These One-Bowl Easter M&M’s Cookie Bars are rich, fudgy, and festive. Not only are these bars made in one bowl but they do not require a mixer or chill time! Loaded with pastel M&M’s and decadent chocolate chips, fun for any occasion. With the perfect hint of vanilla and sweetness!
These cookie bars can be made with any type of chocolate candy – add pastel sprinkles for more festive fun. Bake, slice, and share with your family and friends these are great for parties or gatherings as well!
You might also like these Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars or my Easter Monster Cookies. Find all of my easy dessert recipes here for more baking inspiration.
Why You’ll Love Them
- One bowl recipe: this recipe uses melted butter so there is no need for an electric mixer or stand mixer. Simply mix together all ingredients by hand and pop these into the oven. Even better, this one bowl recipe means fewer dishes and easy clean up.
- Perfect for crowds: this recipe is a great dessert options for crowds or parties, the cookie bars can easily be transported directly in the baking pan and everyone is sure to love them! Add in different toppings as desired or decorate with festive sprinkles and candies.
- No chill time: these bars do not require any chilling time, simply mix the dough and transfer directly into a baking dish and into the oven! These bake in about 30 minutes.
- Studded with chocolate: this is one mighty cookie bar, loaded with melty chocolate chips and crunchy m&m’s topped with a sprinkle of flaky salt for a delicious sweet and salty combo. I like to top my cookie with a few more chips before baking.
Why Make Easter Cookie Bars
These bars couldn’t be simpler and they are easy to travel with, simply let your bars cool, wrap with tin foil or cover with a lid and take them with you directly in the baking pan! Get creative with any combo of chocolate candy, sprinkles can also add a fun, festive touch.
I like to skip the store-bought stuff and make these from scratch when possible. These can be stored in the freezer so make an extra batch, slice, and store for a later time! These make fun Easter treats for school or home gathering’s.
Key Ingredients
These cookie bars use simple ingredients, see below for ingredient substitutes if there are any as well as special notes:
- Unsalted Butter: if using salted butter, omit adding more salt later in the recipe. Do not substitute margarine.
- Granulated white sugar: I do not recommend swapping any other type of sugar for this recipe. Other sugars can impact the dough differently and change how the cookie bakes and rises.
- Brown sugar: make sure to pack your brown sugar. Light or dark brown sugar works.
- Whole eggs: I like fresh pasture raised farm eggs if available, but any kind will work for this cookie. Let your eggs come to room temperature for this recipe, this helps the eggs incorporate better.
- Pure vanilla extract: use homemade or store-bought vanilla extract.
- Baking powder: do not substitute baking soda and make sure your baking powder is fresh and not expired, after a couple months it will start to lose it’s potency.
- All-purpose flour: no substitution here, other types of flour will change the texture and affect baking differently.
- Chocolate chips: any kind of chocolate chips will work, semi-sweet, milk chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, or white chocolate. Chopped chocolate bars work great as well.
- M&Ms: regular or mini M&Ms work for this recipe, you could also great creative with different colored M&Ms for special events or occasions. Peanut, peanut butter filled, and fudge brownie M&Ms are all good options as well.
- Sprinkles: I like to add pastel sprinkles for even more color and texture. These are optional!
How to Make The Easter Cookie Bars
Let’s talk a little about how to make the One-Bowl Easter M&M’s Cookie Bars (The printable instructions are in the recipe card below.)
Quick overview:
- Combine melted butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla.
- Mix in dry ingredients, M&M’s, and chocolate.
- Transfer to a prepped baking pan, top with extra chocolate, and bake.
- Let cool before slicing and enjoy!
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease or line a 9×13″ baking pan, set aside.
- In a large bowl combine melted butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla. Whisk well to combine.
3. To the wet ingredients, add in the flour, baking powder, salt. Mix until combined. Fold in the M&M’s, sprinkles, and chocolate chips, transfer into the prepared baking pan. If desired, top with extra M&M’s and chocolate chips.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 28-32 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before slicing.
Recipe Notes:
- Set aside M&M’s to press on top of unbaked bars if desired.
- Set aside a handful of chocolate chips to sprinkle on top
- Bars will be fudgy, allow to cool completely before slicing for best results.
Tools I Recommend
- USA Pan 9×13 inch Baking Pan – another USA Pan product I love! The corners of my bars and cakes never stick and I love the squared of edges this pan creates.
- Rubber Spatula – a must have! I like these because they don’t come apart so I don’t have to worry about water getting inside the spatula and causing mold.
- Pyrex Mixing Bowl Set – I love this set of nesting bowls. I use them for everything, Pyrex glass does not break easily so you can trust on these bowls for years, plus they come in 3 useful sizes and can be stacked!
More Drool-Worthy Cookie Bar’s
If you liked these chewy holiday cookie bars, you’ll love these other easy bars and blondies – perfect for the sweets lover in your life!
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Blondies – the best combo of chocolate and peanut butter, these bars are loaded with chopped and whole Reese’s peanut butter cups!
- Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Bars – if you’re a oatmeal raisin fan, you’ll love these! Oatmeal raisin cookie dough with the perfect hint of cinnamon, topped with a crunchy streusel.
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Blondies – chewy cookie bars studded with oats, chocolate chips, and the perfect amount of peanut butter.
- Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars – a homemade version of the classic store-bought dough.
Recipe Variations
- Substitute chocolate chunks or chopped chocolate bar.
- Use any color of M&M’s or other chocolate candies for different holidays.
- Top with sprinkles or flaky sea salt for a sweet and salty combo.
- Serve as a skillet cookie topped with ice cream and chocolate sauce.
Recipe FAQs
Room temperature eggs mix together a lot easier than cold eggs, resulting in lighter, fluffier baked goods! Room temperature eggs also whip up a lot better which makes them important to use when making meringue or items that call for a lot of eggs like, angel food cake. Don’t have room temperature eggs? Set a few cold eggs out 20-30 minutes before you need them.
Yes! Even those these are made with melted butter and the butter does not need to be creamed. They can still be combined in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or with a electric hand mixer.
I like rich, dark chocolate chips or a roughly chopped up chocolate bar. But any type of chocolate would work from white chocolate chips, to mini chocolate chips and semi-sweet chocolate.
No, the dough for these cookie bars does not need to be chilled – simply make and bake! If needed, it can be chilled for and hour or two up to 24 hours.
Yes, if you desire a thicker, more dense bar, these can be made in an 8? x 8? pan. The baking time will need to be increased to 45-50 minutes so the dough cooks through in the middle. Note, this may cause the edges of the bars to get a bite crispier due to the longer baking time.
The dough for cookie bars is the same as individual cookies, the difference is that cookie bars or blondies are spread out into a baking pan instead of scooped or dropped onto a baking sheet. Typically, dough for cookie bars is thick just like dough for individual cookies.
Recipe Serving Suggestions
The best way to serve a chewy cookie bar, in my opinion, is freshly baked with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of chocolate sauce! Some other easy ways to serve these Easter cookie bars are:
- Sandwich together with soft ice cream and roll in Easter sprinkles.
- Serve with whipped cream, caramel or chocolate sauce, and sprinkles.
- Add birthday candles and sprinkles for a fun cookie cake.
- Chop bake bars up and serve over ice cream or blend into a malt.
One-Bowl Easter M&M’s Cookie Bars
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups All-purpose flour
- 1 tsp Baking powder
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 cup Unsalted butter, melted
- 1 cup Light brown sugar, packed
- 1 cup Granulated white sugar
- 2 Eggs, room temperature
- 1 tbsp Vanilla extract
- 10 oz. Semi-sweet chocolate chips*
- 10 oz. Pastel blend M&M's*
- 1/4 cup Pastel sprinkles, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease or parchment line a 9×13" baking pan, set aside.
- In a large bowl combine melted butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla. Whisk well to combine.1 cup Unsalted butter, 1 cup Light brown sugar, 1 cup Granulated white sugar , 2 Eggs, 1 tbsp Vanilla extract
- To the wet ingredients, add in the flour, baking powder, salt. Mix until combined. Fold in the M&M's, chocolate chips, and sprinkles is adding, transfer into the prepared baking pan. If desired, top with extra M&M's and chocolate chips before baking.2 1/2 cups All-purpose flour, 1 tsp Baking powder, ½ tsp Salt, 10 oz. Semi-sweet chocolate chips*, 10 oz. Pastel blend M&M's* , 1/4 cup Pastel sprinkles
- Bake at 350 degrees for 28-32 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove form the oven and let cool completely before slicing.
Notes
Nutrition
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These are fantastic and easy to make!!
Thank you!