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Monster Cookie Cupcakes pack everything you love about monster cookies, the oats, the peanut butter, the chocolate chips, the mini M&M’s, into a soft cupcake crowned with candy studded peanut butter frosting. I baked them for a birthday party on a whim, and they outsold the actual birthday cake, right up there with our strawberry earthquake cake in the request rotation.
A soaked oat and peanut butter batter bakes into tender cupcakes that get piled high with chunky peanut butter frosting full of chocolate chips and mini candy.
Monster Cookie Cupcakes Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 15 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 17 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 2 hours 2 minutes (includes oat soak)
- 🍽️ Serving: 12 cupcakes
- ⚡ Calories: 618kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Peanut butter and chocolate with chewy oats (monster cookie in cupcake form)
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with our pina colada cupcakes
Quick Answer
Soak old fashioned oats in boiling water until cooled, about 90 minutes. Cream brown sugar, butter, and peanut butter, beat in an egg and vanilla, then mix in the cooled oats, a flour mixture, and flour coated chocolate chips. Divide the batter between 12 liners and bake at 350 degrees for 14 to 17 minutes. Frost with whipped peanut butter frosting folded with mini chocolate chips and mini M&M’s, scooped on generously with an ice cream scoop.
Jump to:
- Monster Cookie Cupcakes Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Monster Cookie Cupcakes
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Monster Cookie Cupcakes FAQs
- Other Recommended Sweet Treats
- Monster Cookie Cupcakes Recipe
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Soaked oats keep the crumb soft. Pouring boiling water over the oats softens them completely, so the cupcakes get monster cookie flavor without a single chewy dry oat.
- Peanut butter pulls double duty. It flavors both the batter and the frosting, so every layer of the cupcake tastes like the cookie that inspired it.
- Flour coated chips stay suspended. Tossing the chocolate chips with a spoonful of the flour mixture keeps them from sinking to the bottom of the batter.
- Brown sugar mimics the cookie. All brown sugar, no granulated, gives the cupcakes the caramel chew of a bakery monster cookie.
- Three minutes of whipping makes the frosting fluffy. The long whip after the cream goes in turns dense peanut butter frosting light enough to scoop into clouds.
- The scoop is the style. The chips and M&M’s are too chunky to pipe, so a generous ice cream scoop of frosting is both easier and exactly the look.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- A monster cookie you eat with a wrapper. Oats, peanut butter, chocolate, and candy in soft cupcake form.
- That frosting. Whipped peanut butter frosting loaded with mini chips and M&M’s is worth the recipe on its own.
- Birthday party gold. Bright candy tops make these the tray kids run for, right next to a bowl of our sweet chex mix.
Key Ingredients
The monster cookie hall of fame, reassembled for cupcakes. Quantities are in the recipe card below; here is why each one matters.
- Old fashioned oats. Soaked in boiling water until soft, they bring the signature monster cookie heartiness without any chew.
- Creamy peanut butter. In the batter and the frosting. Stick with regular creamy peanut butter; natural styles separate.
- Light brown sugar. The all brown sugar batter is what gives the crumb its caramel cookie flavor.
- Mini chocolate chips and mini M&M’s. Minis distribute evenly in the batter and frosting where full size candy sinks and clumps.
- Powdered sugar and heavy cream. The frosting team that whips the peanut butter into a light, scoopable cloud.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
These cupcakes welcome all the monster cookie mix ins.
- Add chopped peanut butter cups. Fold them into the frosting for a double peanut butter candy moment, borrowing from our Reese’s peanut butter cup cookies.
- Seasonal candy swap. Holiday colored mini candies turn these into Christmas, Easter, or Halloween cupcakes instantly.
- Make them gluten friendly. A cup for cup gluten free flour blend works in this small flour quantity batter.
- Chocolate drizzle finish. A ribbon of melted chocolate over the frosting dresses them up for a party table.
- Mini cupcakes. Bake 24 minis for 10 to 12 minutes for lunchbox sized treats.
How to Make Monster Cookie Cupcakes
- Place the oats in a heat proof bowl, pour the boiling water over them, and let sit until cooled to room temperature, about 90 minutes. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake tin with liners.
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl. Toss the mini chocolate chips with 1 tablespoon of the flour mixture in a separate bowl and set both aside.
- In a large bowl, cream the brown sugar, butter, and peanut butter until smooth with an electric hand mixer.
- Add the egg and vanilla and mix until smooth.
- Add the cooled oatmeal and mix it in.
- Mix in the flour mixture until no dry patches remain, then stir in the flour coated chocolate chips until just combined.
- Divide the batter among the 12 cupcake liners, about 3 tablespoons each, and bake 14 to 17 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in the tin, then completely on a wire rack.
- For the frosting, whip the peanut butter and butter until smooth, add the powdered sugar a little at a time, then the heavy cream and vanilla, and whip 3 minutes until fluffy. Fold in the chocolate chips and M&M’s by hand and scoop generously onto the cooled cupcakes.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Let the oats cool fully. Warm oatmeal melts the butter and chips; the 90 minute soak is hands off but non negotiable.
- Cool the cupcakes completely before frosting. Even slightly warm cakes melt the peanut butter frosting into a slide.
- Whip the frosting the full 3 minutes. That is the difference between dense spread and fluffy cloud.
- Fold the candy in by hand. The mixer crushes the M&M’s and streaks the colors.
- Use an ice cream scoop to frost. One generous scoop per cupcake, the chunky frosting is not pipeable and is not supposed to be.
- Add a few candies on top. Press extra minis into the frosting so every cupcake shows its colors, the same finishing trick as our lunch lady peanut butter cookies.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
These monster cookie cupcakes own the birthday table. Set them next to a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a glass of cold milk and watch the kids form a line.
For a dessert spread, pair them with our oatmeal raisin cookies and a pan of fudgy condensed milk brownies so the oat and chocolate fans both win.
They travel well too. The sturdy scooped frosting survives the ride to school parties and potlucks better than piped swirls, and a tray of these next to our strawberry earthquake cake covers every sweet tooth at the party.
Monster Cookie Cupcakes FAQs
They are cupcakes built from the monster cookie playbook: a soft batter of soaked oats, peanut butter, brown sugar, and chocolate chips, topped with whipped peanut butter frosting folded with mini chocolate chips and mini M&M’s. All the cookie flavor, party ready format.
The boiling water soak softens the old fashioned oats completely so the baked cupcakes are tender instead of chewy. It also hydrates the batter, keeping the crumb moist. Budget about 90 minutes for the oats to cool to room temperature before mixing.
Yes. Bake the cupcakes a day ahead and store them airtight at room temperature, then frost the day you serve. Frosted cupcakes keep covered in the fridge for 3 days; let them sit out 20 minutes before serving so the frosting softens.
The frosting is loaded with mini chocolate chips and M&M’s, which jam piping tips. An ice cream scoop gives each cupcake a generous, bakery style dome and shows off the candy. It is faster than piping too.
Freeze the unfrosted cupcakes airtight for up to 3 months and thaw at room temperature before frosting. The frosting is best made fresh; the candy colors can bleed when frozen and thawed.
No, and the mix up is common. Cookie Monster cupcakes are the bright blue Sesame Street character cupcakes. Monster cookie cupcakes, this recipe, are based on monster cookies: the classic oatmeal peanut butter cookies loaded with chocolate chips and mini candy coated chocolates.
Want the cookie that started it all in another form? Our maple bacon cookies are the boldest bake on the blog.
Monster cookie fan? Our M&M peanut butter cookies have the same fun mix ins.
Monster Cookie Cupcakes Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup old-fashioned oats
- ¾ cup boiling water
- ½ cup + 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
- ¾ cup light brown sugar packed
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the frosting:
- ¾ cup creamy peanut butter
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 3 ¼ cups powdered sugar
- 5 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup mini M&M’s
- ¼ cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Place the oats in a medium-sized heat-proof bowl. Pour the boiling water on top and let it sit until it cools to room temperature, about 90 minutes.½ cup old-fashioned oats, ¾ cup boiling water
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a cupcake tin with liners, and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.½ cup + 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Add the chocolate chips to a small bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of the flour mixture and stir to combine so all of the chocolate chips are coated, set aside.½ cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
- In a large bowl, cream together the brown sugar, butter, and peanut butter until smooth using an electric hand mixer.¾ cup light brown sugar, 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
- Add the egg and vanilla, mix until smooth.1 large egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Add the cooled oatmeal and mix it in.
- Then, add the flour mixture, and mix it in until there are no dry patches.
- Add the chocolate chips and stir them in until just combined.
- Divide the batter among the 12 cupcake liners in the tin, about 3 tablespoons each.
- Bake for 14-17 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then take them out to cool completely on a wire rack.
- Once the cupcakes are cool, make the frosting. Place the peanut butter and butter into the body of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or into a large bowl with an electric hand mixer, and mix until smooth.¾ cup creamy peanut butter, ½ cup unsalted butter
- Add the powdered sugar a little at a time until mixed in. Scrape down the sides as needed.3 ¼ cups powdered sugar
- Add the heavy cream and vanilla, and slowly stir it in. Once it is incorporated, turn up the speed to medium-high and whip for 3 minutes until light and fluffy.5 tablespoons heavy cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add the chocolate chips and M&M’s, I like to fold these in by hand until incorporated.1 cup mini M&M’s, ¼ cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Top the cupcakes generously with the frosting. I like to use an ice cream scoop to do this. The chunks from the chocolate chips and M&M’s are too big to pipe the frosting. Serve immediately.
Notes
- This recipe can be doubled if you’d like.
- They can be frozen, see above on how to do that.
- You can use less frosting if you’d like.
- Add some mini M&M’s or chopped peanuts to the batter for some more texture.
- Do not skip soaking your oats, this is important to the texture of the cupcakes.
Nutrition
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