Brown Butter M&M Cookies
These Brown Butter M&M Cookies are soft, chewy, and loaded with colorful M&M’s, all elevated with rich, nutty brown butter for an irresistible toffee-like flavor. They bake up with golden edges, gooey centers, and plenty of chocolate in every bite. A quick chill and a simple brown butter upgrade take this classic cookie to the next level.
Servings: 20 cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter browned
- ¼ cup salted butter room temperature
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp corn starch
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¾ cup regular m&ms extra for garnish
- ⅓ cup mini m&ms extra for garnish
Instructions
- First brown the butter. Add 1 cup salted butter to a saucepan and melt over medium heat. Continue cooking after it melts; the butter will foam, sizzle, and eventually turn golden brown with toasted brown specks on the bottom. Once it smells nutty and caramel-like, remove it from the heat and immediately stir in the ¼ cup cold salted butter until fully melted. Allow to cool for 10–15 minutes until warm, not hot.
- In a stand mixer or large bowl, combine the slightly cooled brown butter mixture, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and vanilla. Mix on low until smooth.
- Add the eggs one at a time while mixing on low. Add the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt. Mix on low just until the dough forms and flour is incorporated. Use a rubber spatula to fold in the regular and mini M&M’s. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and scoop 20 dough balls (I use a large 3 tbsp cookie dough scoop) Cover and chill for 30–45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place 4 dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Bake for 11–12 minutes, or until the edges are set and the centers look slightly underbaked.
- These cookies will spread, so as soon as they come out of the oven, you can use a round cookie cutter to gently scoot them into a perfect circle to reshape. This step is totally optional, but I always do it, and I also like to gently press a few extra regular and mini M&M’s into the tops while they’re still warm. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.