In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and kosher salt. Set aside.
2 cups all purpose flour, ½ cup cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer, combine the butter and both sugars. Cream on medium-high speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
½ cup unsalted butter, ½ cup light brown sugar, ½ cup granulated sugar
Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the egg and vanilla extract. Beat on medium-high speed for 1 minute.
1 large egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Stop the mixer and add the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed, then add the tablespoon of milk. Stop the mixer once everything is combined, you don't want to over-mix it!
1 tablespoon whole milk
At this point, you can change the flavor from regular cocoa blossom cookies to peppermint, mocha, gingerbread or red velvet.
Scoop out 1 tablespoon of cookie dough and roll between your hands to form a ball. Roll the cookie dough ball in the extra granulated sugar, then place on a parchment lined baking sheet or plate. Repeat with all of the dough, you should get 35 cookies.
¼ cup granulated sugar
Chill the cookies in the fridge for 1 hour. While those are chilling, unwrap the kisses. Place them in a freezer safe container and place in the freezer while the cookie dough is chilling. This will help them not melt!
35 kisses
After 1 hour, preheat the oven to 350°Fahrenheit/175°Celsius and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the cookies on the sheet, leaving a few inches of space between each cookie. Bake 1 sheet at a time for 11-13 minutes in the middle of the oven. While baking, take the kisses out of the freezer.
Take the cookies out of the oven, they should look set with some cracks. Immediately press a kiss in the center of each cookie, pressing down gently so it sticks. Bake the other sheet of cookie dough and repeat.
Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
Video
Notes
My recipes have been developed and tested in metric grams. I highly recommend using a weighing scale and measuring out your ingredients the metric way. .Butter: I use European style butter in my recipes. This will make your finished bake much creamier and richer.Salt: If you don’t have kosher salt, halve the amount of salt called for in the recipe. 1 teaspoon kosher salt = ½ teaspoon fine salt. Please note I am using Diamond Kosher salt and not coarse kosher salt!Hersheys Kiss: You can use regular kisses, or candy cane kisses, sugar cookie cookies, or even hugs! Powdered Sugar: If you want that crinkle cookie look, roll the cookie dough balls lightly in white sugar, then heavily in powdered sugar just before baking. Storage: store the baked cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days. You can freeze the baked cookies for up to 2 months, just let them thaw to room temperature. You can also freeze the unbaked cookie dough balls. Just place in a ziploc bag for up to 2 months, you may need to add an extra minute to the baking time.