Monster Cookies Recipe (2024)

By Nigella Lawson

Monster Cookies Recipe (1)

Total Time
45 minutes
Rating
4(1,925)
Notes
Read community notes

Studded with colored candies (delicious if they are peanut-filled, too), these treats are an amazing way to end a grown-up supper, and a very useful way to keep a roomful of boisterous children happy.

Featured in: AT MY TABLE; A Lot Tastier Than a Jack-o'-Lantern

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Ingredients

Yield:12 3½- to 4-inch cookies

  • 1cup flour
  • ½teaspoon baking powder
  • ½teaspoon salt
  • 1cup rolled oats
  • 9tablespoons butter, at room temperature
  • ½cup light brown sugar
  • ½cup superfine sugar
  • 1large egg
  • 1teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¾cup chopped pecans
  • 1cup M&M's or other sugar-coated candies like Reese's pieces

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (14 servings)

279 calories; 16 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 32 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 19 grams sugars; 4 grams protein; 130 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Monster Cookies Recipe (2)

Preparation

  1. Step

    1

    Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt and rolled oats. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine butter, light brown sugar and superfine sugar. Beat until creamy. Add egg and vanilla, and beat again until smooth.

  2. Add flour mixture to butter mixture, and beat until smooth. By hand, fold in chopped pecans and M&M's.

  3. Step

    3

    Roll quarter-cup measures of dough into balls and flatten them into fat disks (about ½ inch thick). Place on a parchment-lined or greased baking sheet, about 6 at a time, so they have room to spread.

  4. Step

    4

    Bake until cookies are risen, dry on surface and very lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes. They will be too soft to lift from baking sheet. Set aside to harden for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Ratings

4

out of 5

1,925

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Jake Wagman

These were awesome! I’m eight years old and I made them without any help.

NYC Chef Mama

the photo above does not honestly represent this recipe. the MnMs in the photo have been pressed into the cookie by hand after, or near the end of, baking. If you follow the recipe above, and fold the candies into the dough, as told to, the MnMs will be covered in dough and the colors will bleed into the dough as they bake.

Catherine

Actually, I just made these, as directed, using Reese's Pieces instead of M&Ms and they turned out exactly as pictured.

Jean Laughlin Miller

Made them smaller and used what I had on hand. I switched out regular sugar for superfine, walnuts for pecans and kosher salt for regular. I was a bit short for M&M's so topped the cup off with chocolate chips. Hands down, the best cookies I've ever made and I'm a sixty-seven year old who has been making cookies since I was eleven. Good job, Nigella!

Emi

I made these cookies and they turned out nicely. I used peanut M&Ms (sorted through to pick out fall/Halloween colors) and omitted the pecans. I did have to reduce the cooking time to around 12 minutes. Definitely important to flatten the cookies by hand, and make sure none of the M&Ms in your dough ball are directly touching the cookie sheet, otherwise they'll melt and the bottom of the cookie will fall apart. Overall, I'd make them again.

hcg

Worked beautifully. For the bold, add softened vanilla ice cream between two and freeze for a couple hours to get a top-tier chipwich.

Gmama

Made these pressing the M&M"s into tops of dough as recommended and also reduced cooking time to 12 minutes- they came out Great! Will use this cookie recipe again and again-

Jesse

I don't see the real need for superfine/caster sugar in here. It's not a souffle, we're not going for refined dessert here. Regular granulated works perfectly well!

Sara

A recipe made with shortening, rather than butter, is likely to be crispier.

Naz

This is similar to oatmeal cookies found on the Quaker can so I'm sure you can go without nuts.

MN-Andrea

I used generic M&M-type candies bought in bulk at my co-op, and I mixed them into the dough. Had no problem with the color seeping out into the cookies.

Bake them?

I love these cookies! I have substituted mint chocolate chips for the pecans - Rave reviews! I sometimes make them smaller as well and bake them for less time. a keeper!

Deb

Made this for Christmas with red and green m and m’s and about half the size (22 grams) and got 40 cookies. As sn afterthought, thought they would be really good with coconut also.

Kristina

Not a nut fan.how necessary are the pecans?

Kate

Make with heaping tablespoons. About seven/eight to a sheet.

Sarah

For regular-sized cookies, bake about 12 minutes. Makes about 40.

Anne Marie Peterson

My mom and I LOVE this recipe. We have made multiple batches, some with M & Ms and some with chocolate chips instead. The cookies are a fav with us!

Liz

They’re good. Not great. Followed recipe as written. Converted to grams so I could be accurate. A little too sweet- and yes I realize it’s a cookie so it should be sweet, but this was a bit too much for my taste. I prefer my monster cookies with peanut butter for sure. Will go back to my original monster cookie recipe.

IK

Made a double batch with smaller cookie for my son’s class party. Used ~1 tbsp less butter, halved white sugar (actually course turbinado sugar). Melted the butter in microwave, whisked in wet ingredients then folded in dry, no mixer needed. Because of all the nut allergies I used sunflower seeds (raw) instead of nuts, thank you for that tip! Used TJ brand plain “M&Ms” to avoid artificial food colors. Candies paled from baking but cookies taste amazing. Love the texture from oats &seeds!

Mary

Everyone loved these. I used peanuts in place of pecans because I had them!

H.B.

I used Reeses Pieces and made these into much smaller cookies. They were a hit with all my co-workers!

John

Followed the recipe exactly, they were perfect. Love the soft center and slight chewy crust, perfect combo in a cookie. can't wait to make these again, would make a great gift!

Sylvia

I followed recipe to a tee and the cookies are delicious. However, within two or three days they become dry and hard. The cure is to microwave 20 seconds which restores their chewy goodness.

Madison

Made with Reese's pieces and no stand mixer. Only needed 15 minutes in the oven

Katharine

These worked wonderfully gluten free. Reserve a few candies to place on top for prettier cookies.

Christine VB

Made with 3/4 cup of Reeses Pieces and 1/4 cup white chocolate chips that I wanted to use up. A stick of butter instead of 9 tablespoons. After reading the comments, I used half a cup of turbinado sugar instead of the other sugars. Made them a bit smaller than called for, coming out with 17 cookies. Yummy!

whitt911

I used Peanut Butter M&Ms - no nuts. Turned out amazing!

Annis

Baked with 3 different kinds of m&ms (regular, peanut & crispy) for 13 mins. I reduced the total sugar by a fifth and subbed allulose for half. Lovely, chewy cookies with great flavor!!

Danvillerose

Made these a few times, trying different tactics. Each batch was made without pecans, using regular not super fine sugar, and normal cookie-size, not “monster.” Used mini M&M’s.First batch - added the M&M’s on top before baking. M&M’s cracked. Cookies were bland.Second batch - added M&M’s to batter AND chocolate chips. M&M’s on tops before baking. Still cracked but much tastier.Third batch - added only choc chips to batter, no M&M’s; put M&M’s on tops AFTER baking. Bingo!

Nancy

Delish recipe - made them a tad smaller and baked them a bit longer because we like our cookies a bit caramelized. Really tasty!

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Monster Cookies Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why are my monster cookies falling apart? ›

Cooking falling apart – The most common reasons cookies end up crumbly are using too much flour, be sure to either weigh your flour or spoon it into your measuring cup before leveling. Using the wrong kind of peanut butter may also be the culprit, be sure to see the note about peanut butter.

What's the deal with Cookie Monster's cookies? ›

Cookie eventually moved to “Sesame Street,” where he presumably found a good rent-stabilized apartment. It turns out the cookies are real — sort of. They are baked at the home of Lara MacLean, who has been a “puppet wrangler” for the Jim Henson Company for almost three decades.

What is Monster cookie made of? ›

Monster Cookies are typically made with a peanut butter cookie base, and loaded up with oats, m&ms, and chocolate chips! Besides those mix-ins, you'll need a few other simple ingredients, which yield an incredibly delicious cookie! Butter – I love salted butter, but you can use unsalted if you prefer.

What is in a Cookie Monster? ›

These cookie monster cookies combine chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, Oreos, and chocolate chip cookies all wrapped in a soft and gooey cookie dough! They can be made using regular dairy ingredients, or you can make them entirely dairy free using dairy free butter and vegan white chocolate.

Why aren t my monster cookies spreading? ›

If you reduce the amount of butter or oil in a recipe, your cookies won't spread as much. If you add too much flour, your cookies won't spread as much. If your cookies have more brown sugar than white sugar, they won't spread as much. It's a careful balance.

How to stop cookies from crumbling? ›

How to Keep Cookies on a Baking Sheet from Crumbling and Sticking
  1. Follow Your Recipe. Cookie and bar recipes are generally more forgiving than cakes, but all baking is based on chemistry. ...
  2. Grease Your Pan. Jason Donnelly. ...
  3. Line Your Pan or Cookie Sheet. ...
  4. Give Your Cookies Time to Cool. ...
  5. Cut the Bars and Remove Cookies from Sheet.
Oct 31, 2022

What disability does Cookie Monster have? ›

The Count has OCD (in the form of arithomania), and Cookie Monster has an eating disorder. Ernie has a form of ADD, while Bert has OCPD (Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder). Snuffleupagus often appears severely depressed, and Big Bird, PT says, is schizophrenic due to having an imaginary best friend.

Who is Cookie Monster's girlfriend? ›

Cookie Monster, a character from the children's TV show Sesame Street, does not have a canonically established girlfriend in the show. Throughout the years, Cookie Monster has appeared in various skits and segments, but he has not been portrayed as having a romantic relationship with another character on the show.

What is Cookie Monster's weakness? ›

The Cookie Monster's secret weakness is... vegetables.

What is in cowboy cookies? ›

As with most things in Texas, Bush's Cowboy Cookies are enormous and wholly stuffed with so many mix-ins: oats, coconut, pecans, and of course, chocolate chips. They're sure to win over any crowd.

What did Cookie Monster originally look like? ›

Cookie Monster did not start off as he did, in 1966 he was introduced as Wheel-Stealer and had sharp pointed teeth. In 1967, he changed again to have dark green fur but still had his sharp teeth. In 1969 his name was Arnold, he was purple, and had no teeth.

What does an egg yolk do in cookies? ›

Egg yolks are high in fat in relation to the egg white which is high in protein so often acts as a binder. Adding egg yolks to the cookies yields a super tender, chewy cookie. Egg Yolk Cookies are slightly richer in flavour from the additional fat from the yolk.

Did Cookie Monster eat real cookies? ›

He is able to feed himself because his hands are simply gloves for the performer's hands, and he has a hole in his mouth that runs down the performer's sleeve. The cookies that are eaten by Cookie Monster are rice crackers that are made to look like cookies because the oils from actual cookies would damage the puppet.

Why are my monster cookies crumbly? ›

3. Why are my Monster Cookies falling apart? If Monster cookies are removed from the baking sheet too soon after coming out of the oven, they are prone to cracking and crumbling. Let the baked cookies stand for 3 minutes on the baking sheet before removing them to a rack to cool completely.

Why do my cookies fall apart so easily? ›

Too much flour: If you add too much flour to your cookie dough, it will be dry and crumbly. Make sure to measure your flour correctly using a kitchen scale or by spooning it into your measuring cup and then leveling it off. Not enough fat: Fat helps to bind the ingredients together and make cookies chewy.

How do I make my cookies not fall apart? ›

Too much flour = crumbly cookies

If you don't want to measure by weight, try sifting your flour first and scooping flour into your measuring cup with a spoon, and don't pack it down into the cup. If all else fails, try reducing the amount of flour in the recipe by 10%.

Why is my cookie dough breaking apart? ›

Dry – “Dry” or “Crumbly” dough is a product of over-mixing or using too much of any ingredient during the mixing process. This can be reversed by adding one to two tablespoons of liquid (water, milk or softened butter) to your mix.

Why do my sugar cookies break? ›

Roll it too thin, and the dough will be really fragile and may easily tear or break. Roll it too thick, and you run the risk of the cookies not baking evenly or cooking all the way through. → Follow this tip: For super soft, tender sugar cookies, roll the dough to 1/4-inch thick.

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