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April 14, 2018

Chocolate Chip M&M Cookie Bars

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Chocolate Chip M&M Cookie Bars are something that I make almost weekly! Here’s why:

  1. The butter doesn’t need to be softened.
  2. The dough doesn’t need to chill.
  3. You make it all in one bowl with a spoon and not a mixer.
  4. Because they are cookie bars they are even faster to make than cookies. Spread in a pan and bake.
  5. They taste so good!!!

So basically I used my favorite easy chocolate chip cookie recipe, added M&Ms and baked in a 9×13 inch pan for 20-25 minutes at 325. If I need to make a double batch I will double the recipe and spread it in a cookie sheet pan (11 inches by 17 inches) and bake for 20-25 minutes at 325.

favorite chocolate chip m&m cookie bars

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Chocolate Chip M&M Cookie Bars


★★★★★

5 from 6 reviews

  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 minutes
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 1 (9x13 inch) pan 1x
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Description

These are my favorite chocolate chip cookie bars to make. The work to taste ratio is absolutely perfect. NO CHILLING is necessary and you don’t even use a mixer. I’ve made these probably 50 times and they never get old, especially with the addition of M&Ms.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 3/4 cup (1.5 sticks) of unsalted butter (no substitutions)
  • 3/4 cup (150 grams) brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup (100 grams) white sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 1/4 cup (280 grams) all purpose white flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 cup M&Ms

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 325°F.  Add the butter to a medium sized microwave safe bowl.  If the butter is straight from the refrigerator put it in the microwave for 45 seconds.  It should be half melted and half super soft.  If the butter was from the freezer it will take a bit longer.
  2.  Add in the brown and white sugar.  If you have a kitchen scale *(this is the one *I use and is super cheap) use that instead of measuring cups.  It is more precise and will lead to a better cookie.
  3.  Stir the butter and sugar together until smooth with a whisk.
  4.  Add in the egg.  Whisk until smooth.
  5.  Add in the egg yolk.  Whisk until smooth. (if you don’t know how to separate an egg here is a good tutorial).
  6.  Whisk in the vanilla.
  7.  Add the flour on top of the wet ingredients (use a kitchen scale if possible).  Don’t stir just yet.  Now add in the baking soda, salt and cornstarch.  Now stir with a spoon,folding the flour into the wet mixture rather than mixing or stirring vigorously.
  8.  Now add in the chocolate chips and M&Ms and fold in until combined.
  9.  Spray a 9×13 inch pan with non stick cooking spray.
  10. Use a spatula to spread and dough into the pan evenly.
  11. Bake on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let the pan sit on a cooling rack for 10 or more minutes. Slice into squares and enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the freezer.

Notes

Make sure to use a good brand of chocolate chips.  I really like Guittard, Ghiradelli or Hershey’s Special Dark*.

I like to double this recipe and bake it on a cookie sheet (11 inches by 17 inches).

  • Category: Dessert

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36 Comments Filed Under: Desserts, Other Methods

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Comments

  1. Allison Cassel says

    November 12, 2022 at 8:46 pm

    I tried these out tonight, using 1 2/3 cups of chocolate chips, and 1/3 cup “Yummalo” baking mix (it’s a mix of sprinkles, tiny marshmallows, and tiny vanilla chips, all in bright colors); they turned out fantastic and got great reviews! I love the idea of making chocolate chip cookies, but not so much the actual process; this was much easier and I’ll be using it again for sure, especially since chocolate chips are probably going to be on sale for the holiday baking season soon, and it’ll be fun to mix up some of the other flavors out there.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Karen says

      November 14, 2022 at 12:55 pm

      Love those ideas!

      Reply
  2. Jeff Winett says

    September 27, 2022 at 4:27 pm

    This was definitely a first for me. I’ve never made a Karen Peterson recipe that wasn’t from an Instant Pot, until yesterday. If your M & M bars are an indicator of other tasties up your sleeve that bake in a regular oven, please keep them coming! These were easy, and ridiculously sensational. I’ve tried M & M “cookies” before, and always felt they were good, but not much more than that. These Bar cookies were way different. Chewy with a little crispy around the edges….but what was also super enjoyable, is that while eating, every once in a while you will get a little crunch from the shell of the M & M’s. I am hooked, and because they are so easy to get into the pan, this could become dangerous 🙂 Big Sherman Oaks, California thanks Karen, for what you’ve shared.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Karen says

      September 28, 2022 at 12:43 pm

      I’m so glad you branched out and tried this! I do agree with you the crisp of the M&Ms makes a perfect bite

      Reply
  3. Allue says

    September 26, 2022 at 2:55 pm

    Hi Karen, Allie here. The above recipe would be great if such a thing as S.F M&M’s for us diabetics, but alas…..
    Allie

    Reply
    • Karen says

      September 27, 2022 at 10:17 am

      Sorry Allie! This is definitely not a good recipe for a diabetic 🙂

      Reply
  4. Patti says

    August 10, 2022 at 12:43 pm

    Hello Karen. Just wondering why the no salt butter. If I used regular salted buttter, would I then just eliminate the added salt for this recipe? Can’t wait to try this.

    Reply
    • Karen says

      August 12, 2022 at 11:17 am

      I use unsalted butter to control how much salt goes into my recipes. if you use salted butter I would use somewhere between 1/2 tsp and 3/4 tsp of salt. I would say 2/3 tsp but I don’t think that’s actually a measurement on any measuring spoons I’ve ever seen 😉

      Reply
  5. Renee says

    May 19, 2022 at 9:27 am

    Good morning!! I was wondering it says to store the leftovers in the freezer,so my question is: do the leftovers have to be stored in the freezer or can they be stored in an airtight container on the counter?
    Thank you,Renee

    Reply
    • Karen says

      May 21, 2022 at 11:27 am

      Yes you can store them on the counter. They’ll be good for about 3 days.

      Reply
      • J JO says

        September 25, 2022 at 6:12 pm

        [Yeahhh…RIGHT! Left-overs….lololololLOLOLOL….]

        Karen, I gained 300 calories just looking at your full pan photo! Ohh, that looks sooo good! YIKES!

        So…we’re having Instant Pot lettuce tomorrow, I heard you say? : )

        Reply
        • Karen says

          September 27, 2022 at 10:18 am

          haha totally!

          Reply
  6. Lila says

    August 9, 2020 at 3:13 pm

    Super easy and very yummy! This will be my go to cookie!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Karen says

      August 10, 2020 at 12:56 pm

      It’s mine!!

      Reply
  7. Catherine says

    December 11, 2019 at 8:01 pm

    I doubled the recipe. Used 1-1/2 cup M&Ms, 1-1/2 cup Ghiradelli semi-sweet chocolate chips, and 1 cup Ghiradelli white chocolate chips. Received rave reviews! This will be my quick go to dessert to bring! So easy and yummy!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Karen says

      December 12, 2019 at 12:01 pm

      Yum that sounds so tasty!!

      Reply
  8. Leah says

    November 27, 2019 at 9:21 pm

    So I doubled the recipe and the cook time that was needed was way longer than 25 mins I baked the sheet at 325 for almost 45 mins and the mix is still not done in the middle. What did I do wrong? The top layer is done perfect golden brown color. 😩 this may not turned out as planned.

    Reply
    • Karen says

      November 28, 2019 at 11:17 am

      How did it go? I bet it was still good? Sometimes different pans and different ovens cook differently.

      Reply
  9. Nancy Baxter says

    October 16, 2019 at 8:56 am

    Never see this recommended, when I double a recipe I always calculate square inches in recommended size baking sheet then calculate square inches in a larger sheet pan, this is a guide, baking time may need to be adjusted a bit–

    Reply
    • Karen says

      October 21, 2019 at 7:46 pm

      Good idea!

      Reply
  10. Lisa says

    September 9, 2019 at 4:47 am

    How long do you suggest baking these if I’m going to use an 11 x 17” sheet pan?

    Reply
    • Karen says

      September 9, 2019 at 12:16 pm

      Are you doubling the recipe? If so then keep the same cooking time. If you’re not doubling it the bars will be a lot thinner and will cook quickly. So I would suggest a 15 minute baking time. But watch them close, since this is just a guess. I haven’t tried it myself.

      Reply
  11. Stew Thiel says

    September 13, 2018 at 7:41 pm

    Thank you Ms. Karen! Made this afternoon with my 3 and 6 year old daughters. They absolutely LOVED them!!! My 6 year year old first grader said “OMG, these are so good daddy”! My 3 year old repeated her sisters sentiment!!!
    Doubled the recipe in a Calphalon Non Stick Classic Jelly Roll Pan Dimensions 1.08 inches (H) x 12.8 inches (W) x 17.76 inches (D)
    Actually just says 12 x 17 on the pan, but it worked great and now we have WAY too many leftovers!!! I’ll probably buy the smaller pan the next go time. I usually prefer using Karen’s recipes to the T, but my 3 year old asked me if we could use Reese’s pieces instead of M & M’s. OMG Karen these cookie bars are so good! Thanks for another great recipe!
    Sincerely,
    Stew Thiel
    Richmond, VA

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Karen says

      September 14, 2018 at 10:27 am

      So glad you enjoyed them!!

      Reply
  12. Mindy says

    August 19, 2018 at 3:22 pm

    Hello! This recipe looks delicious! Do you think I could add a box of vanilla pudding to the mix, just like some cookie recipes call for??

    Reply
    • Karen says

      August 20, 2018 at 1:40 pm

      probably you could! I am not sure what exactly would happen and what it would taste like, but you could try it.

      Reply
  13. Ellen says

    May 25, 2018 at 4:15 pm

    What do you think the effect will be if instead of using the 1 egg yolk, I actually used the whole egg? I don’t cook or bake often so I don’t want to keep 1 egg white around. Do you think it will make a big difference?

    I love your recipes!

    Reply
    • Karen says

      May 28, 2018 at 9:16 pm

      I bet it would be just fine.

      Reply
      • Ellen says

        June 5, 2018 at 12:53 pm

        Just made this yesterday with 2 eggs instead of 1 egg & 1 yolk and it was delicious! It’s a nice cookie bar that’s a bit more “fluffy” than store bought cookie bars when made this way. So yummy! Now I need to buy an 11″x17″ cookie sheet so I can double the recipe! 😀

        ★★★★★

        Reply
        • Karen says

          June 5, 2018 at 5:42 pm

          doubling is a happy life!

          Reply
  14. Julia says

    May 20, 2018 at 1:08 pm

    FYI….when you said you doubled the recipe and put it in a jelly roll pan? Yea, that’s not the size pan that is needed. A jelly roll pan is 10 1/2 by 15 1/2 inches, and I used that based on your recipe. I now have a mess to clean in my oven because the batter overflowed! I used my kitchen scale to measure all the ingredients. Now that I’ve actually baked it, I suspect you actually wanted the baker to use a 12 by 17 pan. Please actually MEASURE your pan sizes before you make a recommendation and make your recommendation based on size only….it will save others from having to clean their oven….

    Reply
    • Karen says

      May 21, 2018 at 11:59 am

      Julia, I’m very sorry that this happened to you. I will correct the information so no one else has this problem.

      Reply
  15. Elissa says

    April 16, 2018 at 9:09 pm

    Delicious! I made these this afternoon with my (almost) three year old daughter and they were a hit. I loved that it’s a quick and easy recipe, which is a must when baking with a toddler! They turned out great and will become a go to for a quick treat in our house. I can’t wait to try switching up the M&Ms and chocolate chips for other yummy add ins too, not that the original isn’t fabulous, it’s just what I do 😉

    Reply
    • Karen says

      April 17, 2018 at 2:30 pm

      So glad you tried them Elissa! I bet butterscotch chips would be good as well as lots of other things!

      Reply
  16. Cecilia Orozco says

    April 15, 2018 at 7:35 pm

    What does the cornstarch do?

    Reply
    • Karen says

      April 16, 2018 at 5:29 pm

      these cookies are thick and puffy. It’s the cornstarch that gives these cookies a lift.

      Reply

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Hi, I’m Karen. I know that dinner time can be less than relaxing. Busy schedules and cranky kids and a hundred other things can lead to weariness when it comes to putting dinner on the table. I can help! I make homemade, family-friendly slow cooker and Instant Pot dinners and share the recipes with you.

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