Not Your Mama’s Magic Cookies

Buckle up kids, day 2 of #AKCookieWeek is an out-of-this-world combination. Over the past couple of years, I’ve tested and re-tested this recipe to make sure it was absolutely perfect for you all, and these are serious dessert heaven.

These are the best magic cookies ever with a wonderful brown sugar base and tons of delicious mix-ins like butterscotch, chocolate, marshmallows, coconut, and more. What are magic cookies, you ask? They’re basically cookies that feel a little bit magical and sweet thanks to all of the fun ingredients.

These incredible cookies are perfectly crispy on the outside and super chewy in the middle. You can really make them your own with some of your own favorite mix-ins, so have fun experimenting, and remember to read all of my best tips in the post!

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Cookie Week 2023 is HERE! From 11/27 through 12/10:

1. Make ANY Ambitious Kitchen cookie recipe from the blog
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Everything you’ll need to make the best magic cookies

These babies are called “magic cookies” because of the incredible texture and all of the wonderful mix-ins we’ll be adding right to the batter. Here’s what you’ll need to make them:

• Coconut oil: melted coconut oil gives the cookies moisture and a little boost of coconut flavor. No sweetened condensed milk in here, which is a common ingredient in other magic cookie bars and cookies.
• Brown sugar: we’re using all dark brown sugar (no white sugar) in these cookies for that rich molasses flavor. It also makes the cookies extra chewy!
• Eggs: you’ll need 1 egg and 1 egg yolk to help the cookies bake properly.
• Flour: the base of these cookies is made with regular all purpose flour.
• Oats: I personally believe rolled oats in cookies make them 100x better. They get the best texture!
• Baking staples: don’t forget the vanilla extract (learn how to make your own here!), baking soda, and salt.
• For the mix-ins: here’s where the cookies get their magic. We’re folding in shredded unsweetened coconut, puffed brown rice cereal, chopped pecans, mini marshmallows, dark chocolate chunks, AND butterscotch chips. I mean…can you even?!
• Sea salt: as always, I love sprinkling fancy sea salt on top of my cookies.

Customize your magic cookies

Have fun mixing and matching with your favorite add-ins! Here are some other mix-in ideas I can suggest:

• Swap the pecans for chopped walnuts (or any of your favorite nuts!)
• Try white chocolate chips or chunks instead of dark chocolate
• Add peanut butter chips in place of the butterscotch chips

The options are truly endless!

Can I make them gluten free or vegan?

Please note that I have not tested this magic cookie recipe using a gluten-free flour or flax eggs, so I cannot be sure how they’ll turn out. Feel free to make them dairy free by simply swapping the butterscotch chips for dairy free chocolate chips.

Can I use steel cut oats?

I would not recommend using steel cut oats as they are much harder and will not give the cookies that chewy factor that rolled oats will!

How to make the best magic cookies

1. Mix the wet ingredients. Whisk together all of the wet ingredients in a large bowl until the mixture is smooth and resembles caramel.
2. Add the dry. Stir in all of the dry ingredients until the dough is well combined.
3. Add the mix-ins. Fold in all of those delicious mix-ins, reserving some chocolate chunks and butterscotch chips to add to the top of your cookies before baking.
4. Rest the dough. Let the dough sit for 5-10 minutes at room temp to help it stay together when baked.
5. Scoop, bake & devour. Use a cookie scoop to scoop the dough, add it to a prepared baking sheet, and top with some extra butterscotch and/or chocolate. Bake them up, sprinkle with sea salt, and enjoy!

Looking for thinner cookies?

Simply reduce the flour by 1-2 tablespoons! It just depends on your texture preference.

A note on baking with marshmallows

The marshmallows could melt out of the cookies if you have them on the edges. This is no big deal! They’ll caramelize and create delicious crispy bites on the edges.

Storing & freezing tips

• To store: store these magic cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
• To freeze: you can actually freeze the cookie dough OR the freshly baked cookies to enjoy later! Get all of my tips and tricks for freezing cookies here.

More cookie recipes you’ll love

Get all of my cookie recipes here!

I hope you love these wonderful magic cookies! If you make them be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked them. Enjoy, xo!

Not Your Mama’s Magic Cookies

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

ServesServes 16 cookies

The magic cookies of your dreams filled with oats, shredded coconut, rice krispies, pecans, marshmallows, butterscotch chips, and puddles of dark chocolate. These incredible magic cookies have a brown sugar base, which makes them crispy on the outside and perfectly chewy in the middle. The ultimate holiday treat!

Ingredients

• Wet ingredients:
• ½ cup melted virgin coconut oil
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 egg + 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Dry ingredients:
• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons all purpose flour*
• ⅔ cup old fashioned rolled oats
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• Mix-ins:
• ⅓ cup shredded unsweetened coconut (I like Bob’s Red Mill)
• ½ cup puffed brown rice cereal or brown rice krispies
• ⅓ cup roughly chopped pecans
• ⅔ cup mini marshmallows**
• 3 ounces 70% dark chocolate bar, chopped into chunks (about 1/2 cup chocolate chips/chunks)
• ¼ cup butterscotch chips, plus more as needed
• For topping:
• Maldon sea salt, for sprinkling on top

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

• Mix together the wet ingredients: in a large bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, brown sugar, egg, egg yolk and vanilla until well combined and smooth. The mixture should resemble caramel and turn a slightly lighter golden brown color.

• Stir in the dry ingredients: add the flour, oats, baking soda and salt to the bowl with the wet ingredients and use a wooden spoon to stir together until well combined.

• Add in mix-ins: stir in the shredded unsweetened coconut, brown rice cereal, pecans, mini marshmallows, dark chocolate chunks and butterscotch chips until well combined. (I suggest reserving a few chocolate chunks and butterscotch chips for adding on top of cookies to make them pretty.)

• Rest the dough: Allow the dough to sit for 5 to 10 minutes at room temperature before baking.

• Use a medium cookie scoop to grab dough and drop onto the prepared baking sheet, being sure to place cookies at least 2 inches apart from one another. Do NOT flatten dough balls down. Add a few extra chocolate chunks and butterscotch chips on top of each cookie (1-3 per cookie is good!)

• Bake cookies for 9-11 minutes or until slightly golden on the edges. Marshmallows will create some crispy edges if they leak out, which are DELICIOUS.

• Once cookies are done baking, sprinkle them with sea salt. Allow cookies to cool on a baking sheet for 5 to 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. Makes 16 to 18 cookies. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes

To make dairy free: skip the butterscotch chips and use dairy free chocolate instead.
*If you want thinner cookies, feel free to use 2 tablespoons less flour.
**The marshmallows could melt out of the cookies if you have them on the edges. no big deal, they’ll caramelize and create delicious crispy bites on the edges!