Soft M&M’s Pudding Cookies — The softest, thickest, best M&M’s cookies ever! People love these big cookies loaded with M&M’s! Instant vanilla pudding mix keeps them super soft and pillowy!
Table of Contents
These M&M’s pudding cookies are thick enough to sink your teeth into, and they’re so very soft and moist. There’s a hint of chewiness at the base and edges, and it’s just enough to balance the softness and give me the mouthfeel I’m looking for in a perfectly baked cookie.
The texture is dense yet light, and they remind me a bit of the texture in the Softbatch Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies, minus the cream cheese.
The crunchy candy coating shells of the M&M’s also breaks up the soft, buttery dough and is a perfect texture contrast to the smooth, melted semi-sweet chocolate chips.
These vanilla pudding M&M’s cookies get my vote as my new chocolate chip cookie dough base to beat, and that’s a big statement.
The Science Behind Baking with Pudding Mix
This is some of the best cookie dough I’ve ever made. The cookies are great, but the dough base itself, wow. Allow me to explain. If you don’t care about cookie science, scroll down to the recipe. But if you do, pour a cup of coffee and enjoy.
For nearly the past two years, when I make chocolate chip cookies, I use this recipe. It produces amazingly consistent chocolate chip cookies, and one reason the cookies always turn out beautifully is from the cornstarch in the dough. I’ve used cornstarch in about 20+ cookie recipes because it helps create softbatch-style cookies that are so soft, moist, and supple, without turning cakey.
However, for these chewy M&M’s cookies, rather than using cornstarch, I used 1/4 cup instant vanilla pudding mix. Pudding mix is mostly modified food starch (aka cornstarch) and some sugary flavorings. So it turns out pudding cookies and cornstarch cookies really aren’t that far apart!
Ingredients for the Cookies
To make these easy vanilla pudding cookies using M&M’s cookies, you’ll need:
- Unsalted butter
- Light brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Instant vanilla pudding mix
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- M&M’s
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make M&M’s Pudding Cookies
The dough for these cookies comes together quickly! Here are the basic recipe steps:
- Cream together the butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla.
- Stir in the dry ingredients.
- Fold in the M&M’s and chocolate chips.
- Shape the cookie dough into balls using a 1/4 cup scoop, then press more M&M’s into the top. Chill for at least 2 hours before baking.
- Once the dough has had time to chill, bake until the edges have set and the tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked, pale, and glossy in the center.
Tip for Making Pretty Cookies
I added 3/4 cup M&M’s into the dough, formed the mounds, and then inserted another tablespoon of M&M’s onto the tops for a nice visual pop. I want to really knowing I’m eating M&M’s cookies.
Cookie FAQs
The pudding cookie craze is nothing new, but not everyone likes or has access to pudding mix. If that’s you, rather than using pudding mix, use 2 teaspoons cornstarch, which means you’re back at my gold standard dough base (which is still great!).
Note that this recipe calls for instant vanilla pudding mix, NOT cook and serve. You also can’t use sugar-free pudding mix.
Yes! As with all my cookies, I chilled the dough before baking. It’s absolutely crucial for thick, puffy, full cookies. If you bake with warm, limp dough, your cookies will spread and bake thinner and flatter. Why bother? Plan ahead and chill your dough.
Yes! I made this pudding mix M&M’s cookie recipe for Valentine’s Day, but you can make them for another holiday by using different colored M&M’s!
Go for it! I didn’t use many chocolate chips, only 3/4 cup for the whole batch, but it’s just enough to boost up the chocolate profile. Since the M&M’s are milk chocolate, a little semi-sweet is nice, but use whatever kind you like.
Storage Instructions
Baked cookies: Will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Raw cookie dough: Can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
Video Tutorial
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Soft M&M’s Pudding Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened (1 1/2 sticks)
- ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup instant vanilla pudding mix*
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch salt, optional and to taste
- ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 ¼ cups milk chocolate M&M’s, divided, (3/4 cup for mixing into the dough + 1/2 cup for placing on top of the 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 (or cornstarch), baking soda, optional salt, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the chocolate chips, 3/4 cup M&M’s, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds.
- Using a large cookie scoop, 1/4-cup measure, or your hands, form 15 equal-sized mounds of dough, roll into balls, and flatten slightly.
- Add about 1 tablespoon M&M’s to the top of each dough mound.
- Place mounds on a large plate or tray, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 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 8 cookies per sheet).
- Bake for 11 minutes, or until edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked, pale, and glossy in the center. 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.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Cookies Made with Pudding Mix:
Soft Peanut Butter Pudding Cookies — These chocolate-dipped peanut butter cookies are SOFT AND CHEWY on the inside thanks to the addition of pudding mix in the cookie dough! Dipping them in dark chocolate makes for the PERFECT flavor combo!!
The Best Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies — One of my absolute favorite recipes for chocolate chip cookies thanks to a special ingredient! Just one bite and I think you’ll agree!!
Quadruple Chocolate Pudding Cookies — These pudding cookies are packed with cocoa powder, chocolate chips and chunks, and chocolate pudding mix to deliver seriously chocolatey flavor!
Double Malted Milk Cookies — Soft and chewy malted milk cookies loaded with Whoppers and chocolate chips! One of my favorite malted milk powder recipes!
Chocolate Chip Andes Mint Cookies — These quadruple chocolate Andes mint cookies are big, bakery-style cookies that are rich, not overly sweet, and loaded with chocolate and mint chips.
Olive Oil Chocolate Chip Cookies – You won’t miss the butter in these olive oil chocolate chip cookies!! They’re soft and chewy, loaded with chocolate, and have a unique flavor from the olive oil but it’s not overpowering!
Quadruple Chocolate Rolo Cookies — Soft and chewy cookies made with four kinds of chocolate and stuffed with Rolo candies! Ooey, gooey, and addictive!
Thank you so much for sharing your this recipe. It was a hit this week-end at my son’s birthday party. I even blogged about it!
https://justfourmoreminutes.blogspot.com/2014/05/m-chocolate-chip-cookies.html
x Kristi
Thanks for linking back to my post on yours – so appreciated :) And happy bday to your son! Thanks for trying the recipe & your cookies look great!
1/4 cup of pudding mix…is that more or less than a box? I never have pudding mix in the house so I’d like to know before I go buy some!
It’s about half of a box, not quite. My fave CCCs use a full box. Any leftover from the M&Ms cookies you can just use in the other recipe if you want :) https://www.averiecooks.com/the-best-soft-and-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies/
Thank you! The cookies are WONDERFUL! I won’t have to worry about what I’ll do with the rest of the pudding mix. I’ll be making more soon!
Well that’s great news! :) Glad you’re happy!
All I have on hand is sugar free instant pudding mix. Will it be awful?
No not awful! You have nothing to lose by trying, right :) LMK how it goes!
They were still delicious! And a big hit. I brought some into work to share and they were gobbled up :)
Glad to hear they were gobbled up!! :)
Hi! I have made several batches of your different kinds of cookies and I have loved them all. The only problem I have is that the cookies always spread thin instead of staying thick. I follow the recipe exactly and chill the dough like you said but they still always spread flat. Is there anything else I can do to stop this from happening?
Please read all the tips in this post https://www.averiecooks.com/2014/02/the-best-soft-and-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies.html i.e. Silpat, scoop, etc.
Do you form them then chill or chill the dough then scoop, form and top with M’s? I hate when my cookies go flat.
I indicated this in the recipe, but you form the balls, THEN chill them. Way too difficult to try to chisel rock hard dough out of a mixing bowl that’s been chilled so balls first, then chill.
I am sorry. You are correct it was in the recipe. I read all the cookie science, but not the actual recipe,. Please forgive me, I got excited.
I followed this recipe exactly like it said & was disappointed with my cookies. They did not turn out plump like these pictures; mine spread out & were kinda thin. I refrigerated the cookie dough but they still spread out during baking. I was hoping they’d look like the pics of these ones.
What went wrong?
Please see this link https://www.averiecooks.com/faq about halfway down the page, I answer this question, exactly.
This dessert is so fun. I love all the different pics. I featured it in my Friday Five – Valentine’s Day addition 3 from Feed Your Soul Too – https://www.feedyoursoul2.com/2014/02/friday-five-valentines-addition-3.html
Thanks for the linkup!
Thanks for sharing! I made them for Valentines Day and they were delicious.
https://20somethingfashion.blogspot.com/2014/02/valentines-day.html
Thanks for trying them & your cookies look wonderful!
I tried making these for Valentines Day. And I must say they tasted fabulous! But my cookies did not turn out good. I followed all of the instructions and they just turned out flat. Not plump like the ones in the picture. I was very disappointed!
If you used a cookie scoop, chilled your dough before baking, and baked on a Silpat, and they still turned out flat that’s a shame! Did you do all those things? I’m glad they tasted great though! Sometimes flat cookies happen if you aren’t really careful. This dough isn’t super prone to flattening, but all dough can if you’re not careful. Thanks for trying the recipe.
Oh my gosh. I made the dough last night and kept in the fridge. Baked 5 of them today (to pace ourselves) and these are unbelievable. My hubby asked if I made them from scratch. Then goes on to say they are the best cookies I have ever made. Sooo yummy! Can’t wait to try your other variations! Thanks!
That’s awesome that they’re the best cookies you’ve ever made! And baking off 5 at once is so smart :)
I love this recipe, I forward the website to my sister. She loves baking from scratch and I’m sure she will have a blast with your recipes.
The only thing was that they dough was super sticky when I was trying to make it into mounds. What do you recommend to avoid this or what did I do wrong?
It’s dough, it IS going to be sticky :) and this dough is about average I think. To help, you can flour your hands. That should help or just use a scoop! Glad you like the cookies!
Thank you SO much for sharing this recipe! My cookies have always been super flat, but by following your clear instructions, these turned out amazing! My husband and teen sons thank you too :)
Awesome to hear that you had great success & that your whole family is happy :)
Hi, I wanted to be smart and put the yesterday cookies into the microwave just to make the chocolate melt before serving them and they started to burn! Do you know why? Is it because of the alcohol in the vanilla extract or what? The chocolate inside the cookies didn’t look like the one on your photos even 15 minutes after baking. Do you make photos when they are still hot?
If you microwave cookies for more than maybe 5-10 seconds, yes they can and sometimes will burn.
I bake the cookies, wait about 10 minutes until they’re cool enough to handle, then take photos. I think your oven should be calibrated. Make sure to test it with an an oven thermometer to make sure it’s running at the correct temp.
From all the good comments I have decided to try these cookies. However I can’t find valentine m&ms anywhere! Do you think smarties could work?
Try Target and also drug stores like RiteAid or CVS are great but otherwise just use regular M&Ms of any color. I would not use Smarties.
Made these today and they are definitely to die for! I cheated a bit and put the cookie balls in the freezer for about 25 minutes instead of in the fridge. It didn’t seem to hurt the outcome. (Also must have made the cookies much smaller, I ended up with 39!) Will definitely be back to try more things from your site. Thanks for all the great photos & detailed instructions. Happy Valentine’s Day :)
Glad you loved them! And yes if you make them the size of ‘traditional’ cookies, about 3 dozen could be a possibility. I’m going for more bakery size these days…less to roll/scoop..ha! :)
Hello, you said you made about 39 cookies. Since you made them a bit smaller (as did I), How long did you cook them for?
Thanks!
Very GOOD! Made these tonight. They came out perfect after 10 minutes. Thanks for a delicious, soft cookie recipe that doesn’t turn out flat.
Thanks for trying them & glad they came out perfect and not flat!