Thin and Chewy M&M Cookies

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Thin and Chewy M&M Cookies are soft, buttery, and M&M-covered! I’m sure you have had an M&M cookie before- maybe from the store, possibly from a bakery- but this cookie will easily rival any M&M cookie... or any cookie you have ever had. These are easy to make, call for ingredients you are sure to have in your kitchen, and are so delicious!

overhead shot of stacked thin M&M cookies

Ingredients

Unsalted Butter: Unsalted butter is the fat and flavor in these cookies! You'll need room temperature butter, so leave your butter out for an hour before baking. It should be soft and cool to the touch!
Sugars: You'll need both granulated and light brown sugar for this recipe! The combination creates the best texture and flavor!
Egg: You'll need one, room temperature, egg for this recipe! This adds to the chewiness of these cookies!
Vanilla Extract: Vanilla extract rounds out flavors in every recipe it's featured in!
All Purpose Flour: Measure your all purpose flour correctly by spooning it into your measuring cups and leveling off the tops!
Salt: Salt enhances the sweetness in these cookies!
Baking Soda: Baking soda helps these cookies to puff just slightly! Though these cookies are on the thinner side, this ingredient is imperative for texture!
Cornstarch: Corn starch is the secret ingredient for soft, stable cookies!
Mini M&Ms: These are the stars of the show! I use the sharing size package! It's the perfect amount for coating these cookies! Here is a link if you're looking!

Chewy M&M cookie with a bite taken out of it on top of another cookie with a line of cookies to the side

FAQ

What gives these cookies a chewy texture?

The ratio of butter to flour, the cornstarch, and the egg all contribute to the texture! However, this heavenly chewy texture mostly comes from butter. The butter seeps into every bite, creating an extra soft cookie!

Why are my cookies flat or spreading?

If your cookies are spreading, this usually means that your dough was too warm or you do not have enough flour. This recipe does not require any chill time, but if you find that your first tray of cookies spread while baking, try freezing your remaining dough balls for 15 minutes. However, more than likely, you did not measure your flour (or other ingredients) correctly Make sure you are measuring precisely! With flour, specifically, you'll want to spoon the flour into your measuring cups before leveling off the tops with a knife!

Can I use regular M&Ms for baking?

I do not recommend using regular M&Ms in this recipe. These cookies are very thin, so the regular-size m&ms will not coat the cookies the same way.

a stick of butter and an egg next to 3 bowls- one with dry ingredients, one with sugars, and one with mini M&Ms

Spaced M&M cookie dough balls on a cookie sheet with parchment paper

Size and Bake Time

I make these Thin and Chewy M&M Cookies into 1-tablespoon-sized balls. I bake them for 9-10 minutes. Every oven is different!

Anywhere between 1 and 1.5 tablespoons is really a nice size for these cookies. If you want them smaller, just bake for less time. If you want them to be JUMBO, I would refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes before baking and form 2.5 tablespoon balls. Check on them at 15-16 minutes.

The cookie will look pretty small at the 6 minute mark, but do not worry. In just the last few minutes of baking, these guys will really grow!

These cookies will look slightly puffy when done. They will have a shimmer, meaning that they will look a little bit wet. If you want them to truly be soft with a barely crisp exterior, the tops will look light, not golden brown in the slightest. The edges should look like they have just begun turning in color.

Line of upright M&M cookies leaning against a jug of milk with mini M&Ms around it

M&Ms

You may notice that there are no M&Ms inside of the batter, only around the outside of the cookie. You will roll the dough balls in mini M&Ms. I HIGHLY recommend using mini M&Ms rather than regular size because the chocolate to cookie ratio will suffer.

Plus, you’ll add a few extra mini M&Ms after the cookies come out of the oven, and the heat from the cookies will soften the mini M&MS but won’t really do the same for regular-sized M&Ms. That means you’ll have crunchier cookies which will make these cookies seem less soft.

overhead, angled shot of a 3 stacks of m&m cookies next to one another

Storing and Freezing Chewy Cookies

These cookies will stay fresh at room temperature for up to 3 days. Store in an air-tight container.

You can freeze the dough, though I would freeze the dough in rolled balls. Freeze for up to 3 months. To bake, keep at room temperature until slightly sticky on the outside, about 30 minutes- 1 hour. At this point, you can roll the balls in mini M&Ms.

You can freeze baked cookies for about 2 months. I like to individually wrap them and bring them to room temperature before eating and serving.

Tall stack of thin M&M cookies with one cookie tilted against the stack and mini M&Ms around them

Did You Try This Recipe?

If you give this recipe a try, I would LOVE to know! Please leave a review below, post a picture and tag me on Instagram, or message me on Instagram (@sweetsbyeliseblog)! I can't wait to see your creations!

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★★★★★ 5 from 3 reviews

Author: Elise
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 16 cookies 1x
Category: Cookies, M&M, Candy Cookies, Chocolate Cookies
Cuisine: American

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Description

Thin and Chewy M&M Cookies are soft, buttery, and M&M-covered! These are easy to make, require 30 minutes of your time, call for ingredients you are sure to have in your kitchen, and are so delicious! These will be your new favorite quick bake!

Ingredients

Scale

½ cup (110g) unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup (120g) light brown sugar, packed
⅓ cup (75g) granulated sugar
1 large egg (50g), room temperature
1 tsp (4g) vanilla extract
1 ½ cups (225g) all purpose flour
½ tsp (4g) salt
½ tsp (3g) baking soda
1 Tablespoon (10g) cornstarch
1 sharing size (285g) mini M&Ms package

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, cream butter, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar until smooth and creamy. Beat on medium speed. This should take a couple minutes.
Add room temperature egg and vanilla extract to the batter, mixing on medium speed and scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure all of the ingredients are fully incorporated.
Add flour, salt, baking soda, and cornstarch to the bowl. Begin mixing on low speed. Do not overmix. Mix until all of the dry ingredients are just incorporated. Dough will be light in color and very soft and sticky.
Form dough into balls between 1 and 1 ½ tablespoons. Coat each dough ball in mini M&Ms. I chose to only coat the top and sides, leaving the bottom plain. Place dough balls at least 2 inches apart on the baking sheet.
Bake at 350 for 9-11 minutes. Cookies will be light on top, puffy, and just starting to turn golden in color around the edges.
After removing the cookies from the oven, stick extra mini M&M into the tops of the cookies.
Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to continue cooling.

Keywords: M&M Cookies, Chewy Cookies, Thin Cookies, Soft Cookies, Chocolate

Thin and Chewy M&M Cookies

Ingredients

FAQ

Size and Bake Time

M&Ms

Storing and Freezing Chewy Cookies

Did You Try This Recipe?

Other Cookie Recipes