The Best M&M’s Cookies — These bakery-style M&M’s cookies are soft, chewy, buttery, and LOADED with M&M’s and chocolate chips. No one can resist these cookies!
Classic M&M’s Cookies Recipe
I love M&M’S® cookies and these are my favorite. And I’m no stranger to M&M’S cookies and recipes. These big, bakery-style cookies are very soft, slightly chewy, buttery, and loaded with M&M’S and chocolate chips.
If you’re looking for a new favorite M&M’S cookie recipe, you’re going to love this one. It’s nearly identical to my Soft and Chewy M&M’s Chocolate Chip Cookies, minus the red and green M&M’S. M&M’S just launched a new Pinterest page where you can check out new recipes for baking inspiration.
I used Dark Chocolate M&M’S because I’m a dark chocolate girl, but anything from Pretzel to Peanut Butter M&M’S would be fun twists.
If you need a slightly bigger batch of cookies, try Soft M&M’S Chocolate Chip Cookies. And make sure to follow my Tips for Cooking Baking Success, like chilling the dough before baking, so the cookies bake up perfectly thick.
These homemade cookies are sure to disappear very quickly because I don’t know anyone who can resist soft, warm, homemade M&M’S cookies.
M&M’s Cookies Ingredients
For this easy M&M’s cookie recipe, you’ll need:
- Unsalted butter
- Light brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Instant vanilla pudding mix
- Baking soda
- Salt
- M&M’s (any variety)
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
How to Make M&M’s Cookies
Combine the butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and cream until light in color and well combined (this will take a good 4 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then mix in the flour, pudding mix, baking soda, and salt. Note that you add the pudding mix as a dry ingredient. You should NOT make the pudding according to the package instructions.
Fold in the M&M’s and chocolate chips, then scoop the cookie dough into balls and flatten slightly with your hands. Chill the cookie dough for at least 3 hours before baking.
Is There a Pudding Mix Substitute I Can Use?
This M&M’s cookie recipe calls for a small amount of instant pudding mix because it adds a depth of flavor you just can’t get without it, and it helps the cookies stay soft for days. But if you don’t have access to or don’t want to use pudding mix, make my Soft and Chewy M&Ms Cookies instead. That recipe uses cornstarch to keep the cookies soft.
Can I Freeze Cookie Dough?
Absolutely! I highly recommend doubling this recipe and freezing half the cookie dough for later. To freeze cookie dough, first scoop the dough into balls and then seal inside a freezer bag. When you’re ready to make the cookies, bake them directly from frozen (note that you may have to add a minute or two to the bake time).
Tips for Making M&M’s Cookies
When creaming together the butter and sugars, it’s important that you give the mixture plenty of time to whip up. At this stage, you’re whipping air into the mixture, which is partly what makes these cookies so soft and chewy.
Also note that you MUST chill the cookie dough. If you skip this crucial step, your cookies will come out flat and will spread a lot in the oven.
Bake the M&M’s cookies for exactly how long I’ve said to (if yours are the same size as mine). Even if the centers of the cookies look pale and glossy, you should still take them out of the oven because the residual heat in the cookies will finish baking the insides.
Want to see how to make M&M’s cookies? Watch the video!
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The Best Soft and Chewy M&M'S Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened (1 stick)
- ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup instant vanilla pudding mix, not cook-and-serve, not sugar-free
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
- ¾ cup M&M’S, plus more for adding to dough mounds (I used Dark Chocolate M&M’S, other varieties may be substituted)
- ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus more for adding to dough mounds
Instructions
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large mixing bowl and electric mixer) combine the butter, sugars, egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until creamed and well combined, about 4 minutes.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the flour, pudding mix (add it as a dry ingredient, do not actually make pudding; cook-and-serve and sugar-free are not recommended in this recipe), baking soda, salt, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Add the M&M’S, chocolate chips, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds.
- Using a large cookie scoop, 1/4-cup measure, or your hands, form approximately 11 equal-sized mounds of dough, roll into balls, and flatten slightly.*
- Place mounds on a large plate or tray, cover with plasticwrap, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, up to 5 days. Do not bake with unchilled dough because cookies will bake thinner, flatter, and be more prone to spreading.
- Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat or spray with cooking spray. Place dough mounds on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart (I bake 6 cookies per sheet) and bake for about 12 to 13 minutes (if your cookies are smaller than mine, reduce baking time) or until edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked, pale, and glossy in the center; don’t overbake. Cookies firm up as they cool.
- Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for about 10 minutes before serving. I let them cool on the baking sheet and don’t use a rack.
- Cookies will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 4 months, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More M&M’s Recipes:
Soft M&M’s Chocolate Chip Cookies – Soft, chewy, thick, and people love these big cookies loaded with M&Ms and chocolate!
Triple Peanut Butter Cookie Pie — This fast & easy cookie pie has peanut butter worked in 3 different ways. If you’re a peanut butter lover, this pie is for you!
Loaded Soft and Chewy M&M’s Cookie Pie – If you like M&M cookies, you’ll love this biggie version! Super easy and always a big hit!
Triple Peanut Butter Monster Cookie Bars – Peanut butter is used 3 different ways and baked into bars. Great for pantry odds-and-ends cleanout!
Homemade Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies – Some of the best brownies I’ve ever made and much more decadent than storebought Cosmic Brownies!
Frozen Chocolate Pudding and Wafer Cake (No-Bake, 3 ingredients) — An easy icebox cake that’s perfect for summer events!
Loaded M&M’s Oreo Cookie Bars – Stuffed to the max with M&M’s and Oreos! Easy, no-mixer recipe that’s ready in 30 minutes. Always a hit! On the cover of Taste of Home Magazine and pinned 650K+ times!
Chocolate Cake Mix M&M’s Cookies — Foolproof cookies made with just 5 ingredients!! If you’re craving chocolate and want to make super EASY cookies that are soft, FUDGY, and delicious, this is the recipe to make!!
Post is brought to you by M&M’S. The recipe, images, text, and opinions expressed are my own.
I have to be gluten free so I made this recipe with GF flour. The M&M cookies turned out PERFECTLY! This is by far the BEST M&M cookie recipe I ever tried. Going forward it will be the only one I use!
I have to be gluten free so I made this recipe with GF flour. The M&M cookies turned out PERFECTLY! This is by far the BEST M&M cookie recipe I ever tried. Going forward it will be the only one I use!
Thanks for the 5 star review and I am glad that these worked out well with GF flour and that they turned out perfectly and that this will be your go-to recipe from now on!
great