Nothing says Christmas quite like baking up deliciously festive cookies for the season! These M&M Christmas Cookies are a perfect holiday cookie exchange recipe, to package up for holiday food gifts, and just for snacking around the house.
Not only are they incredibly easy to make and take less than an hour to whip together–they also require minimal ingredients making them perfect for any home baker.
Plus, these colorful treats will bring some extra cheer to your holiday dessert table.
Keep reading to get the full step by step recipe on how you can create these melt-in-your-mouth delicious treats guaranteed to kick off your Christmastime festivities with gusto.
Classic M&M Christmas Cookies
M&M Christmas Cookies is a perfect treat to spread some holiday cheer!
These deliciously festive cookies are loaded with colorful M&M's that sparkle like Christmas lights amidst the rich, buttery dough.
Every bite you take is a celebration of classic cookie goodness, intertwined with a burst of chocolatey M&M delight.
Ideal for holiday parties, cookie exchanges, or cozy evenings by the fire, these M&M Christmas Cookies are sure to become a cherished part of your family's holiday traditions.
Recipe Prep
- Place the butter on the counter to soften 2 hours before needed. It may take longer if it is cold in your home.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a small bowl.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. degrees if using light colored aluminum baking sheets or 325 F. degrees if using dark non stick cookie sheets.
M&M Christmas Cookies Ingredients
Below is a quick look at the ingredients and directions. You can find the entire ingredient amounts and step by step directions in the recipe card below. P. S. You can also save your favorite recipes to your personal recipe box! ⬇️
👇See the step by step directions below!
- All-Purpose Flour: This is the most common type of flour used in baking. It's a blend of hard and soft wheat and it's versatile enough to use in recipes for cookies, bread, pancakes, etc.
- Baking Powder: A leavening agent that helps baked goods rise. It contains a mixture of baking soda, cream of tartar, and sometimes cornstarch. Always check the expiration date as it loses its effectiveness over time.
- Baking Soda: Another leavening agent that's used in baking. It reacts with acidic ingredients in your recipe to produce carbon dioxide gas. This gas helps to lighten and soften the mixture.
- Salt: Salt enhances the flavor of other ingredients. In baking, it also strengthens the gluten structure in dough and can help to prevent cookies from spreading too much.
- Softened Unsalted Butter: Butter adds flavor and a tender texture to baked goods. Using unsalted butter allows you to control the amount of salt in the recipe.
- White Granulated Sugar: This is your standard table sugar. It not only sweetens the cookies but also helps in browning and crisping.
- Packed Dark Brown Sugar: Brown sugar is white sugar with molasses added to it. The dark version has a higher molasses content than light brown sugar. It adds a rich, caramel-like flavor to baked goods and provides extra moisture.
- Large Egg: Eggs contribute to the structure by providing proteins that set during baking. They also add moisture and can act as a leavening agent.
- Pure Vanilla Extract: This is made by soaking vanilla beans in alcohol and water. It's used to enhance the flavors in the cookies. You can easily make your own homemade vanilla extract at home.
- Red and Green M&M's: These are milk chocolate candies coated in a colorful candy shell. They add a festive touch to the Christmas cookies, providing both a pop of color and a sweet, chocolatey taste. The candies are divided, with some mixed into the dough and others pressed into the tops of the cookies before baking.
Check out my M&M Sugar Cookie Bars for another festive Christmas cookie recipe you can also make.
Step by Step Directions
- Step 1: In a large mixing bowl with a hand held beater beat the softened butter, white and brown sugars until light and fluffy.
- Step 2: Add the egg and vanilla extract to the bowl and beat for 3 minutes.
- Step 3: Gradually beat the dry ingredients into the butter and sugar mixture. If the cookie batter is too thick for the hand beater switch to a wooden spoon and stir the flour mixture into the dough until completely combined. Scrape the bottom of the bowl well to bring any flour up into the batter. Mix until there are no streaks of flour visible.
- Step 4: Fold 1 cup of red and green M&M's into the cookie batter until the candy pieces are evenly distributed through out the cookie dough.
Step 5: If the cookie dough is extremely soft cover the bowl and refrigerate 30 minutes to allow the dough to firm up. Well chilled cookie dough is best or the soft dough may spread too much as it bakes and you will have flat thin cookies.
Step 6: Use a 2 inch dough scoop to scoop the cookie dough. Drop each scoop of cookie dough 2 inches apart on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Press 5 red and green M&M's onto the top of each of the cookie dough balls on the baking tray.
- Step 7: Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden around the edges.
- Step 8: Remove the tray from the oven when the cookies are done. Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking tray before transferring the cookies to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling.
- Step 9: Serve on a holiday dessert plate or store the cookies in an airtight container.
Optional Cookie Decorations
- Holiday red and green sprinkles can also be added to the top of the cookies to add a festive look.
Recipe FAQS
Do not let the cookie dough get too warm. Warm and soft cookie dough will spread more than chilled cookie dough and the baked cookies will be thin and flat.
M&M Christmas cookies will stay fresh longer if you store them in an airtight container. Less exposure to air will keep the cookies from drying out and getting stale.
M&M Christmas cookies only take 10 minutes to bake. The cookies should be slightly golden around the edges.
📌Pro Cooking Tips
- always use softened butter when the recipe calls for you to cream or beat butter and sugars together.
- tender cookies: overbaking the cookies will make them hard and crunchy. Remove the cookies from the oven as soon as you see that the edges are turning a light golden brown.
- red & green M&M's: red and green M&M's are used for a festive holiday appearance. You can use plain regular colored M&M's to make this recipe.
Bake it!
What better way to celebrate the Christmas season than with a delicious plate of festive red and green M&M Christmas cookies?
The combination of the two colors holiday colors is an eye-catching delight, sure to be a hit at any holiday party.
Perfect for a cookie exchange, these delectable yuletide treats bring the flavors of the season into your home.
So grab the ingredients, turn on your favorite Christmas movie, and get baking; you won’t regret it!
If you think this recipe should be on your holiday must-have list, try it today and tell us all about it in the comments down below.
More Cookie Exchange Recipes
Explore more holiday cheer with our other delightful Christmas cookie exchange recipes - each one is a delicious new tradition waiting to happen!
⭐Leave a Star Rating
Have you tried the recipe? Leave a star rating in the recipe card below to let me know how the recipe turn out.
Email questions or recipe requests to flouronmyface@gmail.com. Follow me on Pinterest, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook.
M and M Christmas Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder (check expiration date)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup softened unsalted butter
- ½ cup white granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups red and green M&M's (divided)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl with a hand held beater beat the softened butter, white and brown sugars until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and vanilla extract to the bowl and beat for 3 minutes.
- Gradually beat the dry ingredients into the butter and sugar mixture. If the cookie batter is too thick for the hand beater switch to a wooden spoon and stir the flour mixture into the dough until completely combined. Scrape the bottom of the bowl well to bring any flour up into the batter. Mix until there are no streaks of flour visible.
- Fold 1 cup of red and green M&M's into the cookie batter until the candy pieces are evenly distributed through out the cookie dough.
- If the cookie is extremely soft cover the bowl and refrigerate 30 minutes to allow the dough to firm up. Well chilled cookie dough is best or the soft dough may spread too much as it bakes and you will have flat thin cookies.
- Use a 2 inch dough scoop to scoop the cookie dough. Drop each scoop of cookie dough 2 inches apart on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Press 5 red and green M&M's onto the top of each of the cookie dough balls on the baking tray.
- Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden around the edges.
- Remove the tray from the oven when the cookies are done. Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking tray before transferring the cookies to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling.
- Makes 2 dozen three inch cookies.
Recipe Expert Tips
- always use softened butter when the recipe calls for you to cream or beat butter and sugars together.
- tender cookies: overbaking the cookies will make them hard and crunchy. Remove the cookies from the oven as soon as you see that the edges are turning a light golden brown.
- red & green M&M's: red and green M&M's are used for a festive holiday appearance. You can use plain regular colored M&M's to make this recipe.
Leave a Reply