Christmas Cookies with M&Ms

Recipe updated: April 3rd, 2024

Christmas Cookies with M&Ms are fun to make in December during the holiday season, and the taste is delightful, just like Christmas! With crispy edges and soft and ooey-gooey M&M candies inside, these chewy cookies are beyond a chocolate lover’s dream!

The grandkids also love to make sugar cookies for Christmas and use red and green food coloring for the icing. And adding green M&M and festive red M&M candy for these chocolate chip cookies and M&M’s during Christmas time is always everyone’s favorite.

🍪 Key Ingredients

• 1 cup unsalted butter – room temperature
• 1 cup of light brown sugar – firmly packed
• 1 cup white granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs – room temperature)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 and 1/2 cups M&M’s Holiday Milk Chocolate Christmas Candy
• 1/4 cup M&M’s Minis Milk Chocolate Candy Christmas
• 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

👩‍🍳 How to Make Christmas M&M Cookies

These step-by-step instructions are accompanied by detailed photos for enhanced clarity and guidance.

Step 1. Take the Butter and Eggs Out of the Refrigerator

Get 1 cup (or two sticks) of unsalted butter and 2 large eggs out of the refrigerator and let them sit on the countertop at room temperature for about 10 minutes.

Note: We want the butter to be soft but not melted, so there is no need to melt the butter in the microwave or on top of the stove, and we want the eggs to chill out for a bit, in other words, not as cold as when they first come out of the refrigerator.

Step 2. Add the Butter and Sugars to a Bowl

Put the softened butter together with 1 cup of firmly packed light brown sugar and 1 cup of granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl.

Note: Firmly packed means pushing the brown sugar down (with a spoon) into the measuring cup as you fill it until the cup is full and then level it off at the top.

Step 3. Mix the Butter and Sugars in the Bowl

After you have the butter, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar in the large bowl, with an electric hand mixer, or a stand mixer, cream the ingredients together on low speed until well blended. This should take about 3 minutes. Be sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl while mixing.

Note: If you don’t have an electric mixer, a spoon will work just fine.

Step 4. Add the Eggs and Vanilla Extract

Now is the time to get the 2 large eggs we put on the countertop earlier. So let’s add the eggs and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract to the butter and sugar mixture.

Step 5. Mix the Eggs, Vanilla Extract, and Butter Sugar Mixture

Put the electric mixer on low speed, then mix the eggs and vanilla extract together with the butter and sugar mixture. Mix until thoroughly blended.

Step 6. Prepare the Dry Ingredients

In a different large bowl, add 3 and 1/2 cups of all purpose flour together with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, and 1 teaspoon of baking powder. Mix it all up with a whisk, spatula, or spoon.

Step 7. Add the Dry Ingredients to the Wet Ingredients

Slowly, a little at a time, add some of the flour mixture (dry ingredients) together with the butter and sugar mixture (wet ingredients).

Step 8. Cream the Dry Ingredients and Wet Ingredients

Put the mixer on low speed. Blend the flour mixture, a little at a time, with the butter and sugar mixture until the ingredients are incorporated into the cookie dough. Scrape the sides and the bottom of the bowl while mixing.

Step 9. Add the M&M’s and Mini Chocolate Chips

Add 1 and 1/2 cups of M&M milk chocolate Christmas candy, and 1/4 cup of mini chocolate chips together with the cookie dough.

Step 10. Fold in the M&M’s

With a spoon or spatula, fold in the M&M’s together with the cookie dough. Do not use the electric mixer as this will bust up all of the M&M’s into mush.

Tip: To fold something when cooking means gently stirring one ingredient (in this case the M&M’s) around in the bowl until all is blended nicely with the other ingredients (the cookie dough) without disturbing or overworking the first ingredient (the M&M’s).

Step 11. Chill the Cookie Dough in the Refrigerator

Put a piece of plastic wrap around the bowl and put the bowl in the refrigerator for at least two hours.

Tip: Chilling certain cookie dough makes it easier to handle, and it won’t be so sticky. Chilling also allows the ingredients to set, thicken, and incorporate into the other ingredients.

Step 12. Preheat the Oven

During the last five minutes of chilling the cookie dough, preheated the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 13. Prepare the Baking Sheet

To prepare a lined baking sheet or cookie sheet as some folks call it, put a piece of parchment paper over the top of the baking sheet.

Tip: Parchment paper helps the cookies not spread out as much while baking. Parchment paper is also nonstick, therefore, you do not need to use oil or cooking spray.

Step 14. Make Some Cookie Dough Balls

After the cookie dough has chilled in the refrigerator for at least two hours, take the cookie dough out of the refrigerator and use a cookie scoop to make some cookie dough balls.

Step 15. Put the Cookie Dough Balls on the Baking Sheet

Put the balls of dough on top of the parchment paper spacing them about two inches apart from each other. Then, press in some extra M&M candies and some mini M&M’s on top of the cookies.

Tip: We have two prepared baking sheets going at the same time. While one of the baking sheets is in the oven, we get the second baking sheet ready with the next batch of cookie dough. Also, do not put cookie dough on a cookie sheet that is hot or even warm. The cookies will spread out from the heat of the cookie sheet before baking them.

Step 16. Bake the Christmas Cookies

Bake the Christmas cookies in the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 to 12 minutes until lightly golden brown around the edges. We baked our cookies for 11 minutes. After that, take the cookies out of the oven and let them sit on the baking sheet for a couple of minutes.

Step 17. Let the Cookies Cool

Then, transfer the cookies to a cooling rack or wire rack and let them completely cool before serving, especially to small children so they don’t burn their mouths. When the cookies are cooled, put them on a plate or in a cookie tin to serve to your guests. Store any leftovers in an airtight container on the countertop. After about three days, gobble them up, or freeze them.

Tip: Putting a slice of bread in the cookie container while on the countertop helps to keep the cookies soft.

🌟 Recipe Variations

• Switch the color of the M&M’s and make these baked cookies any time of the year.
• Try putting some white chocolate chips in the cookie dough mix.
• Make chocolate peppermint cookies with M&M’S Holiday Mint Chocolate Christmas Candy or Chocolate Peppermint Flavor Baking Chips or add both to the cookie dough.

❓ FAQs

💭 Final Thoughts

These Christmas M&M cookies are festive treats during Christmas time and the whole family will enjoy them immensely! Christmas is the best time of year, especially when you can make these easy Christmas cookies for your family, guests, or the holiday party you are going to attend.

But I do have to say, these cookies are not going to be baked only during Christmas time. They are also great for cookie exchanges, birthday parties, potlucks, or baby showers. Just switch out the Christmas red and green M&M’s with the multi-colored M&M’s.

📄 Recipe Card

🥰 More Cookie Recipes You Will Love

• Recipe for S’mores Cookies with Chocolate Chips – These cookies are so good! With chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, and crushed-up graham crackers inside each cookie.
• Ranger Cookies Recipe – A delicious little cookie filled with Rice Krispies, old-fashioned oats, raisins, and brown sugar.
• Easy Recipe for Sugar Cookies – You can probably make this cookie dough right now with the basic ingredients already in your kitchen. Butter, sugar, eggs, milk, vanilla extract, all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, and a pinch of salt. Then we put powdered sugar icing and sprinkles on top of each cookie. The powdered sugar icing is made with butter (optional), powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract.