Monster Cookies!! These gnarly looking cookies are a mash up of choc chip, peanut butter and oatmeal cookies They’re crispy on the edges and chewy inside, littered with bright M&M’s and melty chocolate chips, and are as fun to make as they are to eat!
Monster Cookies
I don’t know whether they’re called Monster Cookies because they’re monstrously loaded with goodies or because they’re monstrously ugly in the best possible way. Either way, they’re here today because I ran into last-minute issues with a much more mature recipe I was planning to share.
There was much huffing and puffing about all the time I’d wasted preparing that post, but as they say, every cloud has a silver lining, and these colourful Monster Cookies are what I reached for to lift my grumpy mood. They cheered me up so much, I decided you should get to enjoy them too!
What are Monster Cookies, you ask? I’m glad you did! They’re a mash-up of peanut butter, oatmeal and choc chip cookies, typically chunky, chewy and loaded with M&M’s and choc chips. The name may come from the monster mash-up, though I prefer to think they’re the sort of cookie a Cookie Monster would go mad over!
Ingredients in Monster Cookies
Here’s what you need to make these.
1. For the Monster Cookie Dough
The cookie dough is based on my Brown Butter Oatmeal Choc Chip Cookies (I am very fond of these!), except we aren’t browning the butter here. I didn’t think it was worth it – so many other flavours going on here – peanut butter and so much chocolate!
Peanut butter – This recipe calls for the commercial spread type of peanut butter like Bega (Australia), Jif and Skippy (US) and Sun-Pat (UK) which have sugar, salt and stabilisers added. Yup, the full on commercial sandwich spread stuff! Not the wholesome pure peanut butter which is made with 100% peanut butter, it is thinner and the batter will be too loose.
Oats – Just ordinary rolled oats, not quick cooking oats, not steel cut, and not one of those flavoured sweetened sachets for porridge! Oats gives these cookies a great chewiness and some lovely texture.
Flour – Regular plain / all-purpose flour. Self raising flour won’t work for these cookies, I think they will come out shaped like rock cakes!
Baking soda (bicarbonate soda) – This makes the cookie rise a bit, and also spread. If you use baking powder instead using the standard conversion of 1:3, the cookies bake thicker and the inside is not as chewy, they are a bit more puffy.
Brown sugar – I only use brown sugar in these cookies to give them a lovely caramel-y flavour and make them a nice brown colour.
Egg – A fridge cold large egg, from cartons labelled “large eggs” which are approximately 50-55g/2oz in the shell. Using a fridge cold one helps make the cookie dough stiffer so we don’t need to chill it in the fridge like most cookie doughs, before rolling into balls.
Unsalted butter, melted- The butter is melted so there’s no need to soften it like you often see in cookie recipes. But you do need to cut it into pieces so it melts evenly.
Salt – This brings out the flavours in the cookie, and peanut butter in particular loves salt.
Vanilla extract – Just to add a little bit more flavour into the cookie, complimenting rather than overwhelming the peanut butter flavour.
2. the add-ins
I use M&M and chocolate chips which are classic add-ins for Monster Cookies. And I use a generous amount – 1 1/2 cups in total! Feel free to use whatever you have or want though – think, nuts, dried fruit, peanut or toffee chips. Anything!
M&M’s – Just regular M&M’s, the plain ones without nuts or crispy rice inside. The recipe calls for 1 cup to mix in (200g) plus about 3 tablespoons extra (35g) for pressing on the surface once it comes out of the oven.
Here in Australia we have 180g “snack and share” size bags – if you want to just get one of those, that’s fine, just top up with more chocolate chips, or other add-ins like nuts.
Chocolate chips – I use dark chocolate chips, called semi-sweet chocolate chips in the US. You can use whatever type of chocolate chips you want, or even chop up a block. I use 1/2 cup (90g / 3 oz).
How to make Monster Cookies
This is an easy, hand mixed cookie dough that does not need to be refrigerated before baking. So easy and so fast. How good is that!!
Dry ingredients – Mix the flour, oats, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl, just using a wooden spoon. Then set aside.
Barely melt the butter in a large microwave proof bowl, just microwave in 20 second increments until it is mostly melted but there are still butter lumps. Then finish melting by stirring, using the residual heat. It should be milky yellow, not clear and glassy. This keeps the butter cool so you can continue straight away without chilling the dough before rolling.
Wet ingredients – Add the rest of the Wet ingredients into the butter then mix with the wooden spoon until combined. If there’s a few pesky little peanut butter lumps, that’s more than ok – anyone for little peanut butter pockets in their cookie?? 🎉
Make cookie dough – Pour the Dry ingredients into the Wet ingredients bowl, then mix with the wooden spoon until the flour is mostly incorporated. Then add the chocolate chips and M&M’s (set about 1/4 cup aside for decorating the top of the cookies once baked), and mix until they are dispersed and you can no longer see flour.
Roll cookie balls – Roll the dough into 17 balls*, 3 tablespoons each (4.5cm / 1.8″ diameter), using a size 20 cookie scoop.
Here’s how I do it: scoop/dollop domes onto a tray, continuing until all the cookie dough is used up. Then roll into balls and place onto paper lined trays, 7.5cm / 3″ apart. I put 6 balls on two trays and 5 on the third.
If dough is a bit too sticky to roll, pop the bowl in the fridge for 5 minutes, it will firm up quickly.
Bake 2 trays at a time for 15 minutes at 180°C.350°F (160°C fan-forced), switching the tray shelves so they brown evenly. The edges should be golden and the surface should be light golden. (These cookies are a little more forgiving if cooked longer than they should be, so I encourage you to get some nice colour on the edges, so they go crispy).
Cool 20 minutes – Cool the cookies on the tray for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack and cool for another 10 minutes before attacking. They will still be warm with melty chocolate, don’t worry! These cookies are a bit more fragile than typical cookies while they are warm, so you want to cool them down a bit more than usual before you enjoy them.
Decorating with extra M&Ms and choc chips
If you want to decorate the top of the cookies with extra M&M’s and choc chips like I have so they are clearly visible rather than half-buried under cookie dough, it must be done while the cookies are hot, fresh out of the oven.
Push the M&M’s in on an angle so they’re halfway embedded, these will adhere in place once the cookie cools. For the choc chips, just place them on top – the heat melts the base so they glue themselves on.
So there you go! A fun cookie that everybody goes mad over, from the under 7s to the over 70s, including a certain French Chef who you’d think would consider brightly coloured M&M-studded gnarly cookies beneath his refined culinary standards, but was caught sneaking cookie after cookie while expertly filleting a fish. 😂
And really, that’s what Monster Cookies are all about. They’re not elegant, they’re not sophisticated, and they certainly won’t win any beauty contests. They’re just big, chunky, chewy, chocolatey, peanut buttery cookies loaded with goodies that make people happy.
I hope they make you happy too! – Nagi x
Monster Cookies FAQ
These were made with gluten-free flour and uncontaminated/pure rolled oats (sold as “wheat free” oats in Australia). The texture inside was the faintest bit powdery while warm (to be honest, it’s so faint I don’t think most people would notice). But once cooled, they were virtually identical to the regular cookies!
However, I can’t guarantee these cookies are 100% gluten-free, for the following reasons:
Oats – Oats naturally do not contain wheat gluten. However, because oats are commonly grown, transported and processed alongside wheat, they can pick up gluten along the way. Produces sold as “pure”, “wheat-free” or “uncontaminated” oats are specially produced to avoid that contamination, like the Red Tractor Wheat Free Rolled Oats I used to make a gluten-free version of these cookies.
However, there is another complication. Under Australian food standards, oats cannot be labelled gluten free because they contain avenin, a protein similar to gluten that some people with coeliac disease react to. So if you have coeliac disease, it’s best to follow the advice of your doctor or dietitian about whether oats are suitable for you.
I haven’t tested an oat-free substitute, though a friend suggested using quinoa flakes instead.
M&M’s – They don’t list gluten-containing ingredients, but the current packaging carries a “may contain gluten, wheat” warning, maybe because they are processed using the same equipment as gluten-containing foods?
If you are concerned, I suggest using something else instead, like nuts or more chocolate chips.
Brand of gluten-free flour – These cookies were tested with White Wings Gluten-Free flour, a brand that is carried by large grocery stores here in Australia. Gluten-free flour blends vary a lot between brands, so I can only vouch for White Wings. However, the fact that it worked so well gives me confidence other good gluten-free flour blends should work too!
4 days in an airtight container in the fridge.
Yes! Roll them into balls and make sure they are kept in a very airtight container or ziplock bag (press out excess air). Then bake straight from the fridge/freezer on demand – no need to thaw! Expect to add a couple of minutes to the baking time.
Another nut butter or biscoff should work nicely here, as long as the spread has a creamy spreadable consistency like the peanut butter show in the video and ingredients post. Don’t use one that is runny, like natural peanut butter, as the cookie will spread too much. 🙂
Watch how to make it
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Monster Cookies
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Cooling: 20 minutes
Total: 55 minutes
Cookies, Sweet Baking
Western
Servings18 cookies (7.5cm/3″ wide, 2cm/0.8″ thick)
Tap or hover to scale
Ingredients
Add-ins (1 1/2 cups of “anything you like):
For pressing on once baked (optional):
Prevent screen from sleeping
Instructions
ABBREVIATED RECIPE
Mix Dry ingredients in a bowl (with wooden spoon). Barely melt butter, finish melting by hand. Add remaining Wet, mix. Mix in Dry, adding choc chips and M&M’s towards the end. Roll 18 x 3 tbsp balls (size 20 cookie scoop), bake 15 min @ 180°C/350°F (160°C fan), cool 10 min on tray then 10 min on rack before attacking!
FULL RECIPE
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan-forced). Line 3 trays with baking paper (parchment paper).
Dry ingredients – Put the Dry ingredients in a medium bowl and mix with a wooden spoon, just to combine.
Barely melt butter – Put the butter in a microwave proof bowl and microwave in 20 second increments on high until almost melted. Then mix with a wooden spoon to finish melting using residual heat. (Note 3)
Wet ingredients – To the butter bowl, add the rest of the Wet ingredients. Then mix vigorously with the wooden spoon until it’s smooth.
Make cookie dough – Add the Dry ingredients in, then mix until most of the flour is mixed in. Then add the chocolate chips and M&M’s, then mix until they are dispersed through the batter and you can no longer see flour.
- Roll cookie balls – Roll* into 18 balls, 3 tablespoons each (4.5cm / 1.8″ diameter). My method – portion all dough using size 20 cookie scoop, then roll. Place balls on three paper lined trays at least 7.5cm / 3″ apart.* If dough is a bit too sticky to roll, pop in fridge for 5 min, firms up quickly.
Bake 2 trays for 15 minutes, switching the tray shelves at the 8 minute mark.
Decorate (optional) – While the cookies are still hot, press chocolate chips onto the surface (the heat will melt them enough to stick) and lightly press M&M’s halfway in, they’ll set firmly in place once the cookies cool. (Note 4).
Cool for 10 minutes on the tray (to finish cooking and set) then transfer to a rack and cool for another 10 minutes before attacking, these cookies are fragile when hot. (Meanwhile, bake the third tray). Fully cool before storing in an airtight container for 5 days, in a cool pantry.
Recipe Notes:
2. Baking soda (bi-carbonate soda) – These make the cookies rise as well as spread a bit so they don’t end up like chunky rock cakes. You can substituted with 2 teaspoons of baking powder but expect them to be thicker and not spread quite as much.
3. Barely melted butter – I like using this method where you finish melting by mixing and using the residual heat, the butter is cooler and a little thicker so prevents the need to wait until the butter cools before adding other ingredients in, or chilling the dough.
4. M&M decorative topping – Push them halfway into the warm cookies, they will adhere as the cookie cools. You have to do this while the cookie is warm, when the surface is still pliable. If the cookies cool too much, just press them onto a melty choc chip instead – edible glue!
Storage – Fully cool then store in an airtight container in the pantry for up to 4 days. You can also refrigerate the cookie balls (make sure they are in a very airtight container), bake per recipe rom fridge cold, adding a couple of minutes to the bake time. The cookie balls can also be frozen, add 3 minutes to the bake time.
Nutrition per cookie.
Nutrition Information:
Calories: 249cal (12%)Carbohydrates: 33g (11%)Protein: 5g (10%)Fat: 11g (17%)Saturated Fat: 4g (25%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.04gCholesterol: 12mg (4%)Sodium: 154mg (7%)Potassium: 139mg (4%)Fiber: 2g (8%)Sugar: 21g (23%)Vitamin A: 52IU (1%)Vitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 37mg (4%)Iron: 1mg (6%)
Life of Jaffle
I finally got Jaffle a lovely new bed. Enormous, plush, soft cushiony sofa-like walls, covered in a fluffy blanket complete with a little pillow. Basically a five star puppy hotel bed.
But he still chooses to sleep here:
Seriously. That is his favourite place to sleep, on the cold hard tiles of the shower. Night after night, I put him down on his bed then 2 seconds later he gets up and moves straight into the shower!
The only thing he does with his bed is treat it like a playroom to be destroyed every day.
Most days, the blanket mysteriously disappears off the bed but I know exactly where to find it – he’s not very creative about hiding things he steals from inside the house (and HEY! I spy my crocs!!!):
Getting the blanket back inside and where it belongs is a little harder though because obviously, it is a game! 🤣
