These sugar cookie M&M bars are ready to eat in just 30 minutes, plus they are perfect for feeding a crowd! You can even customize your dessert bars by using colored M&Ms that fit your theme! Best of all, you'll only need a handful of ingredients!
Easy M&M Sugar Cookie Bars
I love baking sugar cookie dessert bars for parties, potlucks, and holidays because they're soft, chewy, and super easy to customize. This classic version featuring mini M&M candies is always a crowd favorite!
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For holiday parties, I highly recommend you try my peppermint sugar cookie bars or Christmas sugar cookie bars! They are just as easy and delicious!
🥘 Sugar Cookie M&M Bars Ingredients, Notes, & Substitutes
I love how some of the best desserts can be made from just a few common baking ingredients! I don't know about you, but these are things I pretty much keep on hand 24/7 (other than the bag of mini M&Ms).
- Butter - ¾ cup of butter at room temperature or a butter substitute.
- Sugar - 1 cup of white granulated sugar.
- Eggs - 2 large eggs at room temperature.
- Vanilla Extract - 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or a vanilla extract substitute.
- Salt - ¾ teaspoons of salt.
- Baking Soda - ½ teaspoon of baking soda or a baking soda substitute.
- All-Purpose Flour - 2 ½ cups of all-purpose flour (spoon and leveled) or an all-purpose flour substitute.
- M&Ms - 1 ¼ cups of mini M&Ms candies.
*Be sure to see the free printable recipe card below for ingredients, exact amounts & instructions with tips!*
🔪 How To Make Sugar Cookie M&M Bars
These sugar cookie bars are a super simple recipe made with super simple ingredients, but they taste amazing! You're going to need your measuring utensils, a stand mixer (or hand mixer), a silicone spatula, and an 8x8 baking dish.
You will get about 20 small squares from an 8x8 sugar cookie bar or 9 larger rectangular pieces.
Step 1: To begin, preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C/Gas Mark 4) and line an 8x8 baking dish with parchment paper.
Step 2: Using your stand mixer (or a hand mixer), cream together the room-temperature ¾ cup (170.25 grams) of butter and 1 cup (200 grams) of sugar on medium speed until smooth and light.
Step 3: Add in the 2 large eggs, 2 teaspoons (9.86 milliliters) of vanilla extract, ¾ teaspoon (4.5 grams) of salt, and ½ teaspoon (2 grams) of baking soda. Mix again until smooth.
Step 4: Slowly mix in the 2½ cups (312.15 grams) of all-purpose flour, stopping to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary, until a dough forms. Then, gently fold in 1 ¼ cups (295.74 grams) of mini M&Ms.
Step 5: Transfer your cookie dough to your prepared 8X8 dish and press it into an even layer, making sure to cover the entire bottom of the dish.
Step 6: Bake. Bake in the oven at 350°F (175°C/Gas Mark 4) until the edges begin to turn golden brown, about 30 minutes.
Step 7: Cool. Once done, remove the bars from the oven and allow them to cool completely before cutting them into bars and serving.
🍪 How To Serve Sugar Cookie M&M Bars
If you wanted to, you could frost these sugar cookie bars with your favorite buttercream frosting (funfetti frosting would be perfect)! A scoop of vanilla ice cream and whipped cream on top would be tasty, too! Enjoy!
💭 Angela's Pro Tips & Recipe Notes
- Using room-temperature ingredients ensures that your dough mixes together really well. Get out your eggs and butter in advance so they have time to warm up.
- Sugar cookie dessert bars can fit any theme by using different colored M&Ms! You can use red, white, and blue for the 4th of July, pink and red for Valentine's Day, red and green for Christmas, and so on and so forth.
- You can use regular-sized M&M's instead of mini M&M's if you prefer.
- If needed for larger gatherings, you can double this recipe and bake it in a 9x13 pan. It will need about 35-40 minutes in the oven.
🥡 Storing
Keep your bars in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. You do not need to refrigerate them.
Freezing Sugar Cookie M&M Bars
Tightly wrap your bars in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months. Place the bars into the fridge to allow them to thaw out before serving.
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❓ Recipe FAQs
Nope! These bars can be stored at room temperature, which makes them perfect for plopping on a dessert table at school functions, birthday parties, or at the office.
I like using classic mini M&Ms because you get more candy per bite, but you can really use any M&M variety you like! Peanut M&Ms would give these bars a good crunch, and peanut butter M&Ms would be tasty, too! You could even try out some of the more unique flavors like cookie crunch or caramel cold brew!
In addition to the M&Ms, you could mix in some chopped nuts, chocolate chips (white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, you name it), or other kinds of candy. Sprinkles would also make a fun addition! These sugar cookie bars are incredibly versatile and easy to customize.
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📖 Recipe Card
Sugar Cookie M&M Bars
Ingredients
- ¾ cup butter at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour spoon and leveled
- 1 ¼ cups mini M&Ms
(Note: 2x or 3x only changes the ingredient list)
Instructions
- To begin, preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C/Gas Mark 4) and line an 8x8 baking dish with parchment paper.
- Using your stand mixer (or a hand mixer), cream together the room-temperature ¾ cup butter and 1 cup sugar on medium speed until smooth and light.
- Add in the 2 large eggs, 2 teaspoon vanilla extract, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon baking soda. Mix again until smooth.
- Slowly mix in the 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, stopping to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary, until a dough forms. Then, gently fold in 1 ¼ cups mini M&Ms.
- Transfer your cookie dough to your prepared 8X8 dish and press it into an even layer, making sure to cover the entire bottom of the dish.
- Bake in the oven at 350°F (175°C/Gas Mark 4) until the edges begin to turn golden brown, about 30 minutes.
- Once done, remove the bars from the oven and allow them to cool completely before cutting them into bars and serving.
Notes
- Using room-temperature ingredients ensures that your dough mixes together really well.
- Sugar cookie dessert bars can fit any theme by using different colored M&Ms!
- You can use regular-sized M&M's in place of mini M&M's.
- If needed for larger gatherings, you can double this recipe and bake it in a 9x13 pan. It will need about 35-40 minutes in the oven.
- Keep your bars in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Tightly wrap your bars in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months. Place the bars into the fridge to allow them to thaw out.
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