The Best Soft & Chewy Easter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Festive M&M’s

Get ready to elevate your Easter celebration with these incredibly soft and chewy Easter Chocolate Chip Cookies! Bursting with classic chocolate chips and vibrant Easter M&M’s, these cookies are truly the perfect chocolate chip cookie, infused with festive cheer. They’re guaranteed to be a highlight of your holiday dessert spread, loved by both kids and adults alike.

Baking for the holidays is one of our most cherished traditions, and these Easter chocolate chip M&M cookies hold a special place in our hearts. This recipe is wonderfully simple to make, requiring just a handful of everyday ingredients you likely already have in your pantry. It’s an ideal project for a fun afternoon of baking with the family, creating delicious memories along with delicious treats.

Our Easter tradition often involves whipping up an array of easy Easter desserts. Alongside these delightful M&M chocolate chip cookies, the kids love to get involved in making other festive treats such as Easter Pretzel Rods, whimsical Peeps Rice Krispie Treats, and a grand Easter Cookie Cake. These M&M-studded cookies are a personal favorite, so much so that I often make an M&M Cookie Cake year-round for various occasions!

Why This Recipe Works: The Perfect Easter Treat

This recipe takes everything you adore about a classic Chocolate Chip Cookie and infuses it with irresistible Easter charm. The secret lies in creating a dough that yields incredibly soft centers and perfectly chewy edges, a texture that everyone craves. What makes these cookies truly special for Easter are the beautiful pastel M&M’s. Their vibrant colors instantly transform a simple cookie into a festive masterpiece, making it a fun and delicious treat for the entire family. The ease of preparation, combined with the delightful visual appeal and incredible taste, ensures this recipe will become a cherished part of your holiday baking tradition for years to come.

Ingredients You’ll Need for These Festive Cookies

Crafting these delectable Easter chocolate chip M&M cookies requires a straightforward list of ingredients. Each component plays a vital role in achieving that perfect soft, chewy texture and rich flavor profile. You’ll find the complete, precise measurements in the recipe card below, but here’s a quick overview of what you’ll need and why:

• Softened Butter: Essential for a tender crumb and helps create the perfect creamy base with the sugars.
• Granulated Sugar: Contributes to the crispness of the cookie edges and overall sweetness.
• Brown Sugar: The secret to that irresistible chewiness and adds a wonderful depth of flavor.
• Large Eggs: Binds the ingredients together and adds moisture, ensuring a rich texture.
• Vanilla Extract: A crucial flavor enhancer that complements the chocolate beautifully.
• All-Purpose Flour: Provides the structure for the cookies. Make sure to measure it correctly!
• Cornstarch: A fantastic addition that makes cookies incredibly soft and helps them stay thick, preventing excessive spreading.
• Baking Soda: The leavening agent that helps the cookies rise slightly and achieve their soft texture.
• Salt: Balances the sweetness and enhances all the flavors.
• Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips: The classic chocolate chip cookie staple, providing melty pockets of chocolate.
• Pastel M&Ms (Easter M&Ms): These add a festive pop of color and an extra layer of chocolatey, crunchy goodness, making them truly “Easter” cookies.

Scroll down to the detailed recipe card at the bottom of this post for the complete ingredient list and precise measurements for these delightful chocolate chip M&M cookies.

Substitutions and Additions to Customize Your Cookies

One of the best things about a versatile recipe like these chocolate chip cookies is how easily you can customize them! While the base recipe is perfect as is, feel free to experiment with these fun substitutions and additions to make them uniquely yours, or to simply use what you have on hand:

• Mini M&M’s: While we used regular-sized Easter M&M’s for a bolder impact, mini M&M’s are a fantastic alternative. They distribute more evenly throughout the dough and provide smaller bursts of color and crunch in every bite.
• Other Easter Candy: Don’t limit yourself to just M&M’s! This recipe is incredibly forgiving and open to other Easter-themed candies. Consider folding in chopped Cadbury Mini Eggs for a fun, extra chocolatey, and crunchy texture. White chocolate chips or even pastel-colored chocolate chunks would also be delicious.
• Sprinkles: For an extra dose of festive flair, incorporate pastel-colored sprinkles into the dough or sprinkle them generously on top before baking. This instantly elevates the visual appeal, making your Easter cookies even more celebratory.
• Different Chocolate Chips: We love semi-sweet chocolate chips for their classic flavor, but feel free to swap them out! Dark chocolate chips will give a richer, more intense chocolate flavor, while milk chocolate chips will make the cookies sweeter and creamier. White chocolate chips or even a mix of different types of chocolate can create an exciting flavor combination.
• Nuts: If you enjoy a nutty crunch, finely chopped pecans or walnuts can be a delicious addition to the dough.

How to Make Easter Chocolate Chip Cookies: A Step-by-Step Guide

Making these soft and chewy Easter chocolate chip M&M cookies is a breeze, perfect for bakers of all skill levels. Follow these simple steps for a batch of perfectly baked, festive treats. Remember, precise measurements are key, so refer to the recipe card for exact quantities!

• Step 1 – Preheat Oven: Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees F (175°C). This ensures the oven is at the correct temperature when your cookies are ready to bake, leading to even cooking. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat for easy cleanup and to prevent sticking.

Step 2. Beat Butter and Sugars: In a large mixing bowl, combine the softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar. Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or a hand mixer, beat these ingredients together on medium speed for 2-3 minutes until the mixture is light, fluffy, and creamy. This creaming process incorporates air, which contributes to the cookies’ soft texture.

Step 3. Add Eggs and Vanilla: Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to ensure all ingredients are well incorporated. Then, add the large eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition, followed by the vanilla extract. Continue mixing until everything is thoroughly combined, and the mixture is smooth.

Step 4. Combine Wet and Dry Ingredients: In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing on low speed or by hand until just combined. Be careful not to overmix, as this can lead to tough cookies. Finally, gently fold in the semi-sweet chocolate chips and most of the pastel M&M’s. Remember to reserve a handful of M&M’s for decorating the tops of the cookies.

Step 5. Form Dough Balls: Using a cookie scoop (approximately 1.5 tablespoons per cookie), form the dough into uniform balls. Place them onto your prepared baking sheets, leaving a couple of inches between each cookie for spreading. For an even more professional and appealing look, gently press the reserved M&M’s onto the top of each cookie dough ball. This ensures those colorful candies are visible after baking.

Step 6. Bake the Cookies: Transfer the baking sheets to your preheated oven and bake for 8-10 minutes. Look for the edges to be lightly golden brown; the centers may still appear slightly undercooked or “raw.” This is perfectly normal and desired! Do not overbake, as this is the key to achieving that perfectly soft and chewy texture. The cookies will continue to cook and set as they cool on the hot baking sheet.

Step 7. Cool Completely: Once baked, remove the baking sheets from the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes. This crucial step allows them to firm up without breaking. After 5 minutes, carefully transfer the warm cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy these warm, soft, and festive Easter chocolate chip cookies!

Expert Tips for Perfect Easter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Achieving bakery-quality cookies at home is easier than you think with a few simple tricks. Follow these expert tips to ensure your Easter chocolate chip M&M cookies turn out perfectly soft, chewy, and utterly delicious every time:

• No Need to Chill (But You Can!): This particular cookie dough is designed to be baked immediately, so there’s no need for chilling if you’re in a hurry. However, if you prefer to prepare the dough ahead of time or find your cookies are spreading too much, a short chill in the fridge (30 minutes to an hour) can firm up the butter and deepen the flavors. Just place it in an airtight container or wrap it tightly in plastic wrap.
• Do Not Overbake: This is arguably the most critical tip for soft and chewy cookies. Every oven is different, so baking times are always approximate. Keep a close eye on your cookies; they should be lightly golden around the edges, but the centers should still look soft and slightly underbaked. They will continue to cook and set on the hot baking sheet, leading to that perfect gooey center. Overbaking will result in dry, hard cookies.
• Room Temperature Butter is Key: Ensure your butter is properly softened to room temperature before you start. This means it should be pliable enough to leave an indent when pressed, but not melted or greasy. Softened butter creams beautifully with sugar, incorporating air that results in a lighter, more tender cookie. Cold butter won’t cream properly, and melted butter will make your cookies spread too much.
• Accurate Measuring: Baking is a science, and precise measurements are crucial. Especially when it comes to flour, spoon your flour into the measuring cup and then level it off with a straight edge (like the back of a knife) rather than scooping directly from the bag. This prevents over-measuring, which can lead to dense, dry cookies.
• Roll Tall, Not Flat: When shaping your cookie dough balls, aim for a slightly taller, more spherical shape rather than a flat disc. This encourages the cookies to bake up thicker, resulting in a chewier center and preventing them from spreading too thin.
• Use Parchment Paper or Silicone Mats: These not only make cleanup a breeze but also help your cookies bake more evenly and prevent sticking. They also provide a consistent surface, which aids in preventing excessive spreading.
• Don’t Crowd the Baking Sheet: Give your cookie dough plenty of space to spread. Placing too many cookies on one sheet can lead to uneven baking and cookies sticking together. Bake in batches if necessary.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Easter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here are some common questions about making, storing, and freezing your Easter Chocolate Chip Cookies:

More Delicious Easter Cookies to Try

If you’re looking for even more delightful cookie recipes to complete your Easter dessert menu, check out these other fantastic options. From traditional favorites to creative twists, there’s something for everyone to enjoy:

• Italian Easter Cookies: A classic, lightly glazed cookie with a hint of citrus.
• Easter Egg Sugar Cookies: Fun, customizable sugar cookies shaped like Easter eggs, perfect for decorating.
• Easter Cake Mix Cookies: Incredibly easy and soft cookies made from a cake mix, ideal for quick baking.
• 45 Easy Spring Cookies: A comprehensive list of various cookie recipes perfect for spring and Easter.

We hope you love making and sharing these Easter chocolate chip M&M cookies as much as we do! Once you try this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and comment to let us know what you think. Your feedback helps us and other bakers!