Halloween M&M Cookies

Thanks to Katie over at Good Things Catered for sparking this idea in my head.

This recipe is basically the TCCCC, but with M&Ms substituted for the chocolate chips. And let me just say: They are tasty! And so festive, too. I found a bag of Halloween M&Ms at our grocery store and went from there. (I have to admit I was a little disappointed that the M&Ms weren't just orange and black anymore. They've added a few other colors, too.)

Michael will be taking these with him to a family party tomorrow. I know they will enjoy!

M&M Cookies
Makes approximately 15-18 large cookies

Ingredients:
- 2 cups + 2 tbsp. (10 5/8 oz.) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 12 tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm
- 1 cup packed (7 oz.) light or dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (3 1/2 oz.) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk
- 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
- 1 - 1 1/2 cups plain M&Ms

Directions:
1. Adjust the oven racks to the upper- and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or spray them with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl; set aside.

3. Either by hand or with an electric mixer, mix the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Beat in the egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed just until combined. Stir in the chips to taste.

4. Roll a scant 1/4 cup of the dough (since I weighed the dough, I did 2.2 oz. per cookie) into a ball. Hold the dough ball with the fingertips of both hands and pull into 2 equal halves. Rotate the halves 90 degrees and, with jagged surfaces facing up, join the halves together at their base, again forming a single ball, being careful not to smooth the dough’s uneven surface. Place the formed dough balls on the prepared baking sheets, jagged surface up, spacing them 2 1/2 inches apart.

5. Bake until the cookies are light golden grown and the outer edges start to harden yet the centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 18 minutes, rotating the baking sheets front to back and top to bottom halfway through the baking time. Cool the cookies on the sheets. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets with a metal spatula.