Ingredients
Scale
- ¾ cup salted butter, softened
- ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 egg yolks, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste or extract
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup red & green M&M’s
- 1/3 cup white chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup broken pretzel pieces
- 1/3 cup crushed potato chips
- 2 tablespoons red & green jimmie sprinkles
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside.
- In a large bowl, beat the softened butter with both sugars until the mixture becomes pale and airy — about 2 minutes with a mixer.
- Add the egg yolks and vanilla, then beat again until the mixture lightens in color and looks fluffy (roughly 2 minutes).
- Whisk the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl. Add these dry ingredients to the butter mixture and stir until just mixed. Don’t overwork the dough.
- Fold in the M&M’s, white chocolate chips, pretzel bits, crushed potato chips, and sprinkles with a spatula until everything spreads through the dough evenly. Be gentle so the chips and chips keep some crunch.
- Portion the dough into 20 equal balls and place them about 2 inches apart on the prepared sheets. If you want the cookies to look extra pretty, press a few extra mix-ins onto the top of each dough ball before baking.
- Bake 10–12 minutes. For a softer, chewier center, pull them at 10 minutes; for crisper edges, let them go to 12 minutes.
- (Optional) Right after the cookies come out of the oven, you can use a large round cookie cutter and gently rotate it around each warm cookie to nudge the mix-ins inward and create a neat circle.
- Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, then move them to a wire rack to cool for another 10 minutes.
Notes
- Storage & make-ahead
- Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. You may freeze unbaked dough or baked plain cookies; thaw before baking or serving. (Avoid freezing cookies after you’ve added delicate toppings.)
- Baker’s notes & tips
- Measure flour correctly. Don’t scoop directly from the bag. Spoon flour into your cup and level it off, or weigh it — 1 cup ≈ 125 g. This prevents dry, dense cookies.
- Shape trick: Swirling a round cutter over hot cookies helps them hold together and look tidy — try it once, you’ll see the difference.
- Add a few extra M&M’s, chips, or pretzel bits on top of each scoop for picture-perfect cookies. Totally optional, but worth it.