Pretzel M&M Oatmeal Cookies

Crushed Pretzel M&Ms lend a crunchy and a sweet and salty bite to some chewy oatmeal cookies.

In the world of cookies it would seem that adding candy to cookie dough might be overkill, but not so. Candy plus cookie equals, three words: holy freak’n goodness, especially when it comes to these M&M Pretzel candy.

Here’s the thing. I bake and my boys are, at best, mild dessert consumers. But what I have discovered as I recently wrote, Matt’s sweet tooth lies in a cookie crumb and so does my 4-yr-old. A freshly baked cake, a cupcake stacked with mile high frosting, warm pie filling spilling over a flaky crust—all these things will be given a cursory glance.

A warm cookie sheet on the other hand will be greeted with eager hands and ready to-go milk glasses for dunking. These were no exception. The only difference was I thought these M&M Pretzel Oatmeal Cookies topped his favorite Snickers Cookies, but then he surprised me last night and declared my next cookie post is his second favorite next to Alice Medrich’s Coconut Macaroons.

I guess if I can’t come in first, being second to my favorite baker is pretty darn good to me.

Now that I have your curiosity peaked for my next cookie post . . . stay tuned. Until then, take a bite out of these and enjoy a sweet and salty combination that will last as long your will power will allow.

A few notes:

• I bypassed crushing the Pretzel M&Ms in a food processor, because if you have ever tried to crush candy in one-it’s earsplitting. I also bypassed using a chef’s knife as they rolled around too much and I really didn’t want to play dodge the blade with my fingers. What worked best to crush the Pretzel M&Ms was a meat tenderizer-just pound to crush. If you don’t have a meat tenderizer, try using a rolling pin.
• To keep the cookies nice and chewy, I place half a slice of bread in the cookie jar with it. Try it—I swear it works. The bread piece ends up like a crouton while the cookies stay moist and chewy.
• Make sure to use quick cooking oats and not old fashion, or you will have a crisp cookie instead of soft chewy ones.
• Of course you can substitue the Pretzel M&M candy for any add-in, but really, if you love the love sweet and salty combo these cookies will probably knock your socks off.

M&M Pretzel Oatmeal Cookie

Makes 31/2 dozen cookies | Preparation: Line bake sheet with parchment. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup unsalted butter
• ¼ cup cream cheese, softened
• 1 egg
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ cup dark brown sugar
• 11/2 teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 ¼ cup flour
• 1 ½ cup oats, quick cooking
• 1 9.90oz Bag of M&M Pretzel

Instructions:

1. Melt and heat butter until it is brown and nutty. Set aside to cool slightly.

2. Place softened cream cheese, egg, sugar, dark brown sugar, baking soda and salt in a mixing bowl fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on medium until mixture is fully combined and shiny, about 1-2 minutes. Add browned butter and mix to combine. Turn off mixer.

3. Place flour and quick cooking oats in a bowl and whisk to combine. Use a sturdy spatula or wooden spoon to fold flour mixture into wet mixture and mix to combine.

4. Using a meat tenderizer crush M&M Pretzel in a plastic bag and add to cookie dough and fold to combine.

5. Scoop one heaping tablespoon of cookie dough onto parchment lined baked sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10-12 minutes or until bottoms of cookies are golden brown.

Cookies will keep 2-3 days in a tightly sealed container.