We have another new recipe and I am SO excited about this one! These Mini Brown Butter M&M Cookies are perfect for tucking into any Christmas cookie box, or honestly, just make a TON of them because they are SO good and incredibly easy to make. I cannot be more obsessed. They’re loaded with mini M&Ms and mini chocolate chips, and they are literally bite-sized. Each little cookie is about the size of a teaspoon, which means you can eat a whole handful for the price of one regular cookie. That’s just math, love.
This dough is very similar to my brown butter chocolate chip cookies, just with a little bit more flour so these tiny guys hold their shape and don’t spread too much in the oven. I filled an ENTIRE Christmas tin with these mini M&M cookies and brought them to my family’s house for Sunday family dinner, and they were an absolute HIT. If you’re feeling really fun, pour a handful into a bowl of milk and eat them like cereal. It gives total Cookie Crisp vibes, and if you grew up eating that like I did, you know exactly how nostalgic that is!
I’m currently building my dream Christmas cookie box, and these are 100% in the lineup. They’re the perfect little filler cookie, and they make the CUTEST easy holiday gift for neighbors, teachers, and coworkers. I’m already dreaming up fun variations, so don’t be surprised if some mini sugar cookies come your way soon!
P.S. Use MINIS for everything here! The secret to this recipe is piping the dough straight from a piping bag instead of scooping and rolling hundreds of tiny balls. Regular sized chocolate chips and M&Ms will clog the bag, so mini chips and mini M&Ms are a must. This is also why the recipe is completely no chill!
What Are Mini M&M Cookies?
Mini M&M cookies are exactly what they sound like: tiny, bite-sized versions of the classic M&M chocolate chip cookie! Instead of big bakery-style cookies, the dough is portioned into little teaspoon-sized mounds that bake up soft, chewy, and SO poppable. This version uses brown butter for a rich, toasty flavor that makes them taste way fancier than they are.
Because they’re so small, they bake in just about 8 minutes, they pack beautifully into tins and jars, and they’re the perfect size for kids, cookie boxes, party snack bowls, and yes, cookie cereal. They’re basically the most fun cookie you can make this holiday season!
Ingredients Needed
- Unsalted Butter: This gets browned on the stove to create that rich, toasty, nutty flavor that makes these cookies taste SO special. Browning the butter cooks out some of the water and toasts the milk solids, which adds a caramel-like depth to every bite. Using unsalted lets you control exactly how much salt goes into the dough.
- Light Brown Sugar: This is the main sweetener and it brings moisture, chewiness, and a gentle molasses flavor. It pairs perfectly with the brown butter to give these mini cookies that classic soft and chewy center. Make sure you pack it into your measuring cup.
- Granulated Sugar: A little white sugar helps the edges get lightly crisp and golden. It balances out the brown sugar so the cookies aren’t too soft or cakey. It also helps create that glossy, smooth dough when it’s mixed with the butter.
- Large Eggs: The eggs bind everything together and give the cookies structure and richness. They also help create that shiny, glossy dough texture after mixing. Room temperature eggs blend in more smoothly with the cooled brown butter.
- Vanilla Extract: Vanilla rounds out all that brown butter and sugar flavor and makes the cookies taste warm and bakery-style. It enhances the chocolate without overpowering anything. Use pure vanilla for the best flavor.
- All-Purpose Flour: Flour gives the cookies their structure. This recipe uses a little more than my regular brown butter chocolate chip cookies so these tiny bites hold their shape and don’t spread into flat little puddles. Spoon and level your flour so you don’t accidentally pack in too much.
- Cornstarch: Just a tablespoon makes a BIG difference! Cornstarch keeps the cookies extra soft and tender in the center. It also helps them stay thick instead of spreading.
- Baking Powder: This gives the cookies a little lift so they bake up puffy and soft. Since these are so small, a gentle rise keeps them looking like perfect little bites. Make sure yours is fresh for the best results.
- Fine Grain Salt: Salt balances all the sweetness and makes the brown butter and chocolate flavors really pop. Fine grain salt dissolves evenly through the dough. Don’t skip it!
- Mini Chocolate Chips: Mini chips mean chocolate in every single tiny bite. Their small size is what lets the dough flow smoothly through a piping bag without getting stuck. They also look SO cute peeking out of these little cookies.
- Mini M&Ms: These bring the color, the crunch, and all the fun! They make the cookies perfect for Christmas, especially if you grab the red and green holiday minis. Just like the chips, the mini size is key for piping.
What Is Brown Butter?
Brown butter is simply butter that’s been melted and cooked a little longer until the milk solids at the bottom of the pan turn golden brown and toasty. It smells nutty and caramel-y and adds SO much flavor to cookies, blondies, and pretty much any baked good.
To make it, melt your butter in a light colored saucepan over medium heat, swirling often. It will foam, crackle, and then go quiet. Once you see little brown bits on the bottom and it smells nutty, pull it off the heat right away and pour it into a heatproof bowl (brown bits and all!) so it stops cooking. Those brown bits are pure flavor, so don’t leave them behind.
Can you skip it? Yes! You can use melted unsalted butter instead. You’ll lose a little of that nutty depth, but the cookies will still be absolutely delicious.
Substitutions and Modifications
- Skip the browning: Use melted and cooled unsalted butter instead of brown butter.
- Holiday colors: Use red and green mini M&Ms for Christmas, pastel minis for Easter, or swap colors for any holiday or party theme.
- Mix-in amounts: Add more or less chips and M&Ms depending on how loaded you want each cookie.
- Chocolate swap: Use mini white chocolate, mini butterscotch, or mini peanut butter chips. Just make sure they’re minis!
- No piping bag: Use a gallon zip-top bag and snip off one corner.
- Bigger cookies: Scoop into regular 1 1/2 tablespoon balls and bake about 10 to 11 minutes if you want full-size cookies instead.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- They’re SO fun: Bite-sized cookies you can eat by the handful, or pour into milk like cereal!
- No chill dough: Mix, pipe, bake. No waiting around for dough to firm up in the fridge.
- The perfect gift: They fill a Christmas tin beautifully and are the ultimate cookie box filler.
Equipment Needed
- Light Colored Saucepan: Makes it easy to see when your butter turns golden brown so it doesn’t burn.
- Large Mixing Bowl: Holds all the dough, which makes a LOT of mini cookies.
- Hand Mixer or Stand Mixer: Beats the brown butter and sugars until smooth and glossy.
- Rubber Spatula: For folding in the dry ingredients and mix-ins without overmixing.
- Large Piping Bag: The secret weapon for portioning hundreds of tiny cookies fast, no tip needed.
- Baking Sheets: You’ll be baking in batches, so having a few sheets means less waiting between rounds.
- Parchment Paper: Keeps the cookies from sticking and makes it super easy to slide them right into a tin.
Why Pipe Instead of Scoop?
Here’s my favorite trick for making mini cookies: skip the cookie scoop and use a piping bag! Scooping and rolling over 150 tiny dough balls by hand takes FOREVER. Piping them straight onto the baking sheet is so much faster, and every cookie comes out the same size so they all bake evenly.
You don’t need a piping tip at all. Just fill a large piping bag and snip off the end to make an opening about 1/2 inch wide. That’s big enough for the mini chocolate chips and mini M&Ms to slide right through without getting stuck. It still takes a little patience, but honestly, watching rows of tiny cookies line up on the tray is SO satisfying. Put on some Christmas music and enjoy it!
How to Make Cookie Cereal
This is my favorite way to eat these! Once your mini M&M cookies are completely cooled, pour a handful into a bowl and add cold milk. That’s it! It’s giving total childhood cereal nostalgia, and it’s such a fun holiday breakfast treat or late night snack. Kids go CRAZY for it, and honestly, so do adults.
Building the Ultimate Christmas Cookie Box
Every great Christmas cookie box needs a mix of big statement cookies and little filler treats, and these mini cookies are the PERFECT filler. Sprinkle them into the gaps between your larger cookies, or give them their own little section of the box. They add color, they fill empty space, and they make the whole box look abundant and festive.
They also make an amazing gift all on their own. Fill a Christmas tin, a mason jar, or a cellophane bag tied with ribbon, and you’ve got the easiest homemade holiday gift ever. I’m currently building my dream cookie box lineup and these are a guaranteed spot!
Mini Brown Butter M&M Cookies (No Chill)
Ingredients
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter
- 1 ¼ cups (275 g) light brown sugar packed
- â…“ cup (66.67 g) granulated sugar
- 2 (2) large eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups (312.5 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon (1 tablespoon) cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon (1 teaspoon) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) fine grain salt
- ¾ cup (135 g) mini chocolate chips
- ¾ cup (177.44 g) mini M&Ms
- About 1/2 cup additional mini chocolate chips optional (adjust to taste)
Instructions
- Brown the butter. Melt the butter in a light colored saucepan over medium heat, swirling often. Once it foams and you see golden brown bits on the bottom and it smells nutty, pour it into a large heatproof bowl, scraping in all those brown bits. Let it cool until it’s warm but no longer hot, about 15 to 20 minutes.
- Preheat the oven. Heat your oven to 350°F and line your baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Mix the butter and sugars. Add the light brown sugar and granulated sugar to the cooled brown butter and mix for 2 minutes.
- Add the eggs and vanilla. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix again until the mixture is smooth and glossy.
- Fold in the dry ingredients. Add the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt, then gently fold with a spatula until just combined and no dry streaks remain.
- Fold in the mix-ins. Fold in the mini chocolate chips and mini M&Ms until evenly spread through the dough.
- Fill the piping bag. Transfer the dough into a large piping bag. You may need to do this in a few batches. No piping tip needed! Just snip off the end to make an opening about 1/2 inch wide, big enough that the minis slide right through without getting stuck.
- Pipe the cookies. Pipe teaspoon-sized mounds onto the parchment lined baking sheets. You can fit about 45 on each sheet since they don’t spread much. This part takes the longest, but they’re SO cute it’s worth it!
- Bake. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes, until the cookies are set and cooked through. Don’t overbake or they’ll get too crispy. Around 8 minutes is the sweet spot!
- Cool and pack. Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheet. Then fold the parchment paper in half and let them tumble right into your Christmas tin. They fit PERFECTLY!
Storage Instructions
- Counter: Store in an airtight container or cookie tin at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Fridge: Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 7 days.
- Freezer: Freeze baked cookies in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature, or eat them straight from the freezer for a fun crunchy snack!
Making them ahead for the holidays? Bake them up to 3 months early and freeze, then thaw the day before you build your cookie boxes. They taste just as good!
Tips and Tricks
- Minis only: Regular chips and M&Ms will clog the piping bag every time.
- Cool the butter: If the brown butter is too hot, it can melt the sugar and scramble the eggs.
- Watch the clock: These bake FAST because they’re so small. Pull them at 8 minutes for soft, chewy centers.
- Work in batches: Refill your piping bag a little at a time so it’s easier to squeeze and control.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to chill this cookie dough?
Nope! This is a no chill recipe. The extra flour and cornstarch keep the cookies from spreading, so you can pipe and bake right away.
Can I use regular sized chocolate chips and M&Ms?
For mini cookies, stick with minis. Regular sized mix-ins get stuck in the piping bag and are too big for such tiny cookies.
Do I need a piping tip?
No piping tip needed! Just snip the end of the bag to make about a 1/2 inch opening.
Can I skip browning the butter?
Yes! Melted and cooled unsalted butter works great. You’ll just miss a little of that nutty, toasty flavor.
How many mini cookies does this recipe make?
About 155 mini cookies, or roughly 3 1/2 baking sheets’ worth.
Can I make these as regular size cookies?
Absolutely! Scoop 1 1/2 tablespoon balls and bake for about 10 to 11 minutes until the edges are set.
Can I eat these like cereal?
YES, and I highly recommend it! Pour them in a bowl with cold milk for the most nostalgic cookie cereal moment.
Do you LOVE Christmas Cookies?! Check out MORE of my Favs:
Brown Butter Oreo M&M Chip Cookies (Soft, Chewy, Bakery Style)
Soft & Chewy No Chill Chocolate Chip Cookies
Cheesecake Stuffed Snickerdoodle Cookies (Soft, Thick, Holiday Favorite)
Let’s Get Baking!
I hope these Mini Brown Butter M&M Cookies bring SO much joy to your holiday season, whether they end up in your Christmas cookie box, a gift tin for a neighbor, or a cereal bowl at midnight (no judgment!). If you make them, I would LOVE to see them! Tag me @munchiesbymallory on Instagram and TikTok so I can cheer you on. Happy baking, love!
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