These sweet and salty Movie Night Chocolate Chip Cookies are full of M&Ms, pretzel bits and kettle corn. Perfect for a movie night in!
Today’s post is extra special because I’m baking for a cause! I’ve partnered up with OXO for their Bake A Difference campaign in support of Cookies for Kids’ Cancer. This non-profit organization was founded by two OXO employees that were inspired by their son’s battle with pediatric cancer. Like always, OXO is donating $100 to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer for each blog post that is dedicated to this campaign for the month of September (Childhood Cancer Awareness Month). How cool is that?!
For my post I wanted to do something fun and a little wild. I decided to take my perfect chocolate chip cookies to the next level by filling them with M&Ms, chunks of pretzels and kettle corn! I like to call them movie night cookies, because they’ve got all of those treats and sweets you love, inside one irresistibly soft and chewy cookie.
The first thing I did to get started was break out all of my fun new gadgets that OXO sent me. If you follow me on Instagram, you probably remember seeing my #OXOGoodCookie mail. It doesn’t get any sweeter than that, now does it?! Then I got to work combining my granulated sugar, brown sugar, vanilla and butter until smooth. Since I usually bake these cookies immediately (no chilling required), you want to make sure your butter is really soft and melty, but not 100% melted. Melting the butter give you a nice crisp cookie but if it’s too thin you’ll end up with a really flat cookie, and we definitely don’t want that. See how it looks below?
Speaking of flat cookies, I like to add a little “insurance” (aka cornstarch) to the dough so that these cookies stay extra thick and chewy. It’s a trick I’ve been using for a few years now and it definitely makes a difference!
You’ll want to toss that in with your flour, baking soda and salt. Whisk that all together and your dry ingredients are ready to go!
Add your eggs to the sugar/butter mixture, stir until combined, then gradually add your dry ingredients and fold until a soft dough forms. Toss in your mix-ins (popcorn, chocolate chips, M&M’s and pretzels) and gently work them into the dough.
Using a standard size cookie scoop, place 12 balls on dough onto parchment or baking mat lined sheets.
Place in the oven and bake for approximately 10-12 minutes. They should be set around the edges and soft in the centers.
Using a sturdy cookie spatula, remove them from the baking sheets and allow them to cool for a few minutes on a wire rack.
These cookies are best served warm!
We enjoyed their sweet and salty combo and all of that awesome crunch!
They were perfection! Next time you’re looking for a tasty twist on a classic cookie, I hope you’ll give these movie night chocolate chip cookies a try!
P.S. Don’t forget to check out all of the wonderful products that help raise money for Cookies for Kid’s Cancer!
Movie Night Cookies Recipe
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Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 cups brown sugar - packed
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup popped kettle corn
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup M&Ms (regular or mini)
- 1/3 cup pretzel bits - broken
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (177 degrees Celsius). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or baking mats, and set them aside.
- Place the butter in a microwave-safe bowl and heat for 30-45 seconds (full strength) or until it's almost completely melted but has a few soft pieces left.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer), beat together the butter, sugars, and vanilla for 1 minute. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing in between additions. Turn the mixing speed to low and gradually add the dry ingredients. Beat until combined or until a soft cookie dough forms. Fold in the popcorn, chocolate chips, M&Ms, and pretzel bits. You can either bake the dough immediately or chill it for 2-3 hours for thicker, chewier cookies.
- To bake the cookies, use a standard-size cookie scoop (approximately 1.5 tablespoon of the mixture) to form balls of dough. Place them onto the prepared sheets, leaving at least 2 inches in between.
- Place the cookies in the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through the baking process. Remove from the oven when the cookies are golden brown around the edges. Let them cool on the pan for 3-4 minutes, then transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
NOTES
Nutrition
Recipe source: adapted from my Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies
This is not a paid or sponsored post, however I received free product from OXO for participating in this campaign. I absolutely love all of their products and they helped create the cookies I shared today. All recipes and opinions are my own.
I love this idea! The cookies look delicious!
Thanks LeAndra!
These look SOOOO amazing Natalie! Send me a batch, pretty please!