These peanut butter M&M cookies are gentle, thick, and full of peanut butter taste in each chew, plus a beneficiant handful of mini M&Ms for colour and crunch. For those who’ve been baking from my web site for some time, this recipe could look acquainted. It’s based mostly on my basic gentle peanut butter cookies dough, a recipe I first revealed in 2012 and nonetheless use as the inspiration for numerous variations in the present day.
I first shared this peanut butter M&M cookie variation again in 2012, and whereas the recipe itself hasn’t modified, I’ve up to date this submit with new photographs, clearer directions, and further success ideas to make sure the identical nice outcomes I count on in my very own kitchen in the present day.
This dough has stood the check of time for a cause. The cookies bake up pillowy-soft within the middle, calmly crisp across the edges, and by no means dry or crumbly. Including mini M&Ms turns them right into a enjoyable, nostalgic twist that’s particularly standard with youngsters—however simply as liked by adults who benefit from the colourful candy-coated candies!
Why You’ll Love These Peanut Butter M&M Cookies
- Mushy & thick facilities with calmly crisp edges
- Loaded with peanut butter taste
- Made with easy pantry components
- Mini M&Ms distribute completely in each chew
- Primarily based on my most trusted peanut butter cookie dough
- Simple to adapt with different mix-ins
This Dough Is a Basic for a Cause
This peanut butter cookie dough is one I return to many times. It’s the identical base I take advantage of for peanut butter blossoms, peanut butter jam thumbprints, peanut butter cookie cups, and extra. Through the years, hundreds of readers have baked the dough (in some model!) efficiently, and it continues to be some of the dependable cookie recipes on my web site.
A couple of key points make it work so effectively:
- Extra Peanut Butter, Much less Flour: This recipe makes use of extra peanut butter and fewer flour than most conventional peanut butter cookies. Do you know that peanut butter acts as a binder in cookie doughs? Because of this you don’t want a lot flour—and including extra would truly dry the cookies out. Keep on with the measurements beneath for the softest outcomes.
- Brown Sugar + Granulated Sugar: Utilizing extra brown sugar than white retains the cookies gentle and moist, whereas just a little granulated sugar helps them unfold simply sufficient. It’s the identical steadiness I depend on in lots of my gentle cookie recipes.
- Creamy Peanut Butter Is Finest: Creamy peanut butter produces a smoother, softer cookie. Crunchy peanut butter tends to make cookies overly crumbly. You should use both processed or pure peanut butter—each work—however word that pure peanut butter will produce crumblier cookies that unfold a bit extra. For greatest outcomes, I like to recommend processed creamy peanut butter like Jif or Skippy.
For those who love oats in your cookies, strive these large large monster cookies subsequent!
Why Mini M&Ms Work So Nicely Right here
Like my basic M&M cookies, mini M&Ms are very best in in the present day’s dough as a result of they distribute evenly all through the cookie, don’t overpower the peanut butter taste, and add simply sufficient crunch with out weighing the dough down.
For those who solely have common M&Ms, you’ll be able to roughly chop them, however mini M&Ms give the very best texture.
Don’t Skip the Chill Time
After you combine up the cookie dough, you’ll discover it’s extraordinarily gentle and creamy, virtually like peanut butter frosting. That’s utterly regular and anticipated; bear in mind, there isn’t a ton of flour on this dough.
Due to the dough’s consistency, refrigerating the dough for a minimum of 1–2 hours makes it simpler to scoop and helps the cookies maintain their form within the oven. If you wish to get forward, you’ll be able to refrigerate the dough in a single day.
As soon as chilled, the dough is straightforward to deal with and form. Every cookie dough ball can be round 1.5 Tablespoons, or 30-35 grams. A meals scale is at all times helpful within the kitchen, and particularly when portioning cookie dough.
Success Tip For Bakery-Model Beauties
For extra-pretty, bakery-style cookies, I like to ensure loads of the M&Ms are close to the tops of the dough balls so that you see a lot of colourful candies as soon as the cookies are baked.
Since mini M&Ms are available so many colour variations, you’ll be able to simply customise these cookies for various holidays. Use Valentine’s Day–coloured mini M&Ms in your Valentine’s Day desserts, pink and inexperienced M&Ms for Christmas cookie recipes, and many others.
For those who love gentle peanut butter cookies, this candy-studded model deserves a spot in your common baking rotation!!
Extra Peanut Butter Cookies
Description
These peanut butter M&M cookies are gentle, thick, and full of peanut butter taste in each chew, plus a beneficiant handful of mini M&Ms for colour and crunch. Don’t skip chilling the cookie dough. For those who’ve been baking from my web site for some time, this recipe could look acquainted. It’s based mostly on my basic gentle peanut butter cookies dough, a recipe I first revealed in 2012 and nonetheless use as the inspiration for numerous variations in the present day.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt collectively. Put aside.
- In a big bowl utilizing a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute on excessive velocity till creamy. Swap to medium-high velocity and beat within the brown sugar and granulated sugar till utterly creamed and easy, about 3 minutes. (Right here’s a useful tutorial in case you want steerage on learn how to cream butter and sugar.) Add the egg and beat till mixed, about 1 minute. Scrape down the edges and backside of the bowl as wanted. Add the peanut butter and vanilla extract and beat till mixed.
- Add the dry components to the moist components and beat on low velocity till mixed, after which beat within the M&Ms. The dough can be very creamy and gentle.
- Cowl and chill the cookie dough within the fridge for a minimum of 1–2 hours, and as much as 3 days.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line massive baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Roll the dough: Roll chilled cookie dough into balls, about 1.5 Tablespoons (round 30-35g) of dough every. For additional M&Ms on prime, gently place among the candies close to the floor of the dough balls, or press a number of extra M&Ms into the tops earlier than baking. Organize the dough balls on the baking sheets about 2 inches aside.
- Bake for 12–13 minutes or till the sides seem set and are very calmly browned. The facilities will nonetheless look very gentle.
- Enable cookies to chill on the baking sheet for five minutes. After 5 minutes, switch to a wire rack to chill utterly.
- Cookies keep recent coated at room temperature for as much as 1 week.
Notes
- Make-ahead directions: You can also make the cookie dough and chill it within the fridge for as much as 3 days. Baked cookies freeze effectively for as much as 3 months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze effectively for as much as 3 months. Bake for an additional minute; no must thaw. See The best way to Freeze Cookie Dough for extra success ideas.
- Particular Instruments (affiliate hyperlinks): Meals Scale | Electrical Mixer (Stand Mixer or Handheld) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Cooling Rack
- Peanut Butter: Creamy peanut butter is good for this recipe as a result of crunchy peanut butter creates a very crumbly cookie. You should use processed peanut butter akin to Jif or Skippy, or natural-style peanut butter. If utilizing pure peanut butter, make certain it’s at room temperature, stirred effectively, and count on a crumblier cookie. 3/4 cup of peanut butter weighs wherever between 185–195g.
- Can I Use Almond Butter? Sure, you should utilize almond butter on this cookie recipe; nonetheless, count on a crumblier cookie. Chances are you’ll take pleasure in these flourless almond butter cookies extra, although!
- Mini M&Ms: Mini M&Ms are very best on this dough as a result of they distribute evenly all through the cookie, don’t overpower the peanut butter taste, and add simply sufficient crunch with out weighing the dough down. You should use regular-size M&Ms in case you’d like, simply very roughly chop them first.
- Can I Add Chocolate Chips or Different Add-Ins? Sure, so long as the whole quantity of add-ins (together with M&MS) is round 1 and 1/4 cups.
- Replace in 2026: This recipe initially used salted butter with no added salt—be happy to make the dough that approach in case you favor. It additionally known as for smaller, 1 Tablespoon cookies (about 20g), yielding round 36 cookies. Over time, we’ve discovered the cookies bake up just a little higher when made barely bigger, which is why the portion dimension has been elevated.
