The best M&M Cookies that are bakery quality, without a lot of effort! Get the secrets that make this M and M cookie recipe better than the rest!
Ani has been talking for weeks about her “special day.” It’s the day that she was assigned to celebrate her birthday at Parent’s Day Out. She was so excited to bring treats to share with her friends.
Like a lot of kids, she requested M&M cookies! Because I am a cookie-obsessed adult, who am I to argue with her choice? What’s better than a classic?
I’ve been making M&M cookies for years, but I knew they could be even BETTER. Therefore, I decided to mix it up a little bit and update my M&M cookie recipe to truly take them up a notch.
One of my many obsessions is brown butter – it enhances the flavor of any recipe that calls for butter and in cookies with brown sugar, it creates a toffee-like taste while maintaining a soft, chewy texture.
As a result of this additional step, these cookies truly stack up to bakery M and M cookies. We’ve been making them frequently ever since, because our friends and family always request them! They are a rich, chocolatey cookie that is light and fluffy in texture.
You’re going to want to follow along and make these for your friends and family, I promise. Just be sure to have a “share plan” in place so you don’t eat every last one.
I like to give a lot of detail in my recipe posts to guide readers through any questions. If you’re just here for the printable recipe, feel free to click “jump to recipe” right under the title of this post and you’ll head straight there!
I love that you can change this recipe for the seasons, too! What fun to add holiday M&Ms for Christmas, Valentine’s, Easter, etc. Is there any holiday that can’t benefit from m and m cookies?
I have a lifelong love affair with cookies, and I am not ashamed to admit it! We make a lot of cookies around here, and although cookies are a part of my job description, I love them more than anyone should!
With that said, I can certainly claim to be a bit of a cookie expert. A few reader favorites? Don’t miss my salted caramel sugar cookies, these incredible oatmeal lace cookies, and carmelita cookies!
How to Make M&M Cookies
- Prep – Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Brown butter. Above all, don’t skip this step, it gives you that ultimate caramelized flavor! If you don’t know how to do this, just follow the link to watch a quick video – it’s so easy!
- Combine sugars and vanilla in a large bowl, and gradually add in your browned butter (let it come to room temperature, don’t pour it in while it’s extremely hot).
- Next, add eggs. Careful not to over-mix!
- Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients, mix until combined.
- Add M&Ms and chocolate chips.
- Freeze Dough (optional) – Place parchment paper on your baking sheets. (Find some of my favorite baking sheets here) Form large dough balls and place in freezer for approximately four hours.
- Bake – Add a crack of sea salt a bake 12 minutes.
Questions and Facts
- Robert asks on Pinterest: “Can I add peanut butter to these cookies?” Robert, while I agree that this sounds delicious, don’t add it to this particular recipe! It will throw your oil ratio off and therefore it really might not work well. Above all, I promise you’ll love is M&M cookie recipe just as it is!
- Katie asks: “Do you have to put these in the freezer?” Katie, it’s worth the extra step to place them in the freezer or fridge! This is how to make M&M cookies soft and will certainly keep them from spreading too much, especially when you’re making larger cookies.
What Readers Say
- Sue says: “Omg!!! The browned butter totally changes it! We LOVED them! I used the small Pampered Chef scoop and got 50 med sized cookies. They were perfect, thanks for another great recipe!”
- DG says: “Thank you for this amazing recipe. Made these for my family yesterday and they did not last the night. Making batch two tonight ? the flavor of the dough is really wonderful, the browned butter definitely brings out the rich caramel flavor in the brown sugar without making it super sweet. Will definitely be adding this to my cookie rotation!”
- David B says: “Just made these today to use up leftover Halloween candy. I got 21 balls and was firmly convinced that there was NO way they’d flatten out like a cookie from a frozen state in only 12 minutes. And then a miracle occurred. These are really good!”
M and M Cookie Tips
- Don’t over bake – a slightly under-baked cookie is the most delicious cookie of all.
- Don’t over mix the egg.
- Refrigerate or freeze dough {freeze for larger cookies like these}.
- Add candy or chocolate chips to the top of your dough balls just before freezing.
- Use a lot of add-ins {M&Ms, chocolate chips, nuts}. It gives the cookie a little added height.
More Irresistible Cookie Recipes
- Bakery Sugar Cookies
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies
- Salted Caramel Sugar Cookies
- Frosted Key Lime Cookies
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To see how easy this M&M Cookie recipe is, watch the video this post!
Bakery M&M Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter
- ¾ cup white granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup M&M's
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- sea salt optional
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Swirl it until brown in color and it reaches a nutty aroma. Remove from heat.
- Meanwhile, combine sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla in a mixing bowl. Mix browned butter in.
- Gently blend in eggs, careful not to over mix.
- Sprinkle baking soda, baking powder, salt and flour over mixture and fold in until combined.
- Fold in M&M's and chocolate chips. (Allow dough to cool slightly to prevent marbling.)
- Make large balls and place on parchment paper. Optional: Press M&M's on top. Freeze for 4+ hours.
- Preheat oven to 350°F, crack with sea salt and bake 12 minutes.
Julie’s Tips
- Don’t over bake – a slightly under-baked cookie is the most delicious cookie of all.
- Don’t over mix the egg.
- Refrigerate or freeze dough (freeze for larger cookies).
- Add candy or chocolate chips to the top of your dough balls just before freezing.
- Use a lot of add ins (M&M’s, chocolate chips, nuts). It gives the cookie a little added height.
Video
Estimated nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is not guaranteed.
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This recipe was originally posted January 2015, updated with video 2019, updated with tips and photos 2020.
Omg!!! The browned butter totally changes it! We LOVED them! I used the small Pampered Chef scoop and got 50 med sized cookies. They were perfect, thanks for another great recipe!
Thanks for the feedback, Sue! I’m totally craving them right now. Have a great weekend!
Just made these today to use up leftover Halloween candy. I got 21 balls and was firmly convinced that there was NO way they’d flatten out like a cookie from a frozen state in only 12 minutes. And then a miracle occurred. These are really good!
Glad you enjoyed them as much as we do!
Glad you enjoyed them as much as we do, David!
Julie, when using browned butter, does it need to be chilled so it can be creamed when combining? I’m guessing it gets combined with the sugar and eggs?? Thanks
It does, but I only let it cool slightly (to not scramble your eggs) and gradually incorporate it since I’m always impatient and later refrigerate the dough.
What does “crack with sea salt” mean??
Hi Cynthia! I always use sea salt that comes in a grinder – the thick flakes are full of flavor. It’s my secret to really great cookies! Enjoy!
These look utterly divine! I’ll have to try the browned butter trick!