Create an easy and delicious homemade Christmas gift with these layered cookie mix in a jar. These are always a big hit! Free printable tag and instructions included.
Table of Contents
Cookies in a Jar Gift
It’s no secret that cookies are one of my favorite things to bake and give. There’s nothing better than fresh baked desserts like these chocolate crinkle cookies, 7 layer bars or M&M cookie bars. Although sometimes it’s nice to make these mason jar cookies, so that friends and family can bake them when they’re reading to enjoy a treat.
We’ve shared plenty of mason jar gifts before like these peppermint brownie mix in a jar, but this mason jar cookie mix has to be my sweetest one yet.
I’ve tested this recipe for M&M Christmas cookies quite a few times to get the right proportions and these truly are some of my favorite cookies. I adapted them from my favorite M&M cookies (if you just want the cookie recipe). I’ve also included darling free printable tags that are perfect for gift giving.
Recipe Ingredients
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements below.
- Dry ingredients for the jar: Flour, baking soda, salt, brown sugar, granulated sugar, chocolate chips, and M&Ms are layered into a jar and sealed until ready to bake.
- Wet ingredients to add when ready to bake: Add butter, egg, and vanilla to bring the cookie dough together.
How to Make Cookies in Jar
This is the perfect gift to give to neighbors, teachers, friends and families. These jars are great because the receiver can keep them in their pantry for whenever they’re wanting a shortcut to homemade cookies or the craving hits. They’re also perfect for making on Christmas Eve… because rumor has it…they are Santa’s favorite cookies. ;)
- Star with a quart sizes mason jar.
- Print the recipe below and then layer the flour, baking and salt using a spoon or funnel.
- Next layer the brown sugar and sugar.
- Finally add the chocolate chips and M&M
- Seal with a lid.
Tips for Making a Cookie Mix in a Jar
- Make sure you are using a clean and DRY jar. You do not want there to be any water in there.
- Try using a funnel to easily put the flour into the jar.
- Tap the jar on the counter to flatten the ingredients
- Use a spoon to flatten down the ingredients and create a nice line.
- Make sure to pack the ingredients tight, so they all fit.
- To add a more decorative touch, cut out a 6-inch piece of fabric and place between the lid
5 star review
I am giving out these jars for the holidays and had to test it before giving them out and WOW!! This is the perfect recipe!! Absolutely delicious and perfect instructions.
– Jessica
Free Printable Tags
Print on cardstock paper with colored ink (or take to your local copy store) and then cut out tags. Tie the ‘Merry Christmas’ tag onto the top of the mason jar with bakers twine and then use glue or glue dots to adhere the instructions to the front of the jar. You could also tie the instructions on top along with the tag if you’d prefer.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! You can use any type of 1-quart storage container you like as long as it tightly seals.
Absolutely! Simply swap equal amounts of gluten-free flour for all-purpose flour.
You certainly can! Try it with white chocolate chips, cranberries, nuts (walnuts, pistachios, or pecans).
Storing
Storage: The sealed jar will stay fresh for 1 to 2 months.
More Delicious Christmas Cookies
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M&M Cookies in a Jar
Ingredients
Dry ingredients for jar
- 1 ½ cup +1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup light brown sugar , packed
- 5 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- ¾ cup M&M’s , plus more or less as needed to fill jar
Wet ingredient for baking
- ½ cup butter , slightly melted and cooled
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Dry ingredients for jar
- Clean and dry 1-quart jar. Using a funnel or spoon add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Tap on counter to level.
- Spoon in the brown sugar and press down the edges with a spoon. Layer in the granulated sugar.
- Add the chocolate chips and M&M’s. Seal jar.
Wet ingredient for baking
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F (or 375°F if you like edges a little more golden). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, beat together the butter, egg, and vanilla.
- Dump the jar ingredients into the bowl and stir until combined. Use hands if needed to combine mixture. Refrigerate at least 15 to 30 minutes for thicker cookies.
- Using a large cookie scoop (or about 2 Tablespoons), scoop the dough onto the baking sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until the edges are slightly crisp yet still soft in the middle. Remove from oven. Let cool on baking sheet 2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
I hope you enjoy this quick and adorable DIY Christmas gift idea. Come back throughout the month to find more ideas!
Categorized as: American, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Christmas, Cookies, Desserts, DIY, Gifts, Holiday Cookies, Nut-Free, Vegetarian
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
I’m about to make these for gifts.
The recipe says to bake at 350 but the printable says to bake at 375
Could you clarify please.
Appreciate it, thank you.
Merry Christmas 🍪
It should be 375 (we updated as we find they bake better at a little higher temp). Thanks for double checking, we just updated the card. We posted the full recipe over here too: https://www.iheartnaptime.net/mm-christmas-cookies/
I just made but the ingredients didn’t come close to filling up bar (quart size). I added a little more flour and brown sugar but then the butter ration was off 🙃 any advise?
What size jar were you using? I typically will add more chocolate chips or m&m’s to reach the top (I leave about 1/2-inch from the top).
Oh my goodness, These are so good. Everyone loves them.
I rarely bake, but volunteered to make Cookie Jars for a fund raiser. Started with this recipe: “oops too big for a 1L Mason jar”, so I baked that batch. Making a third batch today!
I found Christmas M&M’s that were white chocolate mint. Using half the chocolate/mint and half normal M&M’s = Yum.
I also made several Cookie Jars using your halved recipe. I’m confident the recipient won’t be disappointed.
Thank you Jamielyn!
You are so welcome! Thanks for your sweet comment and review, Margaret :) I’m going to have to try those white chocolate mint M&M’s next Christmas!
Do these have to be filled to the brim or how high should the jar be filled to?
If you use a quart sized jar, the recipe will make enough to fill the jars all the way to the top :)
Thank you for the recipe. I did want to double check if that’s regular butter or unsalted butter?
Unsalted :)
Just made the cookies- wanted to try them before I made jars for gifts. The cookies are delicious! My husband has already eaten four! However, I can’t find a link to download the recipe label even though I have subscribed to the newsletter. Help!
I’m so glad you all enjoyed the cookies! And I’m sorry you’re having trouble downloading the printable. We will email it to you :)
Hello from England!
How big is a quart sized jar in ounces please. Want to be sure I’m buying the right ones. Excited to make!
Hi Sarah! A quart sized jar is 32 ounces :)
Sorry what are the measurments of the mason jars?
A quart sized mason jar :)
I am giving out these jars for the holidays and had to test it before giving them out and WOW!! This is the perfect recipe!! Absolutely delicious and perfect instructions.
Love to hear this!! Such a fun holiday gift :)
I have not actually made this as a jar to gift to someone BUT i was given this as a gift and now it is the ONLY chocolate chip cookie recipe I use!! They come out perfect every time and taste delicious!!
This makes my day! Thanks so much for your nice comment, Brittany!
I’m gifting the M&M cookies in a jar again this year. I wanted a cookie in a jar recipe that any friend could make regardless of skill. These are so easy to make and taste delicious. I tested several cookie in a jar recipes. This was the best. No additional dry ingredients were needed. And the wet ingredients were just the right amount. Other recipes were too dry or difficult to mix.
Thank you so much for your comment Kelly! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed them!
Just made 20 jars and they look fabulous!
Oh good, I’m so glad!
These are adorable!!! Great gift idea, and they look so festive and fun! I followed this recipe and made 72 jars (!) for holiday gift baskets for my company employees. I increased the flour by 1/2 cup and increased the chocolate chips and M&Ms by ~1/4 cup in order to fill the jars to the very brim. These changes to the recipe didn’t impact the delicious taste of the cookies. I also used 7″ circles of holiday fabric and red/green/white sparkly yarn to tie around the jar lid (like you would on a jar of jam) and to secure the tag. I also pasted 2″ decorative chalkboard stickers with a little holiday note in silver marker on the side of the jar over the white flour layer which was a cute extra touch. Because of the fabric I added, the M&Ms at the top were slightly obscured. So I experimented with the layering in an attempt to make it more colorful and after trying almost every layer combination, I ended up doing it upside down (M&Ms on bottom, chocolate chips, brown sugar, minor ingredients, and lastly flour on the top). The chocolate chip/brown sugar layer is slightly messy but this way the most colorful parts of the recipe are the most visible. I would still recommend following the recipe’s suggested layer order as it looks the neatest. Definitely follow her tip to use a funnel (or rolled up piece of paper in my case) to keep the flour from dusting everywhere. FYI, this cost about $4/jar to make 72 jars, where it would have cost $20-25/jar to purchase pre-made. Overall, this was an awesome recipe, adorable gift idea, labor of love, but everyone loved it!!! THANK YOU for sharing it!
Wow!! 72 jars! I’m so happy to hear that everyone loved it! Thank you so much for your kind comment and review Jenna!!
Love this gift idea!
I can’t find where to download the printables…?
Hi Sydney! Did you enter your name and email to subscribe? This printable is for subscribers only.
I subscribed to get the printable, but still cannot find how to download it. Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.
Hi Cindy, I will email you the printable now :)
the cookie jars came out perfect but I cannot download the printables from my email. Link is broken.
Hi Sarah! If you send me an email at community@iheartnaptime.net I can try and send it to you. :)
Hi Jamielyn. I’m so excited to start preparing these adorable jar gifts! Can you email me the link for the free printables as well please?
Do you have a recipe for pint sized jars?
I don’t, I’m sorry.
How do you get these labels to print? Every time I hit print it just prints a blank page
Hi Meg! Did you subscribe and get the printable via email? It should be emailed to you once you subscribe. Please send us an email at community@iheartnaptime.net if you are still having problems.