Let's face it, we can't always be bothered rolling out dough for hundreds of cookies. That's why these soft and gooey M&M cookie bars are the easiest way to cure your cookie cravings!
Ingredients in Cookie Bars
- Unsalted butter: or regular butter, just omit the added salt if using.
- Brown sugar: this is what makes your cookie bars gooey and soft. Replace with additional caster sugar if needed.
- Caster / superfine sugar: this finer version of sugar is easier to dissolve into the batter and will give you a softer bar. Replace with white sugar if needed.
- Eggs
- Vanilla
- Plain / all-purpose flour
- Baking powder: NOT baking soda. Make sure it's in date.
- Salt: enhances the flavour of the cookie bars and balances the sweetness of the sugar. Omit if using salted butter.
- Chocolate chips: or chopped up chocolate blocks. I use dark or semi-sweet chocolate but you can also use milk or white (it may be sweeter!).
- M&Ms: the star ingredient for these addictive bars. Replace with crispy M&Ms or peanut M&Ms if you wish.
How to Make M&M Cookie Bars
It's super simple to make these easy choc chip M&M cookie bars.
- Stir together melted butter and sugars.
- Stir in eggs and vanilla.
- Stir in flour, baking powder and salt.
- Stir in chocolate chips and M&Ms.
- Press into tin, top with more M&Ms and bake. Done!
See the full recipe below for detailed instructions.
Top Tips for the Perfect Cookie Bars
How to bake cookie bars perfectly: these cookie bars can take longer than you think to bake all the way through. Even though they may start browning on top, you will need to use the full 25-30 minutes bake time to ensure they are cooked on the bottom. If they begin browning too much on top, cover with foil and continue cooking.
How to decorate your cookie bars: I set aside half of the M&Ms to put on top of the bars before baking so they look colourful and fun!
Variations
- Plain chocolate chips: replace the M&Ms with additional chocolate chips.
- Triple choc: replace the M&Ms with chopped white and milk chocolate so you get a triple chocolate flavour!
- Brown butter cookie bars: cook your butter over a stove until just browned and then make the rest of the recipe as usual.
- Peanut: use peanut M&Ms instead of regular.
Trouble Shooting
Why are my cookie bars hard or crisp?
Over-baking: make sure your oven is set to the correct temperature. Start by baking for 25 minutes or until the bars are golden brown on top and puffy.
Expired baking powder: if your baking powder is out of date, your cookie bars will go hard and flat. Make sure it's fresh and in-date.
Too much flour: make sure you are measuring your flour correctly. Grams are the most accurate measurement, however, if you're using cup measurements then make sure to use the 'scoop and level' method.
Why are my cookie bars flat or oily?
This means you have too much of your wet ingredients and not enough of your dry ingredients. Make sure to measure out your wet and dry ingredients correctly (using grams or ounces is best!). Keep in mind I am using metric cups which are slightly larger than US cups.
Storing M&M Cookie Bars
You can keep the bars stored in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
M&M Cookie Bars
These delicious cookie bars are packed full of M&Ms and chocolate chips. These squares are gooey, soft and so easy to make when you're craving a sweet treat.
Ingredients
- 200 g (7 oz / ¾ cup + 2 tbsp) unsalted butter, melted
- ¾ cup (131 g) brown sugar, loosely packed
- ½ cup (120 g) caster / superfine sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla
- 2 cups (300 g) plain flour / all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon (4 g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (3 g) salt
- 1 cup (180 g / 6.3 oz) dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 180 g (6.3 oz / ¾ cup) M&Ms, divided
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160°C / 320°F (fan-forced/convection) or 180°C / 355°F (standard). Grease and line a 20 x 30 cm (8 x 12 inch) slice pan with baking paper, ensuring there's at least a 3 cm (1 inch) of overhang for easy removal of the slice.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the melted butter and sugars until well combined. Stir in the egg and vanilla.
- Add the flour, baking powder and salt and stir until a soft dough comes together. Stir through the chocolate chips and HALF of the M&Ms.
- Press the mixture into the prepared pan. Sprinkle over the remaining M&Ms and press in gently.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the dough has puffed up and is golden brown around the edges (it will take longer to bake than you think - if it begins to brown too much on top while baking, cover with foil).
- Allow to cool completely in the tin before removing and slicing into 24 squares. Enjoy!
Notes
Measurement
- Please note that my recipes are measured in metric cups and spoons which are larger than US cups and spoons. Most recipes will be fine if measured in US cups and spoons, but please use the weight (grams) measurement for the most accurate result.
Storage
- You can keep the bars stored in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
Substitutions & Tips
- M&Ms: substitute with additional chocolate chips or other varieties of M&Ms like crispy or peanut.
- Chocolate: you can substitute the chocolate chips for 180 g (6.3 oz) of roughly chopped dark chocolate blocks. You can also use milk or white chocolate, however note that this will make the bars a lot sweeter.
- Servings suggestions: these bars are incredible warmed up with ice cream!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1 squareAmount Per Serving: Calories: 228Total Fat: 11.2gSaturated Fat: 6gUnsaturated Fat: 2.3gCholesterol: 29mgSodium: 126.7mgCarbohydrates: 29.4gFiber: 0.9gSugar: 16.1gProtein: 2.5g
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