I call these oatmeal M&M cookies my “slow bend cookies.” The centers are so buttery and chewy that they don’t crunch and break when you start to bend them. With hearty oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, a touch of molasses, and extra chocolate candies, there’s something for every cookie lover. Chilling the cookie dough for 30 minutes is an imperative step, so make sure you set aside enough time.
If you could only have one cookie for the rest of your life, which kind would it be?
Though the competition is pretty fierce, oatmeal cookies will always be my favorite. Oatmeal creme pies, iced oatmeal cookies, white chocolate chip cherry oatmeal cookies, peanut butter oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal scotchies, soft and thick monster cookies, white chocolate macadamia oatmeal cookies, you name it. And if I had to choose my #1, it would definitely be oatmeal raisin cookies.
But when raisins aren’t on the menu (because some aren’t a fan of those little things!!) oatmeal M&M cookies come to the rescue. These soft and chewy cookies have mega mass appeal. Each bite is filled with brown sugar, cinnamon, butter, and vanilla flavors. We’re using my favorite oatmeal cookie base and filling them with colorful milk chocolate M&Ms.
This is what I call a perfect stack!
I originally published these cookies several years ago and after making them at least 1,294,587 times (probably underestimating there), I decided to spruce up the photos and make a couple slight changes to the dough including using more oats, less flour, and a touch of molasses for that classic oatmeal cookie flavor.
The Slow Bend Cookie
Like my oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, magic 5 cookies, oatmeal scotchies, and oatmeal raisin cookies, these are soft and chewy in the centers with buttery crisp edges. I’ve never had an oatmeal cookie quite like them. They’re so chewy and buttery that the cookies won’t immediately break when you bend them. That’s what I call a slow bend oatmeal cookie. No matter which add-in you use (raisins, M&Ms, chocolate chips, butterscotch morsels, etc), there’s enough chew to make a salt water taffy jealous. 🙂
Let’s Make Oatmeal M&M Cookies
- Cream butter + sugars: Use a hand or stand mixer to cream the softened butter with brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth. For extra flavor and chew, always use more brown sugar than granulated white sugar in oatmeal cookies. We use a higher brown sugar to white sugar ratio in chewy chocolate chip cookies, too.
- Add eggs, vanilla, + molasses: Add eggs, then mix on high for about 1 minute until incorporated. Add vanilla and molasses, mix until combined.
- Dry ingredients: Mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together in a separate bowl. Pour this into the wet ingredients. Combine together on low.
- Add the extras: Beat in the oats and M&Ms on low speed. I usually use mini M&Ms so there’s more in each cookie. Regular size M&Ms work too.
- Chill: The cookie dough is pretty sticky, so chilling it is imperative. Without at least 30-60 minutes in the refrigerator, your cookies will spread into flat puddles. Chilling cookie dough is my top tip for how to prevent cookies from spreading.
- Roll: Roll cookie dough into balls and place on a lined baking sheet. I love using these baking mats. Since the cookie dough chilled, it’s much easier to work with.
- Bake: Bake the cookies at 350°F (177°C) for 11-12 minutes until lightly browned around the edges. The cookies might look under-baked, but they will continue to set as they cool.
3 Success Tips
- Molasses is an optional ingredient, but I find 1 Tablespoon makes them taste like grandma’s classic oatmeal cookies. I add it to nearly all my oatmeal cookies now!
- Use thick old-fashioned whole rolled oats, not quick oats. Quick oats are thinner and more powdery, so you’ll miss out on a lot of texture.
- This recipe calls for 1 cup (2 sticks; 230g) of room temperature butter. Room temperature butter is not warm or melted in the slightest. Rather, it’s cool to touch and about 65°F (18°C). If the butter is too warm, the cookies will over-spread, which completely ruins their texture (and appearance!).
Don’t forget to save a few M&Ms to stick into the tops of the cookies when they’re warm from the oven. I do this purely for looks, so it’s totally optional!
Let’s pretend the oats cancel out the butter and sugar. Basically health food here. THESE will be the only cookie you want for the rest of your life. And chocolate chip cookies, of course. (Not dramatic at all.)
But in case you need more choices…
More Favorite Cookie Recipes
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Sugar Cookies
- Maple Brown Sugar Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Snickerdoodles
- Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chewy Oatmeal M&M Cookies
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 3 dozen
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This is my favorite oatmeal cookie dough with big chewy oats and irresistible chocolate candies. I love using mini M&Ms so more candies are in every bite! Chilling the cookie dough for at least 30 minutes is imperative.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract (yes, Tablespoon!)
- 1 Tablespoon molasses
- 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups (255g) old-fashioned whole rolled oats*
- 1 and 1/2 cups (240g) M&Ms*
Instructions
- Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream the softened butter and both sugars together on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs and mix on high until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Add the vanilla and molasses and mix on high until combined. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together. Add to the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined. Beat in the oats and M&Ms on low speed. Dough will be thick, yet very sticky. Chill the dough for 30-60 minutes in the refrigerator (do the full hour if you’re afraid of the cookies spreading too much). If chilling for longer (up to 2 days), allow to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before rolling and baking.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Roll balls of dough (about 1 and 1/2 Tablespoons of dough per cookie) and place 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. I recommend using a medium cookie scoop since the dough can be sticky. Bake for 11-12 minutes or until lightly browned on the sides. The centers will look soft and under-baked. Remove from the oven and let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies will continue to “set” on the baking sheet during this time.
- Cover and store leftover cookies at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Baked cookies freeze well up to three months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well—up to three months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Here’s how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Medium Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack
- Oats: For these oatmeal cookies, I use and recommend old-fashioned whole oats. They provide the ultimate hearty, chewy, thick texture we love!
- Eggs: Room temperature eggs preferred. Good rule of thumb: always use room temperature eggs when using room temperature butter.
- M&Ms: I recommend using mini M&Ms so there’s more in each bite. Regular M&Ms work too. If the M&Ms are larger, such as peanut M&Ms or peanut butter M&Ms, I recommend chopping them. If desired, grab an extra 2 Tablespoons of M&Ms and press a few into the top of each cookie when they’re warm from the oven. This is purely for looks!
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
- Adapted from Loaded Oatmeal Cookies & Oatmeal Creme Pies. Recipe originally published on Sally’s Baking Addiction in 2012.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Hi Sally. Am I ok to make the dough and leave it in the fridge for a day? Wasn’t sure since it has oats in it – not sure if this messes up the moisture factor. Thank you!
Yes, it will be just fine! If it’s too difficult to scoop when you remove it let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes until it’s soft enough to scoop.
Hi Sally,
These look great for back-to-school snacks! Have you tried replacing half the butter with apple sauce? Would love to hear your thoughts on making a lower fat version . Thanks!
I have not tried using applesauce in these cookies. You can certainly try it, just keep in mind the chewy texture will not be the same. If you are interested in some healthier cookie recipes search the blog for “breakfast cookies” and you will find many options!
Sally when you bake anything that has whole candies, or chocolate chips etc. and you want to add some extra on top for looks, do you always place them on top once you remove the recipe from the oven to cool? Just was wondering what you recommended doing. Thanks, Vicki
Hi Vicki! Yes, that’s what I usually do. I press a few add-ins (chocolate chips, M&Ms, nuts, etc) into the tops immediately when I take the cookies out of the oven when they’re still warm. This is just for looks!
These look SO LOADED Sally!!! I love oatmeal cookies……more than choc chip cookies! 😉 So chewy and textured and flavourful…And these ones are loaded with so many mini M&Ms – you’re the only baker/blogger I’ve found to whose recipes I don’t have to up the amount of add-ins! You always have the perfect amount with add-ins in every single bite…thank you Sally!These look SO LOADED Sally!!! I love oatmeal cookies……more than choc chip cookies! 😉 So chewy and textured and flavourful…And these ones are loaded with so many mini M&Ms – you’re the only baker/blogger I’ve found to whose recipes I don’t have to up the amount of add-ins! You always have the perfect amount with add-ins in every single bite…thank you Sally!
Hi Sally, These look delicious! Does the recipe require an add in? Sounds like these may be just what I am looking for without any of the add ins.
Hi Cathy! You can definitely leave out the M&Ms. Feel free to add a little more cinnamon for extra flavor, if desired!
These cookies look fabulous! Perfect to make with kids!
I’m not the best at baking but I love it since my mom is amazing at it. I also love oatmeal cookies. I would assume it’s the cinnamon that gives the unique taste, but I love these cookies and I would make them again, thought I would most likely double the batch because it didn’t even fill up two baking sheets. But anyway, thank you for sharing this recipe!
These are my absolute go-to cookie! I’m not normally a fan of oatmeal cookies, but these are so addictive I can’t (and neither can my partner!) get enough! An absolute staple – thank you all the way from New Zealand!
These are amazing! I substituted m&m for smarties as we have a peanut allergy in our house. I was pleased to find a “monster cookie” recipe without peanut butter. So good! Thank you!
Very yummy cookies. Thanks for the recipe!
Holy crap are these good cookies! I was looking for an easy to take cookie to take on our “girls getaway” weekend, just something to nibble on in the hotel room in the evening. I have tried lots of oatmeal cookie recipes in the past, but I’ve never found one that I was totally happy with – either too crunchy or too chewy or overpowering add in flavors. These are simple, crispy and chewy at the same time and not so cloyingly sweet that you can only manage one at a time. I didn’t have any M&M minis in the house but I DID have Reese’s mini’s in the pantry…peanut butter and oatmeal, magical combination! I did make a double batch, I wanted to take some but also have some for in the house too, and I ended up with close to 5 dz! Thanks for a great recipe!
Just made these tonight and OMG!!! Seriously the most delicious cookies I’ve ever had!!! The oatmeal makes them taste so light and not too sweet. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
these were wonderful!! I made them for my family and EVERYONE LOVED THEM!!
I have been making these cookies a lot lately. This weekend, I made the cookie base and added white chocolate chips and dried cranberries. I love how versatile this recipe is! Thank you for sharing!
Just made these and ate 6 hot from the oven. Incredibly good. Made them for Christmas Eve. I love that they keep their shape and don’t spread out flat. I’m usually not a big fan of oatmeal cookies but these are fantastic. Thanks for the recipe.
Perfect cookies!
Made these wonderful cookies tonight! So yummy and soft…perfect way to get in my oatmeal cookie fix 🙂 Thanks Sally!!
Yum! Is there a way to make these into.bar cookies? Do I need to do anything different? Merry Christmas to you and your family!
Just bake in a square baking pan. Unsure of the exact bake time.
I made these cookies because I had some Christmas M&Ms and I didn’t have the right ingredients to make another recipe of yours. Boy am I glad I didn’t because they cookies are amazing. They melt in your mouth and the texture of the oats is wonderful. Never underestimate the power of a simple cookie!!!!
These were the best cookies I ever made! I’m so happy I had some leftover dough so I can make more! Thank you!! 🙂
These came out amazing! Some of them I over cooked a little so they were not as chewy but the rest were still chewy 2 days later. This is my new favorite recipe!
I made this recipe tonight. Very tasty and east to do! Thanks for the recipe!
I made these for the SuperBowl in Patriots and Seahawks colors- seriously one of the best cookie recipes I have ever made. They are flying!!! I can’t wait to use the oatmeal cookie base with different types of m&m and other additions. Thanks for this new staple!!!!
I just made these tonight on a whim because I had some leftover M&Ms from the holidays kicking around that needing something done with them (so I didn’t chow down on them all in one sitting!) and they.are.incredible. My brother practically melted when he popped one in his mouth. Definite keeper right here, wow!
Excellent recipe. Love these cookies with the mini M&Ms. Thanks Sally!
I just made these for a holiday party and they are the best cookies I’ve ever made! Thank you!!!
I’ve made these before and they were delicious! I am making them today for a Christmas party but the I want to bake them on convection because I feel it makes a better cookie (soft center with crispy edge)!! Do you have a recommendation for baking temp and time? Thanks, Nicole
Yep! Reduce oven temp by 25 degrees and bake for the same amount of time.
These cookies are great! I just baked them on the regular oven setting but was wondering if, in general, you use the convection or regular setting on the oven. Thanks – your recipes are so great!
I’ve already made three batches of these cookies in a week!! Everyone loves them, they go so fast. In fact, my mom said these were the best cookies I’ve ever made. I did alter them a bit though. We’re not fans of m and m’s so instead I added craisins, raisins, toffee bits and unsweetened shredded coconut OMG lol!! So good. .. I also added some sprinkles, because why not? The second and third batches I made I just put in craisins, raisins, coconut and white chocolate chips!! Absolutely delicious. I keep thinking about what else I could put in them… Maybe peanut butter 🙂
Thank you for this amazing recipie… This is now my go to oatmeal cookie!!
Let me say, I have never commented on a blog post before, but these cookies…
I’ve been looking for a great oatmeal cookie for years. Finally found it! These are perfect! Thank you for the recipe!
These were good. I used quick oats and they turned out great.