Irresistible Chocolate M&M Cookie Bars: Your Ultimate Easy Treat!
Chocolate M&M Cookie Bars are the ultimate quick and easy delight, bursting with rich chocolate flavor and vibrant M&M’s. These fun and festive bars are not just a treat for your taste buds but also a feast for your eyes, making them an absolute must-try in your kitchen!
If you’re a fan of eye-catching sweet treats that are as simple to make as they are delicious, you’re in for a joy. These M&M cookie bars offer that perfect balance of chewiness, chocolatey goodness, and a playful crunch from the candies. They are guaranteed to become a household favorite, whether you’re baking for a special occasion, a casual gathering, or simply satisfying a sweet craving. Get ready to impress with minimal effort!
Why You’ll Adore These M&M Cookie Bars
It seems one can never have enough chocolate recipes, especially when it comes to the delightful world of dessert bars! We understand the irresistible allure of bright, colorful M&M’s in sweet treats, and frankly, we’re completely obsessed. There’s something undeniably captivating about those candy-coated chocolates that elevates any dessert from good to absolutely fantastic. These Chocolate M&M Cookie Bars embody everything we love about homemade treats: they’re straightforward, incredibly flavorful, and beautifully vibrant.
The beauty of this recipe lies in its simplicity. It’s truly a “mix-all-in-one-bowl” kind of chocolate dessert, which means less cleanup and a minimal waiting time before you can sink your teeth into this sweet, buttery, and intensely chocolatey goodness. From the moment the ingredients come together, the dough itself promises a truly sinful experience, making it hard to resist a taste (or two!) before baking. These bars deliver on all fronts: a soft, chewy texture, a deep chocolate flavor, and that signature pop of color and subtle crunch from the M&M’s.
The Magic Behind Perfect M&M Cookie Bar Baking
Baking should be a joyful experience, not a chore. These chocolate M&M cookie bars are designed to be foolproof, ensuring success even for novice bakers. The combination of simple pantry staples and a straightforward method yields a result that tastes like it came from a gourmet bakery. We’ll guide you through each step, offering insights and tips to make your baking journey smooth and enjoyable.
The careful balance of ingredients, from the rich cocoa powder to the twin sugars (granulated and brown), contributes to the bars’ signature chewy texture and deep flavor. Adding a touch of cornstarch might seem unconventional, but it’s a secret weapon for achieving that coveted soft and tender crumb that melts in your mouth. This recipe celebrates the delightful pairing of classic chocolate chip cookie goodness with the playful charm of M&M’s, making every bite a delightful adventure.
Essential Ingredients for Your Chocolate M&M Cookie Bars
Creating these incredibly flavorful and colorful cookie bars starts with a selection of readily available ingredients. The quality of your ingredients plays a significant role in the final taste and texture, so opting for fresh and good-quality items will always yield the best results.
- All-purpose flour: The structural backbone of our cookie bars. Measure it correctly to avoid dense or dry results.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder: For that rich, deep chocolate flavor. Dutch-processed cocoa powder often provides a darker color and milder chocolate taste.
- Baking soda: Our leavening agent, which helps the bars rise slightly and contribute to their chewiness.
- Salt: Essential for balancing the sweetness and enhancing all the other flavors in the bars. Don’t skip it!
- Cornstarch: A secret ingredient for unbelievably soft and tender cookie bars. It helps create that melt-in-your-mouth texture.
- Unsalted butter: Melted butter is key for a uniform dough and a fudgy texture. Using unsalted butter gives you control over the salt content.
- Brown sugar (packed light): Adds moisture and a delicious caramel-like depth, contributing to the chewy texture.
- Granulated sugar: Provides sweetness and helps with browning.
- Large egg (room temperature): An egg at room temperature emulsifies better with the other ingredients, leading to a smoother, more cohesive dough.
- Pure vanilla extract: A crucial flavor enhancer that complements the chocolate beautifully.
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips: For extra pockets of melted chocolate throughout the bars. Use good quality chips for the best experience.
- M&M candy: The star of the show! These add a delightful crunch, an extra layer of chocolate, and a pop of vibrant color. Feel free to use classic or seasonal M&M’s.
Step-by-Step Guide: Crafting Your Delicious M&M Cookie Bars
Follow these straightforward steps to create a batch of the most delicious chocolate M&M cookie bars your kitchen has ever seen. The process is simple, and the reward is absolutely worth it!
- Prepare your oven and pan: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a 13″ x 9″ baking pan with parchment paper, allowing some overhang on the sides to easily lift the bars out later. This prevents sticking and makes for clean cuts.
- Whisk dry ingredients: In a medium mixing bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, unsweetened cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and cornstarch. Whisk them together thoroughly until well combined. This ensures even distribution of the leavening agents and flavors.
- Combine wet ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, pour in the melted unsalted butter, granulated sugar, and packed light brown sugar. Whisk vigorously for about 2 minutes. This step is important to help the sugars begin to dissolve, creating a smoother texture in the final bars.
- Add egg and vanilla: To the butter and sugar mixture, add the room temperature large egg and pure vanilla extract. Continue whisking until the mixture is smooth, creamy, and well incorporated.
- Form the dough: Gradually add the whisked dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Using a spatula, stir until a uniform dough forms. Be careful not to overmix; just combine until no streaks of flour remain. Fold in the semi-sweet chocolate chips, reserving about ¼ cup for sprinkling on top.
- Press into pan: Transfer the cookie dough into the prepared baking pan. Use your hands or a spatula to press the dough evenly into the pan. It should form a relatively smooth and uniform layer.
- Decorate and bake: Sprinkle the reserved chocolate chips and the chocolate M&M’s over the top of the dough. Gently press them down lightly to ensure they adhere. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until the edges are set and the top of the dough appears mostly dry. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out with moist crumbs, not wet batter.
- Cool and serve: Allow the bars to cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes before carefully lifting them out onto a cutting board using the parchment paper overhang. For the cleanest cuts, let the bars cool completely to room temperature before slicing them into squares.
Expert Tips for the Best Chocolate M&M Cookie Bars
Achieving bakery-quality cookie bars at home is simple with a few insider tricks. These tips will help you perfect your Chocolate M&M Cookie Bars every time:
- Pan Size Matters for Thickness: For deliciously thick, fudgy bars, bake this recipe in an 8″ square pan instead of a 13″ x 9″ pan. If you use a smaller pan, be aware that the baking time might need to be extended by a few minutes, so keep a close eye on them.
- Experiment with Chocolate Varieties: While semi-sweet chocolate chips are classic, feel free to get creative! Incorporate milk chocolate chips for a sweeter bar, white chocolate chips for a creamy contrast, or a combination of all three for an even richer, more complex flavor profile and visual pizzazz.
- Don’t Overbake: The key to chewy, moist cookie bars is not to overbake them. The bars might still look a little soft in the center when you pull them out, but they will continue to set as they cool. Overbaking leads to dry, crumbly bars.
- Cool Completely for Clean Slices: Patience is a virtue when it comes to cutting bars. For neat, perfectly formed squares, allow your cookie bars to cool completely to room temperature. Warm bars tend to crumble and create messy edges.
- Room Temperature Egg and Melted Butter: Using a room temperature egg ensures it emulsifies properly with the other ingredients, leading to a smoother batter. Melted butter also contributes to the desired fudgy texture, as opposed to softened butter which might result in a more cake-like bar.
- Pressing M&M’s on Top: Reserve a portion of your M&M’s to press gently onto the top of the dough before baking. This ensures a beautiful display of colorful candies on the surface of each bar, making them even more appealing.
- Enhance with Flaky Sea Salt: A sprinkle of flaky sea salt on top of the bars just after they come out of the oven can elevate their flavor. The salt enhances the chocolate and provides a delightful contrast to the sweetness.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About M&M Cookie Bars
How do I store these cookie bars to keep them fresh?
To keep your Chocolate M&M Cookie Bars fresh and prevent them from drying out, store them in an airtight container at room temperature. They will remain fresh and delicious for up to 5 days. For longer storage, you can refrigerate them, but allow them to come to room temperature before serving for the best texture.
Can I freeze M&M cookie bars?
Absolutely! These bars freeze beautifully. Once completely cooled, cut them into squares and place them in a single layer on a baking sheet to flash freeze for about 30 minutes. Once solid, transfer them to an airtight freezer-safe container or a heavy-duty freezer bag, separating layers with parchment paper. They can be frozen for up to 2-3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
Can I use different types of M&M’s or other candies?
Yes, feel free to customize! You can use various M&M flavors like peanut M&M’s, peanut butter M&M’s, or seasonal colors for holidays. Other candy-coated chocolates or even chopped chocolate candies like Snickers or Twix could also be a fun addition for different textures and flavors.
What if I don’t have cornstarch?
Cornstarch helps achieve a wonderfully soft and chewy texture. While highly recommended, if you don’t have it, you can omit it. Your bars will still be delicious, but they might have a slightly different texture.
My bars are too crumbly, what went wrong?
Crumbly bars are often a sign of too much flour or overbaking. Ensure you measure your flour accurately (using the scoop and level method is best) and avoid baking the bars for too long. Remember, they should look slightly underbaked in the center when you pull them out.
Related Recipes You’ll Love
If you enjoyed these delightful Chocolate M&M Cookie Bars, we know you’ll love these other fantastic cookie and bar recipes from our collection:
- Soft and Chewy M&M Cookies: A classic cookie version with the same beloved M&M goodness.
- Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies: Refreshing mint meets rich chocolate in these irresistible cookies.
- Chewy Snickerdoodle Cookies: A timeless favorite, perfectly spiced with cinnamon and sugar.
- Perfect Sugar Cookies: The ideal canvas for any decoration, simple yet utterly delicious.
Chocolate M&M Cookie Bars
Anna
Pin Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted, 1 stick
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg room temperature
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1.75 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ½ cup chocolate M&M’s
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 C).
- Line a 13″ x 9″ baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and cornstarch).
- In a large mixing bowl, combine melted butter with both sugars and whisk well. Whisk for about 2 minutes to give the sugar a chance to start dissolving.
- Add vanilla and egg and whisk until smooth.
- Add dry ingredients and chocolate chips to butter mixture and stir with a spatula until a uniform dough forms.
- Press dough into prepared pan. Sprinkle M&M’s over dough and press gently.
- Bake bars for 18 to 20 minutes or until the dough appears dry on top.
- Cool in pan for 10 minutes, transfer onto cutting board. Cool completely, cut and serve.
- Store in air tight container for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Please note, that the nutrition value can vary depending on what product you use. The information below is an estimate. Always use calorie counter you are familiar with.
- Bake the bars in an 8″ square pan for thicker squares.
Nutrition
Share Your Delicious Creations!
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