The Best Chewy Mini M&M Cookies Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to chewy cookies? ›

Cornstarch helps product soft and thick cookies. Using more brown sugar than white sugar results in a moister, softer cookie. An extra egg yolk increases chewiness. Rolling the cookie dough balls to be tall and lumpy instead of wide and smooth gives the cookies a bakery-style textured thickness.

Mini M&Ms: You can use any M&Ms, but I recommend mini so there's more in each bite. If the M&Ms are larger, such as peanut M&Ms or peanut butter M&Ms, roughly chop them first. If desired, grab an extra 2 Tablespoons of M&Ms and press a few into the top of each cookie when they're warm from the oven.

The ingredients you use and how you shape your cookies both play an important role in whether your cookies turn out crispy or chewy. The type of flour and sugar you use, if your cookie dough contains eggs, and whether you use melted or softened butter all factor into the crispy-chewy equation, too.

To keep the M&Ms from bleeding color into the cookie dough, gently stir them in by hand. This also helps to avoid the candies breaking apart. Add enough M&Ms. The M&Ms in the dough are part of what keeps the cookies thick.

M&Ms are made with a hard candy shell that protects the chocolate in the center from melting. However, during baking the candy shell might slightly crack from the heat or become more incorporated into the dough. Don't worry, they still taste just as delicious!

This one is a question with no real answer, because the ingredients are the exact same in both regular-sized M&M's and Mini M&M's. However, the Sustainable Nano blog did some in-depth research and concluded that it's because the candy-to-chocolate ratio is higher for Mini M&M's, making them sweeter.

If your cookies consistently come out flat, you may have selected the wrong baking temperature. If you bake cookies using too much heat, the fats in the dough begin to melt before the other ingredients can cook together and form your cookie's rise.

Baking at 375 degrees F as opposed to a lower temperature will help cookies stay soft: they'll bake faster which means they aren't in the hot, drying air of the oven too long. Pull the cookie sheet out of the oven when the cookies are just set: underbaking is better than overbaking.

Baking soda is typically used for chewy cookies, while baking powder is generally used for light and airy cookies. Since baking powder is comprised of a number of ingredients (baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, etc.), using it instead of pure baking soda will affect the taste of your cookies.

Brown sugar, meanwhile, is dense and compacts easily, creating fewer air pockets during creaming—that means that there's less opportunity to entrap gas, creating cookies that rise less and spread more. With less moisture escaping via steam, they also stay moist and chewy.

What is the white stuff on M&Ms? ›

The white coating that forms on the surface of chocolate is called bloom, and—here's the good news—it's perfectly safe to eat.

If chocolate is heated to a high temperature, the cocoa butter inside melts and separates from the rest of the ingredients. It settles on the surface in a white coating. If there's excess moisture, it causes the sugar in the chocolate to crystalize, which gives it a white, speckled or spotted coating.

What does it mean when chocolate turns white? Discoloration of chocolate happens for two reasons: fat bloom or sugar bloom. Fat bloom occurs when liquid fat moves through the chocolate and then crystalizes on the surface. It's usually caused by a quick change in temperature.

The extra egg yolk helps to add more moisture and richness, for a soft and chewy texture. The other trick is found in the size of the dough ball…. a whole 3 tablespoons in each! This creates larger cookies that spread out perfectly with ultra-soft centers.

Another way to soften cookies is by placing the cookies in an airtight container with a damp paper towel. The paper towel will release moisture and help to soften the cookies without making them too soft or mushy. Another way is to place the cookies in a plastic bag with a slice of apple or a damp tea towel.

But, it turns out that margarine or vegetable shortening is the secret to chewy cookies. I still make mine with butter, though.