Pretzel M&M Peanut Butter Cookies

Remember my pretzel m&m obsession? It actually started over the summer. You see, I’d been wanting to try them ever since I heard they were a real thing. But I figured trying, and inevitably falling in love with a new type of candy was probably a horrible decision. Then my friend Kara had some in her freezer (yes, they are delicious frozen), and I caved.

She lurred me in by telling me they had less calories than other varieties. That pretzel takes up all of this room, and has less calories than chocolate. Well, okay then…that makes it a healthy candy, right?

Ever since, I can’t get them out of my mind. Sweet chocolate, salty pretzel with a candy crunch? What’s not to love?? Well, obviously the only way to make them better is to put them into a cookie. A peanut butter cookie to be exact.

The first time I made these was for book club and although I liked them enough to bring them, they weren’t perfect yet. I knew I didn’t want to share them with you guys until I was 100% in love with them, so I tried again, and this time I added chocolate chips, took out a little flour, and didn’t chill the dough. I think the rice krispies soaked up too much liquid when I chilled it the first go around, and they lost their crunch.

I am SO glad I gave them a second try! They ended up with the most perfect cookie texture–you know, crunchy on the outside, soft and gooey on the inside. The extra chocolate worked like a charm, and the cereal was crunchy, and added that little bit of extra texture I was craving. They were a huge hit, and Steve even said he had a new favorite cookie! 🙂

 

Pretzel M&M Peanut Butter Cookies

yield 1 1/2 dozen

• 1 cup white whole wheat flour
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 4 oz light cream cheese
• 1 cup peanut butter (I used White Chocolate Wonderful)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup crispy brown rice cereal (or just regular rice krispies if you have them on hand)
• 1 cup pretzel m&ms
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 large cookie sheets with silpat or parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl (I used my stand mixer), beat together cream cheese, peanut butter, and sugars until combined. Beat in egg and vanilla followed by flour mixture. Gently, fold in rice cereal, m&ms and chocolate chips. I ended up just using my hands to get everything combined.
4. Roll dough into balls just over 1″ and transfer to prepared baking sheet. Bake until edges are golden and cookies are just set, about 12-15 minutes. Do not over bake.
5. Let stand for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store completely cooled cookies in a tupperware with the lid sitting on top, but not sealed–these will get mushy if they are in a completely airtight container–for up to one week.