Halloween Cookies are soft, chewy, and loaded with festive M&M’s, sprinkles, and candy eyes. They also happen to be our go-to cookie for the spooky day! They have a delicious, buttery dough, chopped M&M’s mixed in, and extra decorations added on top for the cutest party treat.
We love making these for Halloween parties, classroom treats, movie nights, and baking with kids because they’re colorful, simple, and so fun to decorate. Add the candy eyes after baking so they stay cute and stick right into the warm cookies.
We’ve made these cookies for countless Halloween celebrations, and they’re one of those recipes our kids ask for every year.
If you love these Halloween Cookies, you’ll also enjoy Witch Hat Cookies, Monster Cookies, Halloween Rice Krispie Treats, and Oreo Spider Cake.
Why you’ll love it + Why it works:
- Perfect for Halloween: These colorful cookies are a fun addition to Halloween parties, school treats, and family celebrations.
- Easy to Decorate: Candy eyes, M&M’s, and sprinkles make every cookie unique with very little effort.
- Chopped M&M’s: Chopping some of the candy spreads chocolate throughout every cookie while whole candies create a colorful topping.
- Quick Bake Time: Baking for just a few minutes keeps the centers soft while the cookies finish setting on the baking sheet.
Halloween Cookie Ingredients
- Sugar (1 cup): Sweetens the cookies while helping create lightly crisp edges.
- Brown sugar (1 cup): Adds moisture and gives the cookies their soft, chewy texture.
- Butter (½ cup, softened): Adds rich buttery flavor and tenderness.
- Vegetable oil (½ cup): Keeps the cookies extra soft for days after baking.
- Eggs (2): Binds the ingredients together and help create a tender cookie.
- Baking powder (1 teaspoon): Gives the cookies a light lift while helping them bake evenly.
- Baking soda (1 teaspoon): Encourages the cookies to spread just enough while creating a soft texture.
- Salt (1 teaspoon): Balances the sweetness and enhances the overall flavor.
- Vanilla extract (1 teaspoon): Adds warm flavor that complements the chocolate candies.
- All-purpose flour (3 cups): Provides the structure for soft, chewy cookies.
- Halloween M&M’s (½ cup, chopped): Adds colorful chocolate pieces throughout the cookie dough. Any seasonal M&M’s can be substituted.
- M&M’s, eye candies, sprinkles: Decorate the tops of the cookies and make them festive for Halloween. We love this chopper for crushing M&Ms.
How to Make Halloween Cookies
PREP. Heat oven to 350°F.
DOUGH. In a mixing bowl cream together sugars, butter, and oil. Add eggs and beat until fluffy.
Add dry ingredients, as well as vanilla, and mix until combined. Stir in ½ cup chopped M&M’s. (You can add more or less according to your preference)
SCOOP. Scoop onto a baking sheet. Add a few whole M&M’s and sprinkles to the top of the dough.
BAKE. Bake cookies for 7-8 minutes. Add a few eyeball candies to the top of baked cookies. Allow to cool on the baking sheet.
Kristyn’s Recipe Tips
- Slightly underbake the cookies so they stay soft and chewy after cooling.
- Press a few extra M&M’s into the tops of the cookies before and after baking for bright, colorful bakery-style cookies.
- Add the candy eyes immediately after baking while the cookies are still warm so they stick easily.
- Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheet so they finish setting without breaking.
Halloween Cookies Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ½ cup butter, softened
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup Halloween M&M's chopped
- M&Ms, eye candies, sprinkles
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°F.
- In a mixing bowl cream together sugars, butter and oil.
- Add eggs and beat until fluffy.
- Add dry ingredients, as well as vanilla, and mix until combined.
- Stir in ½ cup chopped M&M's. (You can add more or less according to your preference)
- Scoop onto a baking sheet. Add a few whole M&M's and sprinkles to the top of the dough.
- Bake for 7-8 minutes. Add a few candy eyes to the top of baked cookies. Allow to cool on the baking sheet.
Notes
- Slightly underbake the cookies so they stay soft and chewy after cooling.
- Press a few extra M&M’s into the tops of the cookies before and after baking for bright, colorful bakery-style cookies.
- Add the candy eyes immediately after baking while the cookies are still warm so they stick easily.
- Let the cookies cool completely on the baking sheet so they finish setting without breaking.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
Store cookies in an airtight container for 3-4 days on the counter or freeze for 2-3 months.
Place cookie dough balls on a baking sheet. Stick it in the freezer. Once the dough is solid transfer them to a freezer-safe ziploc. Freeze for up to 3 months.
To bake, allow them to thaw a bit before putting them in the oven. You may need to add an extra minute or two to compensate for the chillier dough.
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This recipe was first shared October, 2020.
You only bake these cookies for 8 minutes? Thank you!
For me, yes. You may need to add a couple minutes depending on your oven 🙂
With just a hint of spooky, these cookies are SO good. My kids especially loved the eyeballs.
These cookies are so yummy, easy and fun for Halloween! I love that all I need to do is add a few eye candies to make them spooky. So easy! This is a great recipe for Halloween!
We are obsessed with these cookies! They are so delicious and so festive for the holiday!
These are so cute and so fun! Adding the chopped M&Ms makes every bite extra tasty!
I love making this recipe every Halloween for my family! Using the combo of candy eyes and M&M’s make these cookies look so festive and cute with very little effort. My kind of dessert!
These are so fun & festive!! Love the little eyes! M&M cookies are my favorite! Taking these to a party this weekend!
They are fun to make with the kids.
Yay! So glad to hear you enjoy making them with your kiddos!
The cookie is really yummy and the toppings are super cute, especially the eyes,
Such a fun tasty cookie for hallowEen. Your kids will love them!
HahAHA – so totally adorable, and so very simple to create a special treat for HAlloween! I just love this time of year, with so many spooktacular recipe ideas, but many of them are complicated and time-consuming. This easy recipe is perfect!
These look fun and adorable! My kids are going to love these for Halloween! Can’t wait!
Can I use only white sugar if I have no brown?
Such a great idea for Halloween!! I love how easy these are to maKE!
How fun are these!! The eyes make them even more festive. They won’t last long around here!