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Christmas Monster Cookies for your December weekend baking…festive, easy, and sweet. Homemade chocolate chip cookies, made with oats, pretzels pieces, plenty of chocolate chunks, white chocolate, and plenty of holiday M&M’s. There’s nothing not to love about these sweet chocolate (crunch) cookies. Each bite is slightly crisp on the edges but soft and gooey in the center…with just a little salty pretzel crunch and milk chocolate throughout.
Fridays in December are just better! There are holiday parties, searching for the perfect gift for someone you love, and baking the nights away with family and friends. Well, at least that’s the “Hallmark” version I have in my head.
The reality is a little less picture-perfect for sure, but I’m definitely doing the baking! It’s one of the reasons we love this season the most. I mean there are so many cookies! As I said on Tuesday, this year I’m really focusing on all of the holiday cookies I haven’t made before.
My list of cookies is a mile long, but I only have a handful of days to share them. So, I’m trying to pick the very best on my list. It’s tricky, but I always knew these cookies needed to be shared. The combination of ingredients is just too good.
The steps are easy
One: gather your ingredients. You’ll need the basics…butter, sugar, flour, etc. Simple, simple, nothing fancy, but all good.
Two: the stir-ins, they’re are the most important part. You’ll need old fashioned oats, salted pretzel twists, semi-sweet or dark chocolate chunks, and white chocolate chips. And then plenty of red and green holiday M&M’s, which really make these cookies.
Three: beat, mix, stir, bake.
Four: eat these cookies warm, just out of the oven, because these are those kind of gooey delicious cookies.
A couple notes
It’s important to note that these cookies do spread, so be careful when cooking the cookie dough! They’re meant to have slightly crisp edges and perfectly soft gooey centers, just like in the photos. My favorite type of cookie…totally delicious.
If you want a bit of a thicker cookie, simply omit the additional egg yolk and use only two eggs. This will give you a thicker cookie without as much spreading.
To get the M&M’s to really pop, my trick is to add in a few just before the cookies finish baking completely. This way each cookie has a bit of the festive M&M’s right on top.
What I love about these cookies is that they’re so easy to make. They require no chilling and they really are completely no fuss. Especially when it comes to Christmas cookies.
These cookies have perfectly crisp edges, yet soft and gooey centers. They’ve got a nice crunch plus a little saltiness from the pretzels – the best kind of cookie.
I’m excited to include these in the year’s Christmas cookie box. They’re perfect for packing up and gifting to friends for the holidays!
Looking for other Christmas cookies? Here are my favorites:
Easy Vanilla Bean Christmas Lights Cookies
Easy Hot Chocolate Lace Cookies
Lastly, if you make these Christmas Monster Cookies, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Christmas Monster Cookies
Servings: 20 cookies
Calories Per Serving: 364 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, plus 1 egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups old fashioned oats
- 1 1/4 cups holiday M&M’s
- 1 cup mini pretzel sticks, crushed
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks
- 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and vanilla until combined. Beat in the eggs and 1 egg yolk, 1 at a time, until combined. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Beat in the oats. 3. Fold in 1 cup of the M&M's, the pretzels, chocolate chips, and white chocolate. 4. Roll the dough into 1/4 cup size balls. Place 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. 5. Transfer to the oven and bake for 8 minutes, then rotate the pan and bake another 2 minutes. Pull the pan out and push the remaining M&M's into the cookies. Bake 2-3 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet. They will continue to cook slightly as they sit on the baking sheet. 6. Eat warm (highly recommended) or let cool and store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
This post was originally published on December 3, 2021
Hi Tieghan! These are the perfect cookie, as they have all of my favorite things in them! I am going to make them again, and add nuts…let’s see how they stack up against Levain Bakery’s deliciousness…
Kristen
Hey Kristen,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
Hi, can these cookies be made gluten free?
Hi Marissa,
Yes, you can use an equal amount of GF flour. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
I just made these last night and they are delicious! Thanks for adding to my cookie list!
Hi Jodie,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
I made these to give as gifts to some teachers and the administrative staff at the school my husband works at I got some many compliments! These are so delicious and easy to make! Definitely going to be making these every year!
Hi Megan,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
Made these tonight and we are obsessed! Family loves them! Sweet and salty yum. Made a couple of small tweaks – used Cup4Cup gluten free flour and coconut sugar in place of the white sugar and they came out SO good. New fav – all year round.
Hey Leslie,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
Mine turned out so thin that when you picked them up, they fell a part like sand. Any idea where I went wrong? I followed the instructions to a tee.
Mine did as well and I’d love help trouble shooting this one.
Hi Julie,
Was there anything you adjusted? What kind of oats did you use? xTieghan
Hi Kait,
So sorry to hear this! What kind of oats did you use? Let me know how I can help! xTieghan
These are soo good! But they are very sweet so you may want to do half the add-in’s. Easy to make and makes a ton of cookies! My kids LOVED THEM!!
Hi Vivian,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
Vert yummy! I like the mix of salty & sweet. I am making them today for Christmas Day, so 6 days out. Can I freeze them or will they be ok in a Tupperware air tight container?
Hi Beth,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. I would freeze. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
These cookies were soo good! I made them to take to work and it made so many so that was perfect! I loved that these cookies look so festive without having to do some fancy icing decoration!
Hi Samantha,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
OMG OMG! Hands down the best chocolate chip cookie recipe I have ever made. They are high end bakery status that you would pay $7 for!! I adapted a bit and left out the m&ms (I know that’s a little lame, but don’t love that candy in cookies) and swapped in macadamia nuts. I used dark chocolate chunks and sprinkled in some white chocolate like the recipe. Highly recommend chunks to make these ultra decadent. I also put in a dash of almond extract since I love that flavor! So much you can do with this recipe and it’s a keeper that would impress friends, family, or to make just for yourself 🙂
Also forgot to point out I left out the pretzels !! You really don’t need all those extra toppings – the recipe is soooo good and I think chocolate and nuts add all the extra pop you need! Otherwise it’s a bit rich for my taste
Thanks again Lauren!
Hi Lauren,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Thanks so much for your kind message. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
I loved the idea of these cookies, and they are very tasty as the recipe is written, but very sweet and spread a lot with all the add-ins. Next time I will be reducing the amount of semi sweet chocolate to half and skipping the white chocolate chips. I just want more cookie than chocolate. Also please note that if you are baking with a dark nonstick pan, reduce the initial cooking time by 2-3 minutes. So cook for 7 minutes, then 1-2, then 1-2. Per cooking directions, cookies on stainless pan were perfect but cookies on dark nonstick are overdone, no matter what rack they were on in the oven (cooking at 350 convect).
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try. The baking instructions are per regular oven bake:) xTieghan
Any suggested modifications for high-altitude baking?
Hi Stephanie,
No adjustments are needed, you can follow the recipe as is. Please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Made these along with other HBH cookies for a holiday gift for work friends & they came out great! I did halve the chocolate chips, white chocolate, and M&Ms as I thought it was maybe too much in the dough, but otherwise I did exactly as directed.
Hi Meg,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Happy Holidays!❄️ xT
I tested this recipe in advance of possibly making them for Christmas Eve with my in-laws but these were far too sweet for my taste unfortunately! Next time I’d use ~half of the add-ins and instead of semi-sweet baking chips I’d probably use a dark chocolate bar and crumble it up, and just add the m&m’s on top for decoration. The idea is lovely and the pretzels add a really nice touch!! I could’ve certainly used more pretzels! I’m just too picky about sweetness 🙂
The parchment paper is key for not having burnt bottoms due to M&M’s, even if using a nonstick cookie sheet. Took me a round to figure that out!
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try Lyndsay! Happy Holidays! xTieghan
These are super easy & delicious!! I made half with pretzels and half without, and liked the batch without pretzels better. I felt like the pretzels were a little soggy (brand new bag)…but maybe I crunched them wrong or something? Next time I might try with coconut flakes for an added crunch vs the pretzels, but even without they’re great!
Hey Andrea,
Awesome! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it. Did you crunch them too much? Happy Holidays!❄️ xT