M&M Sugar Cookies
M&M Sugar Cookies are soft and chewy, slightly crisp on the outside, and filled with colorful milk chocolate candies. Regular drop-style sugar cookies are one of the best types of cookies but the addition of M&M’s makes them even better. M&M sugar cookies have the perfect balance of sweet and chocolatey and don’t take too much time at all to make. After a quick 30-minute chilling in the fridge, these cookies are off the oven and are ready to be enjoyed with a glass of milk or Iced Tea Lemonade(Arnold Palmer Drink).
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Why This is Recipe So Good
- We’re using all-natural M&Ms instead of the name-brand kind to make these cookies *kinda* good-for-you. Naturally dyes with beets these off-brand M&Ms don’t have any artificial dyes or colorings.
- It’s a small-batch cookie recipe. I love cookies but I don’t love standing by the oven waiting for batch after batch of cookies to be done baking. This recipe makes 13 nice-sized cookies, which for me was about 1 ½ sheet pan’s worth. You can easily double this recipe if you need more.
- Sugar cookies with M&Ms are colorful and just so good. They are soft and chewy with the perfect amount of chocolate. You might think of an M&M cookie as a rich chocolate chip cookie base studded with M&Ms instead of chocolate chips, but this light and chewy vanilla sugar cookie base is just perfect.
Recipe Ingredients
- Butter – Unsalted softened butter. Allow it to set at room temperature for at least 30 minutes – 1 hour or until it can be easily pressed.
- M&Ms – The candy used is not the name brand M&M’s but an all-natural brand. The candy shells are naturally dyed without any artificial colorings, but they are prone to cracking as they bake. You’ll need pretty much the whole bag when making a batch of these sugar cookies.
- Dry ingredients – All-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt make up the sugar cookie base. It gives structure to the cookie and just the right amount of lift.
- Vanilla extract – Add a robust flavor to the sugar cookie base, it’s very important to use a high-quality vanilla extract here because it’s what gives sugar cookies their flavor.
How to Make M&M Sugar Cookies
All ingredients, measurements, and instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Combine the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl then set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl cream together butter and sugar until fluffy and light in color. Mix in egg and vanilla extract until well combined, then stir in the dry ingredients until you don’t see any speckles of flour. Lastly, fold in the M&M candies. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap then chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven then scoop and roll out 2 tablespoon balls of dough. Place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Press a few extra candies on the top of each ball of cookie dough.
- Bake in the preheated oven until lightly golden brown and the centers are set. Allow to cool on the sheet pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack until completely cool. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions —
Yes, this allows the flour to hydrate from the butter and egg and most importantly chilling the dough firms up the butter. If the butter is too soft when you go to bake the cookies they will overspread in the oven. Chilling prevents this and helps the cookies to bake more evenly.
You can make the cookie dough up to 3 days in advance, just cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap or store it in an air-tight container until you’re ready to bake it. When you are, allow the cookie dough to sit on the counter for a few minutes so that it will be easier to scoop. I find that cookie dough tends to dry out as it sits in the fridge producing a thicker cookie that doesn’t spread as much in the oven.
Looking For More Recipes?
- Soft and Chewy Drop-Style Sugar Cookies
- Rainbow Sprinkle Sugar Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cookies with Walnuts
- Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies
- Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies
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M&M Sugar Cookies
Equipment
- 1 Medium cookie scoop 2 tablespoons
- 1 Sheet pan lined with parchment paper
- 1 Wire rack
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened or 1 stick
- ¾ cup granulated white sugar
- 1 egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ⅔ cup M&Ms I used all-natural M&Ms
Instructions
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, then set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl cream together softened butter and granulated sugar with a spoon until fully combined and lighter in color, this usually takes 3 – 5 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla extract then stir until well incorporated.
- Stir in the dry ingredients into the egg/sugar mixture until you no longer see any speckles of flour. Lastly, fold in the M&M candies.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap then transfer to the fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Next, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- Use a cookie scoop to scoop out 2 tablespoon portions of cookie dough, roll into a ball then place on the cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Press a few extra M&M’s into each ball of dough.
- Bake in the center of the preheated oven for 12 – 14 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown and the centers are set. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
How To Store/ Make Ahead
Store in the fridge for up to 1 week or in the freezer tightly wrapped and stored in a freezer-safe bag for several weeks. When you’re ready to enjoy, allow the cookies to thaw in the fridge or on the counter.Tips and Tricks
- Chilling the dough – This is an important step so that the cookies hold their shape while baking and it gives you that perfect soft and chewy interior and slightly crisp exterior. You won’t need to wait for too long, just 30 minutes then you’re good to go!
- M&M’s – I used all-natural off-brand M&M’s. They have more natural ingredients than name-brand ones, but their shells are prone to cracking as the cookies bake. You can always use the name-brand candies if you prefer.
- Baking – The M&M’s can cause the cookies to take longer to bake. Mine took anywhere from 12 – 16 minutes to bake. Start by setting your oven timer to 10 or 12 minutes then in the last few minutes stay nearby and add a few extra minutes to the timer as needed. The cookies should be very light brown around the edges and the center set. They will continue to bake on the sheet pan even after you take them out of the oven, so make sure you don’t bake them for too long.
Nutrition
All nutrition information is automatically generated and should be only used as a rough estimate. This recipe card may contain affiliate links.
