My Best M&M Cookies (No Stand Mixer Required & Easily Customizable!)

About My Best M&M Cookies

This is my best recipe for M&M cookies! M&M chocolate candies are a fun, whimsical way to add different textures and flavors to classic chocolate chip cookies. In my M&M cookie recipe, I used varieties like milk chocolate M&Ms, crispy M&Ms, peanut butter M&Ms, and mini M&Ms and combined them with chopped dark chocolate.

In the oven, the chopped chocolate melts into a puddle throughout the cookie, while the M&Ms continue to hold their shape. But the best part? When the cookies are warm and fresh from the oven, the M&Ms burst with molten chocolate and crispy textures with every bite!

It’s a fun and absolutely delicious twist to regular chocolate chip cookies.

For more unique chocolate chip cookies recipes on Hummingbird High, check out my Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe collection! Popular recipes include this elevated Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe and My Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake Recipe.

Ingredients and Substitutions

Now that I’ve convinced you to make these M&M cookies, here’s your shopping list for the recipe:

Shopping List for My Best M&M Cookies

Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card for the exact ingredient amounts and quantities:

• all-purpose flour
• baking powder
• baking soda
• kosher salt
• unsalted butter
• light OR dark brown sugar
• granulated sugar
• large eggs
• pure vanilla extract
• dark chocolate (between 60% to 70% cacao), from whole fèves or a high-quality chocolate bar
• M&M’s

What kind of M&Ms did you use for this M&M cookie recipe?

For my M&M cookies, I used four different types of M&Ms: milk chocolate M&Ms, crispy M&Ms (the M&Ms have toasted rice inside, giving it a crispy interior), peanut butter M&Ms, and mini M&Ms. The different varieties bring different textures and flavors to the M&M cookies.

But feel free to get creative and combine the different flavors that appeal to YOU. Below are other combinations that I considered before settling on the ones I chose above:

• For Peanut Butter Pretzel-themed M&M Cookies: M&Ms Milk Chocolate + M&Ms Peanut Butter + M&Ms Pretzel
  
  
• An M&M Cookie Recipe For Peanut lovers: M&Ms Milk Chocolate + M&Ms Peanut + M&Ms Peanut Butter
  
  
• For Even More Super Crispy, Crunchy M&M Cookies: M&Ms Milk Chocolate + M&Ms Crispy + M&Ms Pretzel
  
  
• For Fudge Chocolate Brownie-Themed M&M Cookies: M&Ms Milk Chocolate + M&Ms Dark Chocolate + M&Ms Fudge Brownie

How To Make The Recipe

Here are the basic steps to make my best M&M cookie recipe from scratch:

1. First, prep your ingredients. (Prep Time: 5 to 10 minutes)
   Prep for this M&M cookie recipe is easy! All you need to do is measure out the ingredients beforehand. That’s it! If you’re using whole fèves like I recommended, there’s no need to chop them up beforehand. As a result, your prep time will only be about 5 minutes. However, if you’re chopping up chocolate for the recipe, your prep time will be 10 minutes.
   
   
2. Then, make the cookie dough. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
   The M&M cookie dough comes together really quickly. First, mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Then, mix the melted butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Mix in the dry ingredients to this mixture, then the chocolate and M&Ms. That’s it!
   
   
3. Next, assemble the cookies. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
   The fastest and easiest way to make picture-perfect cookies is to invest in a cookie dough scoop. These handy tools scoop the dough into dough balls that bake into perfect cookie circles every time. In general, I use a 3-Tablespoon or 4-Tablespoon sized cookie dough scoops to make my cookie recipes. Doing so makes perfect 3- to 3.5-inch wide cookies.
   
   After scooping the cookies, I press around 6 to 8 M&Ms on the top of each cookie dough ball. Doing so creates picture-perfect M&M cookies with the M&Ms front and center. 6 to 8 M&Ms will seem like too much, especially when you see the candies on the dough balls. But don’t worry! The dough balls spread a LOT when baked in the oven. The M&Ms will be distributed evenly throughout the surface of each cookie, I promise.
   
   I also like to make sure that there’s a fève or a large chocolate piece on top of each cookie, too. That’s how you get those luscious pools of melted chocolate across the surface of each cookie!
   
   
4. Finally, bake the cookies. (Bake Time: 10 minutes)
   The M&M cookies need 10 minutes in the oven. When done, the edges should be set. However, the centers will still look a little soft. That’s normal! In fact, that’s the secret to a perfect M&M cookie with a chewy, gooey center. And don’t forget to garnish the M&M cookies with flaky salt and mini M&Ms right when they come out of the oven!

Recipe Troubleshooting and FAQ

Help! I made these M&M cookies but they don’t look like your cookies. My chocolate stayed mostly in tact. They didn’t melt and pool throughout the cookie like yours did. What did I do wrong?

First things first: did you use chocolate chips? If you did, they’re the likely culprit.

I mentioned earlier that chocolate chips are made with stabilizers like more cocoa solids and paraffin wax to ensure that they keep their shape when baked. They won’t melt and pool into puddles like chopped chocolate bars. That’s why I always recommend using chopped chocolate if you’re looking for a picture-perfect, Instagram-ready cookie!

However, if you did use chopped chocolate, it’s likely that you chopped your chocolate up too finely. You want to keep the pieces fairly big—think: ½ inch to 1 inch pieces. Bigger pieces will get more melty and molten!

Finally, when assembling the cookies, you want to make sure that there’s an even ratio of chopped chocolate and M&Ms per cookie. The chopped chocolate is what gives the cookies their signature “pools of melted chocolate” look, and M&Ms won’t melt in the oven like chopped chocolate. I usually stick 1 to 2 big chunks on top of each cookie (in addition to extra M&Ms) to make sure each cookie will have a pool of melted chocolate on top!

Can you freeze M&M cookies?

You can freeze M&M cookies in the following ways:

1. Freeze the UNBAKED M&M cookie dough.
   Follow the recipe instructions to make the cookie dough and scoop them out into cookie dough balls. Place the cookie dough balls in a small sheet pan. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 1 hour, or until the cookie dough balls are frozen solid. Transfer the cookie dough balls to a zip-top bag and freeze for up to 1 year.
   
   To bake the frozen cookie dough balls, follow the recipe instructions to preheat the oven. As the oven is preheating, arrange the cookie dough balls on a sheet pan to allow them to thaw slightly for 10 to 15 minutes at room temperature. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the edges have set but the centers are still gooey.
   
2. Freeze the BAKED M&M cookies.
   Individually wrap any leftover M&M cookies in two layers of plastic wrap, then a layer of aluminum foil. The aluminum foil will prevent the cookies from absorbing any other flavors or odors in the freezer. When ready to serve, transfer to the refrigerator to chill overnight. Rewarm in the microwave or in the oven at 350°F for 5 minutes before serving.