Soft and Chewy Double Chocolate M&M Cookies

Cookie burnout – if it’s a real thing, I think I have it. Over the past week or so I’ve been working to develop a few new cookie recipes and as a result, I’ve eaten more cookies than I’d care to admit. One batch after another, the cookies emerged from the oven and of course need to be sampled so I could decide if the latest tweak to the recipe was successful. When I thought I couldn’t eat another cookie I tried to engage poor Shane as the taste tester, but quickly realized that the inquisition which followed (Are they chewy? Soft enough? How’s the chocolate flavor? Too few M&Ms?) wasn’t fun for either of us.

Though let’s be honest, any time I make a new recipe what follows is at least five rapid-fire questions directed at Shane to help me decide if the recipe is blogworthy. Between that and the lukewarm dinners we often eat after I’m done taking photos, sometimes I can’t help but wonder what he really thinks about living with a food blogger. Sure, there’s no shortage of tasty food, but at what price? 🙂

Anyway, it was all worth it, because in the end I wound up with a cookie I really loved. I’m a soft and chewy cookie girl all the way, I’d be hard-pressed to come up with even a few thin and crispy cookies that I enjoy. So of course these cookies had to be soft and chewy, and they are! I put a few aside to see if they had staying power, and even on day 4, they still had that great texture. Have you guys heard about the trick of adding cornstarch to your cookies to make them super soft? I first saw it here on Kelsey’s blog years ago but only tried it for the first time in this recipe. What an easy trick to get soft cookies! I used mini M&M’s in my cookies because for whatever reason I much prefer them over chocolate chips, but the choice is yours.

I think I just might bake another batch of these using only the yellow and black M&M’s in support of the Bruins for tonight’s game. Apparently my cookie burnout was short-lived 🙂

Soft and Chewy Double Chocolate M&M Cookies
from Tracey’s Culinary Adventures

{Note: I press a few M&M’s into the tops of the cookie dough balls before baking so the M&M’s stay on top and the cookies are more colorful after baking. You can do the same thing with chocolate chips if you want.}

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup mini M&Ms

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt together (you could just whisk, but I like to sift cocoa powder to make sure I get all the lumps out). In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and both sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg and then the vanilla. With the mixer on low, gradually add the dry ingredients, beating just until combined. Mix in the mini M&M’s.

Using a small cookie scoop (mine measures about 1 1/2 inches across), portion the batter onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies about 2 inches apart. Bake for about 8 minutes (rotating the baking sheets halfway through if you’re doing both at once) or until the edges of the cookies are set (the centers may look underdone – don’t overbake!). Transfer the baking sheets to wire racks and let the cookies cool for a few minutes then remove the cookies to the wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with all of the dough.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies