come in so handy for stuff like this. Enjoy 🙂
Hello Sue,
I just wanted to ask if one can replae the Kahlua with anything else? Because I don’t have it at home and simply don’t want to buy a whole bottle just to use one tbsp every one in a while.
Thank you for the great recipes,
Helen
You can literally use any liquer you like in these Helen, whatever flavor appeals to you. I love chocolate with Amaretto.
Just wondering the best way to store the Kahlua bites and the peppermint version. Thanks.
You can’t go wrong by keeping them in the refrigerator, Diane. They’ll keep on the counter for a few days, though.
Might try these with Run Chata or Bailey’s too
The frosting totally transforms these rich chocolate little bites into something “heavenly”.
Help! I have the dry ingredients mixed with the butter but there’s no Kahlua amount listed (if that’s the only other ingredient) and I’m making these for a party tomorrow.
Help!
The Kahlua in these bites is in the frosting. The cookies are shortbread cookies, and the cup of soft butter binds together with the dry ingredients to make a soft dough. Make sure your butter is soft when you make the dough, and then refrigerate to firm it up before you bake them.