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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
My 12 yo daughter made these and they are so good. I took the last six scooped cookie dough and froze to enjoy later (or until my son finds it).
Hey Monica,
Wonderful! I’m so glad this recipe turned out nicely for you, thanks for making it! Merry Christmas!!🎄🎁☃️
I made these over the weekend and some of my cookies spread a lot in the oven! Any idea why? This only happened to a few and the rest were great.
Hi Yesenia,
Thanks so much for trying these cookies! Weird that no all of them spread…was there anything you may have adjusted? Was that batch of dough possibly super warm? Thanks again! xx
These cookies are SO good. They came out perfect – though I skipped the ending M&M placement and just put them all in the batter.
FWIW, in my oven which is pretty accurate, I baked for 6min, then rotated, then baked for another 6. Removed the pan and let them cool on there.
Thank you!
Thank you so much Mike! So glad these monster cookies were a hit! xT
Can I substitute sea salt or pink himalayan salt for kosher salt?
Hi Ginger! Either will work! 🙂 xT
Hi there. If I make the cookies smaller how long do I bake them in the oven? Thanks!
Hi Mary Ann! I would take about 3 mins off the bake time! Let me know how they turn out! 🙂 xT
Ty! Merry Christmas
Make this recipe every year, it’s the best holiday cookie? Planning to make dough ahead – how long can I leave in fridge before needing to bake? Thanks, happy holidays 🙂
Aw thank you Bridgette! The dough should last about 48 hours in the fridge before needing to bake! xT
Hello! Just wondering if there can be made into cookie bars without adjusting any measurements/baking time? Looking to bake in an 8×8 pan. Thank you!
Hi there! Yes, that should work just fine! If you are baking in an 8×8 pan, I would guess you’ll need to bake for for closer to 20 mins but keep an eye on them! I’m sure they’ll be so yummy as bars 🙂 xT
Hi! If we make without oats, do any other adjustments need to be made?
Hi there,
Yes, you will want to add more flour in place of the oats, I would try 1/4 cup. I hope this helps! Happy Holidays! xx
What did I do wrong? My cookies spread so thin. Paper thin. I tossed them all because they didn’t work out.
Hi Lydia,
Ohh no! So sorry to hear this! My guess is your dough was super warm. Next time, try chilling your dough so the cookies don’t spread too much. I hope this helps! xT
My friend made these for an exchange and I loved them so much I asked for the recipe. I do have a question though, if I were to make the dough and refrigerate it overnight would it be okay? My biggest concern would be the pretzels getting soggy in the batter.
Hi there,
So glad to hear you enjoyed these cookies! Yes, that would be just fine for you to do:) If you are worried about the pretzels, you can always add those before baking. Happy Holidays! xT
My second grader had a vision for cookies with a specific variety of mix-ins. I found this recipe in my google search for something to use and then tweak. I hate reviews that then list all the ways they changed something, and this is not that review. More a note to say this is a flexible starting point! We used mini-marshmallows, white chocolate chips, and mini m&ms (all kiddo’s direction) instead of what’s listed in this recipe. They were perfection! We used the tip to skip the extra yolk, and we chilled the dough. These still spread quite a bit, and are a rather flat cookie. But soft and chewy and truly so good we will for sure make again and again. Thank you!
Thanks so much, Morgan:) I am so glad to hear you enjoyed these cookies and were able to make them to your liking! Happy Holidays! xT
I ate one warm out of the oven and it was awesome! Can they be microwaved once they are cooled? I’m giving as Christmas gifts and would like to share the “warm” experience!
Hey Mary,
Perfect!! Love to hear this recipe was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it and your comment! Yes, totally, that would be just fine for you to do! xT
Loved these so much, these are a new favorite in the Christmas cookie rotation! Wondering if it would be ok to make ahead and freeze to make later?
Hey Lauren,
Perfect!! Love to hear this recipe was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it and your comment! You bet, that will work nicely for you. xT
This recipe doesn’t work. Do not recommend.
Hi Hunter,
So sorry to hear these cookies did not work for you. Is there something specific that went wrong? Is there anything that I can help with? Please let me know! xx
These taste really good but are coming out flat for me. Any high altitude alteration recommendations? I’m cooking at 5280 ft
Hi Allison,
Thanks so much for making these cookies! I like a flatter cookie, but if you want something more puffy, try chilling your dough before baking. I hope this helps! xx