Classic M & M Cookies - Fun & Festive - That Skinny Chick Can Bake (2024)

Home » Cookies » Classic M & M Cookies

posted by Liz Berg

on August 23, 2018 (updated 3/11/23)

Jump to Recipe

Old-fashioned, chewy Classic M & M Cookies have been well-loved for decades!

This M and M Cookie Recipe bakes up soft like bakery cookies but come from your very own oven. They’re perfect for lunch boxes, after-school treats, and desserts, plus they can be customized with different colored M&M’s depending on the occasion.

Classic M & M Cookies - Fun & Festive - That Skinny Chick Can Bake (1)

Table of Contents hide

1 Why You Must Make

2 Ingredient Notes

3 Recipe Tips

4 Frequently Asked Questions

5 You May Also Like

Why You Must Make

  • Buttery, soft, and dotted with colorful candy-coated chocolate bits, these M&M Cookies are totally irresistible.
  • There are so many seasonal colored M&M candies, that you can swap out the traditional multicolored variety for pastel Easter, Fall, Christmas or Valentine’s M&Ms.
  • Whether it’s after Halloween and you have some extra M&M’s around, a package somehow made its way into your shopping cart, or you’ve just been enticed to add M&M’s to your shopping list, they are perfect for these big beauties.

Ingredient Notes

  • Kitchen Staples – Sugar, Flour, Salt, Baking Soda
  • Butter – At room temperature for easy incorporation.
  • Egg and Egg Yolk – All my recipes use large eggs unless otherwise noted. Eggs separate best when cold, but incorporate into the batter more easily when at room temperature.
  • Brown Sugar– Packed, which means press it into the measuring cup so that it’s a firm cylinder when you add it to the batter.
  • Vanilla Extract– Make sure the label says “real” not artificial vanilla.
  • M&M’s – Use any favorite variety. Even mini M&Ms will work well!
Classic M & M Cookies - Fun & Festive - That Skinny Chick Can Bake (2)

Recipe Tips

The first time I made these M & M Cookies was a few years back when my youngest, Nick, was home for his college fall break. I nearly panicked when a couple of hours before he returned to the dorms, I realized I had no homemade treats to send back with him. Thank goodness, these chewy cookies can be whipped up in the blink of an eye. I’m pretty sure they disappeared just as quickly.

  • The first rule is to read through the recipe thoroughly. For cookies, the eggs and butter are often best at room temperature so that requires getting them out of the fridge an hour or so before mixing.
  • Having certain ingredients like butter and eggs at room temperature allows them to become incorporated more easily. You do not, however, want your butter so warm that it looks greasy and bends in half when you lift it.
  • Adding an extra egg yolk adds extra fat to the cookies, making them soft and chewy.
  • Measure your flour by scooping your measuring cup into the flour, then leveling off the top using an (affiliate links) offset spatula or other straight surface.
  • Whisk the baking soda and salt into the flour so that the latter two ingredients are evenly distributed before mixing them into the butter mixture.
  • Unless the recipe calls for it, mix the dough with a wooden spoon. If you use a mixer, the texture of your M & M Cookies will be more cake-like due to more air whipped into the dough.
  • Line your baking sheets with parchment paper for easy removal and simple cleanup.
  • I like using a cookie disher for rounder and evenly sized cookies.
  • Space your cookie dough as suggested in the recipe, so that they have room to bake without touching other cookies.
  • Let your cookies cool a few minutes to allow them to firm up before removing them from the baking pan to a cooling rack.
  • If your cookies are not perfectly round, use your spatula to gently press the sides of the cookies into shape. This must be done immediately when the cookies come out of the oven while the cookies are hot and pliable.
  • Pro-Tip: The candy shells of M&M’s tend to crack when they’re baked. So waiting to add them until the cookies come out of the oven helps preserve most of them. The M&M’s must be pressed onto the cookie’s surface while the cookie is still hot and pliable. A few will still crack, but most will not!
Classic M & M Cookies - Fun & Festive - That Skinny Chick Can Bake (3)

Frequently Asked Questions

How Do You Make Round Cookies?

Use a cookie disher to scoop out the dough, then roll it between your palms to make the dough balls nice and round. Then, when you pull the cookies out of the oven, carefully use a spatula and tap the edges making them into perfect spheres.
Also, by pressing the M&Ms into the cookies after they’re baked helps prevent lumpy dough balls that usually don’t bake into perfect rounds.

When Should You Pull the Cookies Out of the Oven?

Remember that the baking times in a recipe may be off a bit depending on if your oven bakes a little hot or cold. When you start smelling a delicious aroma coming from your oven, it’s time to take a quick peek. The very centers can look a bit soft as the cookies will continue to cook as they cool on the hot cookie sheets.

Why Do M&Ms Crack?

The heat of the oven can weaken the candy-coating shell of the M&Ms causing them to crack. This is why the M&Ms in this recipe are added after the cookies are baked, but still hot and pliable. Some may still crack, but most will stay intact.

You May Also Like

Stay in touch through social media@Instagram,Facebook, andPinterest. Don’t forget to tag me when you try one of my recipes! And if you love the results, please give it a 5-star rating in the recipe card.

Classic M & M Cookies - Fun & Festive - That Skinny Chick Can Bake (4)

The Recipe:

Classic M&M Cookies

Prep Time20 minutes

Cook Time12 minutes

Total Time32 minutes

Yield30 cookies

Chewy, bakery style cookies studded with colorful M & M's

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup M&M's

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350º and line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
  2. Beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the egg and egg yolk and mix until combined.
  3. Add vanilla and mix.
  4. Sprinkle baking soda and salt over the butter mixture and mix until combined.
  5. Add and mix in flour. If your kitchen is warm, you may want to refrigerate dough up until firm, up to an hour.
  6. Scoop out 2 tablespoons full of dough per cookie and roll into balls. Place 6-8 dough balls on each cooking sheet, flatten slightly with the palm of your hand, and cover the top with 6-8 M & M's*.
  7. Bake for about 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Let cool a few minutes on the cookie sheet before removing to a cooling rack.
  8. Makes about 30 cookies (results may vary depending on the size you make your cookies).

Notes

Adapted from the Joy of Baking.

Use seasonal colored M&Ms for different holidays.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

15

Serving Size:

2 cookies

Amount Per Serving:Calories: 204Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 27mgSodium: 157mgCarbohydrates: 40gFiber: 1gSugar: 26gProtein: 3g

HOW MUCH DID YOU LOVE THIS RECIPE?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

Note: This post may contain affiliate links; view my Disclosure Policy for details. I earn a small percentage from any purchase you make by clicking on these links at no extra cost to you.

posted by Liz Berg on August 23, 2018
23 Comments // Leave a Comment »

« Previous PostInstant Pot Rotisserie Chicken

Next Post »Blackberry Bran Muffins

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    23 Comments on “Classic M & M Cookies”

  1. Lindy Reply

    Hi is the flour plain flour?

    • Liz Berg Reply

      Hi, Lindy, Yes, regular all purpose flour. Hope you enjoy!

  2. Melissa Reply

    Best cookie recipe I’ve tried by far!

    • Liz Berg Reply

      Oh, I’m so glad, Melissa! Thanks for letting me know!

  3. Suzy Reply

    Love a classic cookie! Great recipe!

  4. Laura | Tutti Dolci Reply

    M&M cookies are just what I need – classic for a reason!

  5. Healthy World Cuisine Reply

    Classic chewy cookies are always are favorite. Serves 30 adults or 1 hungry teenager boy after school is how this serving goes… LOL When do you get to start baking in that new beautiful kitchen of yours? Just pinned!

  6. Neha Reply

    How pretty and chewy these cookies are! Absolutely loving this recipe!!

  7. beauty cookies Lizzy and delicious :) Reply

    lovely and delicious cookies Lizzy 😉

  8. Lynn@Happier Than A Pig In Mud Reply

    Always a favorite that disappears fast:@)

  9. Diane Zwang Reply

    This recipe is definitely going on my to-do-list for my son. I happen to have a bag of M&Ms lying about and I think he will really enjoy these. Looking forward to it.

  10. Marissa Reply

    We all need back pocket cookie recipes like this – classic and reliably delicious! The texture looks absolutely perfect, Liz! Can’t wait to try these!!

  11. 2pots2cook Reply

    Glad to see there is someone else is inviting autumn and baking ! 🙂 Thank you Liz !

  12. Erin Reply

    These are a must at our house, we make them all the time!

  13. Katie | Healthy Seasonal Recipes Reply

    Nothing better than a classic cookie! Love these!

  14. Patrick@looneyforfood.com Reply

    Great tips, putting M&M’s on my list but I there won’t be any leftovers for me to use. I like to snack on them while I make cookies.

  15. Katherine | Love In My Oven Reply

    My kiddos would go bananas over these!! I’ll have to make them as a treat some day soon!

  16. Vicki Bensinger Reply

    Who doesn’t love an M&M cookie? I don’t know anyone that could pass this up. They look perfect and I know they’re delicious!

  17. Rosella Reply

    Those cookies look perfect and they sound delish! Noa would love these. I have all the ingredients too …
    Thanks for the baling tips.

  18. Debra Eliotseats Reply

    Correct! Such a classic. Yours look absolutely perfect, Liz!

  19. angiesrecipes Reply

    I would love one for my tea now. They look so tempting!

  20. Lauren E. Reply

    These brought me right back to my days as a kid at the mall, BEGGING for one of those giant M&M cookies! Does this yield a soft, chewy cookie or are they crispy? I mean… let’s be honest. I’m making them either way. But I do love a soft, chewy cookie.

    • Liz Berg Reply

      Definitely soft and chewy! You’ll love them, Lauren!

Classic M & M Cookies - Fun & Festive - That Skinny Chick Can Bake (2024)
Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Delena Feil

Last Updated:

Views: 5795

Rating: 4.4 / 5 (45 voted)

Reviews: 92% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Delena Feil

Birthday: 1998-08-29

Address: 747 Lubowitz Run, Sidmouth, HI 90646-5543

Phone: +99513241752844

Job: Design Supervisor

Hobby: Digital arts, Lacemaking, Air sports, Running, Scouting, Shooting, Puzzles

Introduction: My name is Delena Feil, I am a clean, splendid, calm, fancy, jolly, bright, faithful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.