Description

These peanut butter M&M cookies are soft, thick, and packed with peanut butter flavor in every bite, plus a generous handful of mini M&Ms for color and crunch. Don’t skip chilling the cookie dough. If you’ve been baking from my site for a while, this recipe may look familiar. It’s based on my classic soft peanut butter cookies dough, a recipe I first published in 2012 and still use as the foundation for countless variations today.

Ingredients

1 and 1/4 cups (156g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
3/4 cup (188g) creamy peanut butter (see Note)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 and 1/4 cups (250g) mini M&Ms

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Instructions

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
In a large bowl using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute on high speed until creamy. Switch to medium-high speed and beat in the brown sugar and granulated sugar until completely creamed and smooth, about 3 minutes. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) Add the egg and beat until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the peanut butter and vanilla extract and beat until combined.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat on low speed until combined, and then beat in the M&Ms. The dough will be very creamy and soft.
Cover and chill the cookie dough in the refrigerator for at least 1–2 hours, and up to 3 days.
Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Roll the dough: Roll chilled cookie dough into balls, about 1.5 Tablespoons (around 30–35g) of dough each. For extra M&Ms on top, gently position some of the candies near the surface of the dough balls, or press a few additional M&Ms into the tops before baking. Arrange the dough balls on the baking sheets about 2 inches apart.
Bake for 12–15 minutes or until the edges appear set and are very lightly browned. The centers will still look very soft.
Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.

Notes

Make-Ahead Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake for an extra minute; no need to thaw. See How to Freeze Cookie Dough for more success tips.
Special Tools (affiliate links): Food Scale | Electric Mixer (Stand Mixer or Handheld) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Cooling Rack
Peanut Butter: Creamy peanut butter is ideal for this recipe because crunchy peanut butter creates an overly crumbly cookie. You can use processed peanut butter such as Jif or Skippy, or natural-style peanut butter. If using natural peanut butter, make sure it’s at room temperature, stirred well, and expect a crumblier cookie. 3/4 cup of peanut butter weighs around 185–195g.
Can I Use Almond Butter? Yes, you can use almond butter in this cookie recipe; however, expect a crumblier cookie. You may enjoy these flourless almond butter cookies more, though!
Mini M&Ms: Mini M&Ms are ideal in this dough because they distribute evenly throughout the cookie, don’t overpower the peanut butter flavor, and add just enough crunch without weighing the dough down. You can use regular-size M&Ms if you’d like; roughly chop them first.
Can I Add Chocolate Chips or Other Add-Ins? Yes, as long as the total amount of add-ins (including M&Ms) is around 1 and 1/4 cups.
Update in 2026: This recipe originally used salted butter with no added salt—feel free to make the dough that way if you prefer. It also called for smaller, 1 Tablespoon cookies (about 20g), yielding around 36 cookies. Over time, we’ve found the cookies bake up a little better when made slightly larger, which is why the portion size has been increased.