These chocolatey fudgey cookies are chewy, rich and full of your favorite candy pieces. They can be covered in one type of candy and baked up as full size cookies or you can make them little and use a bunch of different kinds of candy. M&M’s, Reeses Pieces, toffee bits, chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, caramel chips, butterscotch chunks or you could even chop up your favorite candy bars and toss them in the mix. Your options are pretty vast here…
The thick brownie-like batter comes together in one bowl, no chilling required and you melt the butter, so you don’t even have to plan ahead. There is literally no reason that you shouldn’t be making these cookies this weekend.
Let’s get started…
Begin by melting 1/2 cup of butter in a large mixing bowl and 6 ounces of dark chocolate in a large bowl. You can do this over a double boiler or in 15 second increments in your microwave. The microwave is the quickest way to do it, but be sure to keep an eye on your chocolate. Remove the bowl and give the chocolate a gently whisk as soon as the butter begins to melt. If the chocolate is not quite soft enough, give it another 15 second spin in the microwave and try again until the chocolate and butter are fully melted , smooth and glossy.
You will also need 1 cup of granulated sugar, 2 large room temperature eggs, 1 cup of all purpose flour, 1/3 cup of natural unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, 1 teaspoon of espresso powder, 2/3 cup of milk chocolate chips and 2/3 cup of milk chocolate M&M’s.
Use an electric hand mixer to cream 2 large room temperature eggs with 1 cup of granulated sugar until you have a beautifully pale yellow color and light, bubbly appearance. This step is the most important step in this recipe. Take your time mixing the eggs and sugar and don’t stop until it is light, airy, bubbly and pale. The air that you whip into the cookie dough during this part of the recipe will give your cookies a wonderfully crisp, crackly top and moist, fudgey center.
Add the melted chocolate and butter into the creamed sugar and eggs and whisk until fully combined.
Use a silicone spatula to incorporate 1 cup of all purpose flour, 1/3 cup of natural unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 1 teaspoon of vanilla and a teaspoon of espresso powder into the batter until it is just combined and then add 2/3 cup of milk chocolate chips.
This cookie dough is thick, so carefully fold the chocolate chips in and then grease a cookie dough scoop for transferring the portions onto your baking sheets.
If you are wondering when we add the candy, I recommend adding them after you scoop the dough onto your baking sheet. Although this dough feels very thick, it will melt down and spread out quite a bit as the cookies bake, so I have had better success adding the candy onto the cookie dough, so thee candy pieces remain towards the top of the cookies as they bake and don’t sink to the bottom and stick to your baking sheet.
You can add heaping tablespoons of cookie dough for a pretty standard sized cookie or you can add teaspoons of dough to create little bite sized cookies.
Garnish the top of each dough ball with your candy and press them down a bit to help them stick and stay where they belong.
Bake the cookies in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes for full sized cookies and 7-8 minutes for smaller ones. As they bake, they will spread out a little, even looking a little thin around the 5-6 minute mark, but then they will begin to puff and crackle.
They are ready to come out of the oven when the outer edges look set and the center is slightly soft still.
Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet until they firm up a bit and then carefully transfer them onto a cooling rack.
Look at how moist and fudgey these cookies are! They are the perfect combination of a fudgy brownie and chewy cookie plus candy… fabulous, right?
With a rich chocolatey flavor, crispy and crackly tops and edges, moist, fudgey centers and the candy bits over the tops of each cookie, I am positive that these chocolate fudge candy cookies will become one of your favorite cookies to bake up at home.
Chocolate Fudge Candy Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup of butter, melted
- 6 ounces of dark chocolate, chopped
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup of granulated sugar
- 1 cup of all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup of natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon of espresso powder
- 2/3 cup of milk chocolate chips
- 2/3 cup of your favorite candy pieces
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
- In a large bowl, melt 1/2 cup of butter with 6 ounces of chopped dark chocolate and whisk until smooth and glossy
- In a separate bowl, cream 2 large room temperature eggs with 1 cup of granulated sugar until pale and bubbly
- Combine the melted butter and chocolate with the creamed sugar and eggs
- Add 1 cup of all purpose flour, 1/3 cup of natural unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 1 teaspoon of vanilla and a tablespoon of espresso powder and mix until just combined
- Fold 2/3 cup of milk chocolate chips into the dough
- Use a greased cookie dough scoop to transfer heaping tablespoons of dough onto non-stick or parchment lined baking sheets 3 inches apart to allow room for spreading.
- Garnish each cookie with your favorite candy pieces pressing them down a bit
- Bake the cookies in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until the cookies have puffed up a bit and the edges are set and crackly
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet until they are firm enough to transfer onto a cooling rack
- Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature or in the freezer
