Soft and Chewy M&M Cookies
Tips and tricks for making the perfect soft M & M cookies.
This is without a doubt the best soft and chewy M & M cookie recipe.
I have been working for months and months to perfect this cookie recipe. Actually, creating the perfect M & M cookie recipe may be harder than you ever thought. M & M’s have a tendency to weigh down a cookie which flattens it. They are also sweeter than semi-sweet chocolate chips so the sugar to butter to flour ratio had to be spot on. After months of tweaking, the perfect M & M cookie recipe was born!
This is adapted slightly from my BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE RECIPE because it is just so darn good.
If you know me well, you know that I am an M & M fanatic. It has and always will be hands down my favorite candy. It all started at a neighborhood carnival. They were giving away a huge glass jar full of plain chocolate M & M’s. You had to buy a ticket in order to guess how many M & M’s filled the jar. I was determined to make it mine and I could envision myself, watching my favorite shows while devouring the entire jar.
You better believe I WON that jar of M & M’s and if you can believe it, I never tired of them.
Fast forward to years later when my high school boyfriend was leaving on a two-year church mission. Since my Mom knew how much I loved M & M’s, she filled a big jar with 730 M & M’s, with the instruction that I was to eat one a day and when the jar was empty, he would be home. It started off really well…until one night when my friends got a hold of it.
This is pretty ironic, actually. My friends and I were upstairs in the loft watching a movie when the phone rang. I ran downstairs to answer it and it happened to be Dean, a guy I had recently met at a dance. It was the first time he had called and I laid on the family room floor for hours talking to him.
Meanwhile, my friends had unbeknownst to me, confiscated the M & M jar and began eating them. I will never forget my friend Susan yelling at me, while I was still on the phone, “We just ate all your M & M’s.” The jar was finished. I guess you could say that my relationship with my missionary boyfriend was finished too because the guy on the phone became my future husband. 🙂 Thanks, Susan, for finishing off all of those M & M’s!
How to make the best M & M Cookies:
- Start with Butter, cut into cubes. I prefer to use barely softened butter. I take the butter out of the refrigerator, cut into cubes, place it in a microwave-safe bowl, and microwave for about 8 seconds.
- Cream together butter, brown sugar, and sugar for 4-5 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Scrape the sides of the bowl halfway through to ensure even creaming.
- Add eggs and vanilla and cream for 1 minute longer.
- Stir in dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Avoid overmixing as it develops gluten in the cookies which creates a tough cookie. We want a tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture!
- Stir in M & M’s, reserving some to strategically place on the top of the cookie dough balls. Roll into balls and place on parchment paper or Silpat lined baking sheet.
- Bake just until the edges begin to be a golden color. The cookies will set up as they sit so avoid overbaking.
Here are my favorite baking tools:
Light-Colored Baking Sheets
Parchment Paper Liners
Silpat Silicone Baking Sheets
Cookie Scoop
KitchenAid Mixer
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Soft and Chewy M & M Cookies. The best M & M cookie recipe. How to make the perfect M & M cookie.
- 1 cup Cold Butter (cut into cubes and microwave on high for 8 seconds)
- 1 cup Brown Sugar
- 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons Sugar
- 2 large Eggs
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla
- 2 3/4 cups Flour
- 3/4 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 2 cups Plain M & M's (plus more for placing on top of cookie dough balls)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter, brown sugar, and sugar for 4 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs and vanilla. Mix for 1 minute longer.
Stir in flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt. Mix just until combined. Fold in M & M's.
Scoop cookie dough onto baking sheets. I suggest using parchment paper or Silpat silicone baking sheets on light-colored baking sheets. Place extra M & M's on top of cookie dough balls so the M & M's show up after baking.
- Bake for 9-11 minutes or until the edges just begin to turn a light golden color. Remove from oven and let set for 5 minutes before removing from the cookie sheet.
I hope you love these homemade M & M cookies! Happy Baking!
I’m wondering if I should refrigerate the dough before baking?