Peanut-Butter Monster Mash Cookies
With this year’s Halloween already being dubbed “quarantine-oween”, trick-or-treating won’t look quite the same. The good news is that families and businesses are coming up with creative ways to safely celebrate the holiday including handing out pre-packaged candy from a distance and setting up grab-and-go tables. Small in-house parties limited to immediate family or school-bubble buddies will most likely be popular this year as well. Luckily, little monsters and zombies can still experience the fun of choosing a costume (with a great mask) and indulge in the candy and sweets associated with Halloween. No need to go door-to-door. Instead, send the kids to the kitchen. Turn on Monster Mash and bake up a batch of Peanut-Butter Monster Mash Cookies.
This Halloween-themed cookie is my latest version of a recipe from the “Homemade Holiday Cookies” cookbook, copyright 1993 that still has a place on my shelf. These cookies have been a regular in my home for many years. Thanks to the folks at Mars who in 1986 began making holiday M&M’s for Easter and Christmas (and didn’t stop there), I’ve brought the recipe out to bake a variety of holiday batches. Red & green M&Ms for Christmas; pink, red & white for Valentine’s Day, and the Ghoul’s mix for this year’s Monster Mash variety. And I’ve more than once literally hand-picked the green, white and black ones out of a bag of plain M&Ms for Oregon Duck football games.
Over the years, I’ve modified the recipe to make it moister and chewier. Basically, I’d find that when I got to the bottom of the bowl the dough wouldn’t smush together into a cookie ball; it kept falling apart. The proportions seemed incorrect. Then more recently, we were driving through Oregon wine country and stopped at the super cute Red Hills Market in Dundee and there in the case was a “Monster Cookie” that looked suspiciously like my monster cookie. So, yes, I had to have one. And it was pretty much the same cookie, but they also add Reese’s Pieces. Based on their cookie, I realized mine needed some improvements.
First change – I still think this must have been a typo in my old cookbook – the 2 tablespoons of baking soda called for really needs to be 2 teaspoons. Too much soda can affect the taste and not in a good way. I increased the amount of brown sugar from 1 cup to 1 ½ cups (which also helped the baking soda react) and decreased the amount of granulated sugar from 1 cup to ½ cup. Brown sugar has more liquid and a touch of molasses, which adds more moisture into the dough contributing to a chewier cookie. I also upped the amount of peanut butter by a ¼ cup to help it hold together better. Some notes on the peanut butter. This time I used a 15 oz jar of Skippy Natural – that way I didn’t have to measure it! I just used a spatula to scoop it all out. You can also use Adam’s Natural Creamy “No Stir” kind — this is my favorite. But do not use the natural type where the oil separates and requires stirring. The oats should be carefully measured. Also, you’ll see that these have no flour, so can be gluten-free (use gluten-free oats if needed).
Here’s my latest recipe:
Peanut-Butter Monster Mash Cookies
1 ¾ cups peanut butter
½ cup butter, room temperature
1 ½ cups brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 ½ cups old fashioned oats (not quick-cooking)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup Toll House semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cups M&M’s (I used the Ghoul’s mix)
Preheat oven to 350° F. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.
I use a stand mixer, but you can use a hand mixer or mix by hand if ambitious. Beat peanut butter and butter until creamy. Add the sugars and beat until fluffy. Mix in eggs and vanilla until completely blended. Add baking soda and oats and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips and M&Ms.
With a 1/3 cup measuring cup, scoop dough out and roll into balls between your hands. Place on parchment paper (4 to a regular size cookie sheet). I have an awesome “Big sheet” from Nordic Ware that fills my oven. I placed 8 cookies on that successfully.
Bake for 15 minutes total (no longer). I recommend after 10-12 minutes, lightly pushing each cookie down with a small plate. I actually did a little pan-banging to see if they’d spread more. I think it may have helped a little but not that effective. Let them sit on the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Then transfer to wire rack. At this point while they are still warm, you may also want to apply a little pressure with the palm of your hand to flatten a bit.
I typically wrap them individually in plastic wrap. That way they are grab-and-go friendly!
Mini-monster cookies: I’ve also successfully made “mini” versions of these cookies. Use a small-sized cookie scoop (holds about 2 tsp) to place cookies on parchment-lined sheet. Cook for 8-10 minutes. When they come out of the oven they will have spread into irregular shapes if you don’t roll them. While still warm on the cookie sheet, if desired, use a small circular shaped object such as a shot glass to “mold” them into uniform circles. Leave on the cookie sheet for 3-5 minutes and transfer to a wire rack. Place a ½ dozen or so into clear goodie bags and tie with ribbon for gifting.
Because these are chockful of oats and peanut butter, it’s almost like eating a granola bar and you can get away with having one for breakfast with your coffee or a big glass of milk. So healthy. (At least compared to a bag full of fun-sized Skittles.)
Peanut-butter Monster Mash Cookies. A graveyard smash.