These Christmas M&M Cookies are perfectly soft and chewy and loaded with red and green M&M’s for a holiday twist!
Christmas M&M Cookies are so easy to make, with a simple dough that requires no chilling so you can enjoy these cookies in 30 minutes or less!
It’s that time of year where I feel like we are doing nothing but baking cookies, and I just don’t hate it!
But since it can be such a crazy time of year, I love making large batches of cookies that are also easily frozen. You can even make these into mini M&M cookies!
That way, when a holiday concert or school party pops up or unexpected company drops in (likely knowing you are well-prepared with your stash of cookies!), you can pull out an assortment of cookies and make up a beautiful tray without breaking a sweat.
They’re also perfect for those late-night cookie cravings when you just don’t have the energy to bake them up fresh (trust me — they taste just as good straight from the freezer!).
This Christmas M&M cookie recipe are fun and festive, but feel free to swap them with multi-colored candies throughout the year for a new twist on the same great cookie! Valentine Cookies, Easter Cookies and Fourth of July Cookies are all fun and festive!
If you’re looking for the best Christmas cookies to whip up for your stash, you might also like these Eggnog Cookies, these Mint Hershey Kiss Cookies, Molasses Cookies, Candy Cane Cookies, these Perfect Gingerbread Cookies or these easy Cake Mix Cookies— they’re all favorites of ours!
What are your favorite easy Christmas cookies to whip up?
Tips on How to Make Christmas M&M Cookies:
- Make sure your butter is room temperature. This way, the butter and sugars will cream together and become perfectly fluffy and this ensures that the sugar will be fully incorporated.
- This cookie dough does not require chilling. If you do chill it (which is great if you want to prep the dough ahead and have fresh cookies later!), it’s best to let it come to room temperature on the counter before baking, or you will end up with thicker, puffier m and m cookies (which is okay if you prefer thick, puffy cookies!).
- Throw some M&Ms into the cookie dough, and add a few on top so people know what’s inside. Because the M&Ms may crack in the oven, I like to just press a few into the tops of the cookies when they come out of the oven, but you can top with M&M’s before baking as well.
Even More Easy Cookies!
- 4 Ingredient Red Velvet Cookies – super easy
- Christmas Sugar Cookies
- Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies – one of our favorites!
- Funfetti Cookies – try festive sprinkles!
- Peanut Butter Cornflake Cookies – no bake wonders!
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies – a holiday treat!
Christmas M&M Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar lightly packed
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ cups Christmas M&Ms
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- With an electric mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add eggs and vanilla and beat on medium speed until combined.
- Add flour, salt and baking soda and beat on low speed until combined. Stir in half of the M&M's.
- Roll into 1 ½" balls and bake 2" apart for 8-9 minutes, until cookies are light in color but no longer glossy.
- Remove from the oven and press remaining M&Ms into the tops of the cookies. Allow to cool before removing from the pan.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Cookies
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I agree with the other comment, these were flat as pancakes! A shame I wasted ingredients on these, disappointed and had to bake longer. Ugh
Sorry to hear these cookies didn’t turn out as expected, Karen! Is your baking soda fresh? Sometimes old or expired baking soda can be the culprit of flat cookies!
Made these tonight and they turned out awesome. Should have popped the m&ms in the top before they finished cooking but they still look great and taste awesome. Very easy to make too
These were SO easy to make and DELICIOUS! Addicting actually! My 17 year old walked by the tin of cookies yesterday while I was making dinner and said to me, “These are legit.” Teen slang for “these are the best!” I have been advised to add these to my christmas cookie repertoire, ha! I followed the directions exactly except in my oven I needed 10 minutes before pulling out to put the m&ms on top. They turned out just a big “fluffier” than the first batch I did at 8 minutes.
I love it! I am glad to hear they are teenager approved :) Thanks Natalie!
These cookies are DANGEROUSLY good! I’ve used this website for multiple recipes and they never disappoint! Mine turned out a little flat (my fault) but I like them like that. The recipe is easy and it yields a great result!
We’re glad you enjoyed the recipe, Emily!
These cookies should be called “Christmas M&M Pancakes”, as they really spread out a lot during baking and cooling – even when reducing the ball size to 1 inch. As such they are not very attractive. They also have quite a greasy taste. Considering the cost of butter and M & M’s these days, I would not make them again.
I’m sorry these didn’t work out for you Nancy. We made these again this week and they were perfect for us. We do expect them to spread a little bit but they shouldn’t be thin like pancakes.
Nancy,
Just curious, what type/brand of butter did you use to make the cookies? Did you leave it out to get at room temperature or did you warm it?
Hi Holly! I absolutely LOVE this cookie recipe; it is a no-fail, perfect-every-time cookie! I have made it with Christmas M&Ms, and even Valentine’s M&Ms. I would love to make this as a chocolate cookie, with peanut butter chips. Would I simply add cocoa powder and if so, how much? If not, can you tell me how to make this cookie into a chocolate version? Thank you so much!
Hi Kristy, we have never tried this recipe as a chocolate cookie but that sounds delicious! I am sure you could add cocoa powder in small quantities to give it that chocolatey flavor. Let us know how it turns out!
Please email me any great Christmas recipes you have. Thank you and merry Christmas!
To give these cookies just a little more flavor i have added mint m&ms once they are baked the mint goes thru the cookie i have also used peanut m &m as well
Yummy!! Chocolate mint is such a great flavor combo!