M&M Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars Recipe - soft and chewy cookie bars packed with gooey chocolate and bright and colorful M&Ms! All done in under 30 minutes!
We are smack down in the middle of winter and the winter blues are starting to get us big time. We finally got some serious snow fall the other day. The kids can make snowmen and have snowball fights. But this cloudy, cold weather makes me crave color! Yes, color! I find that color is a great therapy for the seasonal blues. I just ordered a very bright throw pillow for our bedroom to add a pop of color, I bought a bright red lipstick and nail polish and made cookie bars with bright M&M's!
A plateful of these soft and chewy bars is sure to make you smile!
Cookie bars are our favorite treats to make recently. They are quick and easy and you can pack them with chocolate chips (any kind) and leftover candy. Kids love to make them and eat them too! You may know by now my little secret to making soft and chewy cookies. It's the vanilla pudding mix! It's a foolproof trick to achieving soft and chewy cookies and now bars. Every time we go shopping, my kids ask for the pudding mix so we can make cookies!
To see how to make the cookie dough, check out our YouTube video for the Soft and Chewy M&M Chocolate Chip Cookies!
If you are longing for summer and it's colors, surround yourself with color! Use colorful home decor, jewelry, makeup and bake cookie bars! With bright M&M's of course!
M&M Chocolate Cookie Bars Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature, 1 stick
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 3.5 oz instant vanilla pudding mix
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ¾ cup red and green M&M's
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a 13"x9" baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream butter for 30 seconds. Add both sugars and beat for 3 minutes, until light and fluffy.
- Add egg and vanilla and mix until well incorporated.
- In another mixing bowl, whisk together flour, pudding mix, soda and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients to the butter sugar mixture and mix with an electric mixer until almost incorporated. Switch to a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon, add chocolate chips and M&M's (reserving some) and stir in until well mixed.
- Press the dough onto prepared pan. Add additional M&M's and chocolate chip on top.
- Bake bars for 22 to 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
- Cool to room temperature, slice and serve.
Nutrition
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Nancy says
I want to make these for my grandchildren. Can I use mini M & M's instead of the regular size?
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
Hi Nancy! Absolutely! You can use any size you like. I am so happy to know you want to make these for your grandchildren. That's awesome! Have a beautiful week! -Anna
Sophie says
Hello! I want to make these bars, but I don't have instant vanilla pudding mix. What can I use to replace it? And how much? Thank you!
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
Hi Sophie! Thank you for the question! You can use cornstarch instead. Use 3 teaspoons. Or you can skip it all together but the bars won't be as chewy and soft. Hope this helps!
Meg says
Soft and chewy is the only way to go with cookies for me! And loaded with m&m's...yes please!
Des says
You had me at soft and gooey chocolate. Holy smokes these look awesome!
Kimberly Ann says
These look so delicious and colorful! Definitely brightens these cold winter days!
Heather says
These remind me of being a kid. I enjoy mixing things up and having candy in my cookies or brownies. Yum!
Jenn says
Gorgeous photos! I want to reach out and grab one (or five!)
Michelle says
These look really good. I love anything cookie. My family would eat these right up.
Elizabeth says
Nothing like a good cookie bar, and in 3o minutes?! Heck yeah!
Bintu says
My sister loves monster cookies but she'll adore this recipe for making them even easier in a bar!
Jenny says
I'm going to make a double batch and see if these cookies clear up my winter blues - I think they are just what I need!
Medha says
These bars look so soft and studded with delicious chocolate and candy 🙂 Pinning!
Muna Kenny says
These are gorgeous bars! I want to make some right away. the color and texture is breath taking 🙂
Emily says
M&Ms always make me so happy. These bars look delicious. I plan on spending the day baking with all the snow we are suppose to get. Fingers crossed we avoid power outages.