Gluten Free M&M Cookies

This gluten free M&M cookie recipe is so good that it is in my top 10 favorite cookies. With their browned butter, caramelized flavors, and chewy texture loaded with crunchy milk chocolate M&M's, then topped with cute mini M&M's.

They are easy to make and only take 12 minutes bake time!

M&Ms are always a treat and I love using them in recipes, so watch this space as I have a few more M&M recipes that I am testing and will be adding here soon.

If you are looking for more cookie ideas, then you will also love my gluten free s'mores cookies, gluten free shortbread cookies, and gluten free apple cookies.

Why not try something slightly different, like my gluten free brookies. You could also top this with M&M's.

Gluten Free M&Ms

You might be wondering are M&M's gluten free?

Most varieties of M&M's are considered gluten-free. However, the crispy and pretzel M&M's are not gluten free as they contain gluten ingredients.

In the US & UK M&M's are not labeled gluten free but do not have any "May contain" warnings on their packaging. Also see Celiac.com's report regarding this for further information.

Keep in mind that ingredients can vary by country. Unfortunately, M&M's are not gluten-free in Australia. Always check the label in your country, as they may be manufactured differently.

Also, if you decide to use a different brand, it's important to double-check the label and allergy statement to ensure that the product doesn't contain any gluten in the ingredients.

Disclaimer: Ingredients and manufacturing processes can change at any time, so it’s important to check product labels each time you purchase. As they may change their ingredients or manufacturing process after this post was written.

🍪 Recipe Development

These gluten free M&M cookies were adapted from my mini egg cookies recipe. I changed it slightly by browning the butter like in my gluten free brown butter chocolate chip cookies, which adds a subtle nutty and caramel-like flavor to the cookies. Browning the butter by gently cooking the unsalted butter until its milk solids turn golden brown. I increased the butter in this recipe to make up for the loss in liquid during the browning process.

I originally tested the recipe, including cornstarch in the ingredients. This resulted in a more cakey cookie texture, and I wanted these cookies to spread a little more than my mini egg cookies, so I tested without the cornstarch and was happy with the result.

I was able to get regular M&M's and mini M&M's. I used the regular milk chocolate M&M's in the cookie dough and added the mini M&M's on the tops of the cookies straight after they came out of the oven, while they were still soft. This added an extra little crunch, and they look so good on top of the cookies. If you want extra chocolate, you could add chocolate chips instead of the mini M&M's.

Love brown butter, I have also used it in my gluten free oatmeal cookies and gluten free chocolate brownies.

📋 Ingredients Notes

• Gluten free Flour -I used a shop bought Gluten free Plain flour blend from Doves Farm Freee from range. Which is a flour blend of Rice, Potato, Tapioca, Maize and Buckwheat flour. I have had reports that others have used other Gluten free All purpose blends with my recipes that have worked well. i plan to test this recipe using other brands and will come back and update the results. If you make this recipe, I would love it if you come back and comment on the brand you used, as it is helpful for others.
• Unsalted Butter - My suggestion would be to use unsalted butter for the cookie dough. I browned the butter, which elevates the flavor of the cookies. If you prefer not to brown the butter, then reduce the butter to 110 grams and melt it in the microwave.
• Brown sugar & granulated sugar -When I make cookies, I really enjoy incorporating brown sugar into the recipe. Light brown sugar is what I typically use as it adds additional flavor, chewiness, and moisture to the cookies, but dark brown sugar is also a great option.
• Eggs - Use large eggs at room temperature.
• M&M's- They wouldn't be M&M cookies without them. I used regular milk chocolate M&M's and added mini milk chocolate M&M's when they came out of the oven to give them an extra crunch. Most M&M's are gluten-free. However, the crispy and pretzel M&M's are not gluten free as they contain gluten. Unfortunately, M&M's are not gluten-free in Australia. Always check the label in your country, as they may be manufactured differently. Also, if you decide to use a different brand, it's important to double-check the label to ensure that the product doesn't contain any gluten in the ingredients. You could also see my Gluten free chocolate information.
• Baking soda & Baking Powder - Be sure to use gluten free baking powder, you can check out my is baking powder gluten free for more information.

See the recipe card below for ingredient measurements.

⚡ Substitutions & Variations

🥣 Step by Step Instructions

Below is a brief step-by-step process with photos of how to make Gluten Free M&M Cookies.

See the recipe card below for more detailed recipe instructions.

Browning the butter

Step 1: Cut the butter into evenly sized cubes. This helps it melt and brown more evenly. Place the butter cubes in the saucepan over medium-low heat.

Once the butter has fully melted, tiny bubbles will start to form on the surface and stir frequently with a whisk.

Step 2: The butter will start foaming. As you stir, pay close attention to the color of the butter. It will gradually turn from yellow to a light tan, then to a golden brown. The process usually takes about 5-8 minutes.

Step 3: Once the butter reaches a deep golden brown color with some small speckles on the bottom of the pan, and has a nutty aroma, immediately remove it from the heat. Do not let it go beyond this stage, as it can quickly turn from browned to burnt.

Step 4: To stop the cooking process and prevent the butter from overcooking in the hot pan, you can transfer it to a heatproof bowl and leave it to cool for 10 minutes.

Tip: Monitor the butter closely as it browns, as it has the potential to burn rapidly. Once browned, promptly remove it from the heat and transfer it carefully to a bowl to ensure it cools immediately, preventing any further cooking in the hot pan.

Making the cookie dough

Step 5: In a bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and xanthan gum and set aside.

Step 6: Once the browned butter has cooled. In a large bowl mix together the eggs, sugar, vanilla and then add the butter

Step 7: Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and fold in until it is almost fully combined, but you can still see some of the flour.

Step 8: Add the M&M's and continue to fold in until no flour is visible and the M&M's are evenly distributed. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour for the cookie dough to firm up.

Tip: Chilling the cookie dough helps prevent the cookies from spreading too much in the oven.

Baking the cookies

Step 9 - 10: Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas mark 3. Cover two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Use a cookie scoop or small ice cream scoop to portion the dough into a ball and onto the lined baking sheet, leaving a gap of approximately 3 inches between each cookie. To ensure ample space for spreading, it is advisable to avoid placing more than five to six cookies on a single baking sheet (depending on the size of your baking sheet).

Each cookie ball should weigh approx. 70 grams, this recipe should make around 12-14 m and m cookies. I recommend weighing the cookie balls to get an even and consistent-sized cookie.

Step 11 - 12: Place the baking sheet in the center of the oven and bake for 12-14 minutes until the edges of the cookies look very lightly golden. Remove from oven and leave to cool on the baking sheet until they are cool and firm before transferring to the cooling rack.

I recommend baking the baking sheets of cookies one at a time to ensure they are baked evenly, as they are best baked in the middle of the oven. The cookies will look softer in the center but will firm up as they cool.

After taking them out of the oven while they are still soft, I like use a round cookie cutter slightly larger than the cookies to help bring them to a nice round shape (See images in post above). I also like to add a few more M&M's plus mini M&M's into the cookies while they are still soft.

Tip: Weighing the cookie dough balls will result in all the cookies being the same size and evenly baked. I recommend that each cookie ball should weigh around 70 grams.