Loaded M&M Chocolate Chip Cookies

Helloooooo! Is it really February already?!

I had originally intended to share some fun Valentine's Day ideas with you today. But then, these cookies happened. So I had a change of plans. These cookies were just too good not to share with you immediately!

I made these cookies on Wednesday evening to bring into work on Thursday. I had been planning on making cookies already, but as of mid-day on Wednesday, I still wasn't sure which type of cookie I was going to make. Lucky for me (and my coworkers!), Sally from Sally's Baking Addiction showed up at just the right time with her Wednesday post of Triple Chocolate Chip Cookies. Sally's recipe calls for three different chocolate chips (as you might gather from the name of the cookies!), but as you can probably tell, I didn't follow her recipe exactly since I added M&M's. However, I did use Sally's excellent base cookie recipe to get started! Be sure to check out Sally's original post here (her photos of her cookies are amazing!). The measurements and ingredients I used are below.

Ingredients:

-3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

-3/4 cup light brown sugar (dark brown is actually preferred, but I used light)

-1/4 cup granulated sugar

-1 large egg, at room temperature

-2 tsp. vanilla extract

-2 cups all-purpose flour

-2 tsp. cornstarch

-1 tsp. baking soda

-1/2 tsp. salt

-1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

-1/2 cup mini M&M's

-1/2 cup dark chocolate M&M's

Instructions:

Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone mat. Set aside.

Cream the butter and sugars together with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy in color. Mix in egg and vanilla. On low speed, mix in the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt. Stir in chocolate chips and M&M's. The dough will be thick and sticky; chill it for at least 30 minutes (or up to 3 days).

Preheat oven to 350. Drop balls of dough (about 1.5 Tbsp. of dough per spoonful) on cookie sheet. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes, or until the cookies are barely golden brown around the edges. Do not bake them for more than 10 minutes (although, cooking times may vary per oven, so use your best judgement; certainly, if they're too undercooked at 10 minutes, keep cooking them but keep a very close eye). Remove and let cool for 3 minutes on cookie sheet before removing to cooling rack to cool completely. Also, do not drop cookie dough on warm cookie sheets; be sure to let cookie sheets cool completely if using again for another batch.

Look at how loaded this dough is! So much goodness in there with all those M&M's and chips...

As I mentioned above, I brought these cookies to work yesterday. Let's just say that people's reactions were very positive! :) The texture of these cookies is incredibly soft and chewy, and the flavor is wonderful. And I think the flavor would be even more enhanced with dark brown sugar versus the light brown sugar that I used. I loved how full of M&M's and chocolate chips they were (hence, my decision to call them "loaded" cookies ;)). When you're mixing in these ingredients, you may think that the dough is too full. Have no fear; it's not! This recipe has the perfect proportion of dough to mix-ins, I think.

I love how easy this recipe is. The ingredients are completely normal and ones you'll likely have in your kitchen pantry or cupboard at any given time. And they're versatile too! Add whatever mix-ins you'd like. Any kind(s) of baking chip would be wonderful! Just imagine the combinations...

If you make these cookies, you won't be disappointed, I promise! I'm thinking that you should probably make them for any Superbowl Sunday get-together that you might be going to... I would put money on them being gone before the halftime show. ;)

Have a wonderful weekend!