Cookies just like Grandma used to Make
My Grandma’s Monster Cookies are the absolute BEST! One of the best things about visiting her as a kid was knowing there would be a big bowl of Monster Cookies on the counter and another bowl in the freezer. She lived 8 hours away, so we only got to visit her two to three times a year. She always made a point of having our favorite foods around. These cookies are a great option for those with gluten dietary restrictions, just like these Chewy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars.
My Grandma Stronks was such a fun lady. She was a professional beautician and ran a home salon where she worked well into her seventies. She LOVED to play Yahtzee, eat cinnamon bears, and drink Diet Pepsi. I miss her so much.
She was a great cook and always made my favorite spaghetti when we would visit. At some point during each trip, she would make a delicious ham dinner. When she liked something and thought it was delicious, she coined the phrase “more-ish,” meaning it was so good it made you want to eat more and more!
A few things I consider “more-ish”
- Caramel Corn Puffs
- Crazy Good Whole Wheat Brownies with Fudge Frosting
- Tres Leches Cake
- Magnolia Bakery Blueberry Jamboree
- Creamy Beef and Green Chili Casserole
- Navajo Tacos
- Down Home Biscuits and Gravy
How Grandma made her monster cookies
When grandma made Monster Cookies, she really made Monster Cookies. The recipe she handed down to me calls for 12 eggs, 4 cups each of granulated sugar and brown sugar, 3 pounds of peanut butter, 1 pound of margarine, 1 pound of M&Ms, 1 pound of chocolate, 1 pound of coconut, and 18 cups of oatmeal. WHAT?!?! Can you imagine how many cookies that makes?! Let me tell you, it’s a lot. I’ve done it.
Grandma made the cookies really big. I’m not sure if she used a cookie scoop or just used spoons. I try to make them about the same size she did, and I have found that a 1/4 cup-size cookie scoop works best.
Grandma said she made them in a special, giant dishwashing bin because it was the only container she had that was big enough to make them in. I always assumed the name Monster Cookie was because the batch was so monstrous. When I make the cookies, I do half of the batch Grandma did, which still makes a ton of cookies. So be prepared to have plenty to eat and plenty to stick in the freezer for later.
Bonus: These cookies don’t have flour in them. So as long as you check all the ingredients to make sure they’re gluten-free, these are a great option for those on a gluten-free diet. Personally, I think they’re a great breakfast food.
Frequently Asked Questions about Grandma’s Monster Cookies
Can you use butter instead of margarine?
Yes. Sometimes butter makes cookies a little bit flatter, but if you’re ok with that, it won’t affect the flavor. In fact, it’ll make it yummier! Another option is using butter-flavored shortening.
Which type of oatmeal works best in these cookies? quick or old-fashioned?
Actually, either one works great, but my grandma always made them with old-fashioned oats. As you can see in the pictures, I used quick oats in this batch. When you use old-fashioned, they come out a little flatter but really chewy and delicious!
Do I have to add the Karo syrup?
Good question! I’ve never tried leaving it out. But it’s hard to imagine 1 1/2 teaspoons of Karo syrup can make that big of a difference. My grandma said it helped the sugars break down better, making the cookie more chewy. Honestly, I don’t think it would be a huge problem to make it without it. You can substitute it for honey with similar results.
baker’s tools for Monster Cookies:
More Gluten-Free Recipes like Grandma's
- 1 cup margarine or butter, softened
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups brown sugar, lightly packed
- 2½ cups peanut butter plus 2 tablespoons
- 6 eggs
- ½ tablespoon Karo syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 4 teaspoons baking soda
- 9 cups oatmeal, quick or old-fashioned
- 1½ cups coconut, shredded
- 1½ cups milk chocolate chips
- 1½ cups M&Ms
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- In a large stand mixer (or with a hand mixer) cream together the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, peanut butter, and Karo syrup until nice and creamy.
- Add in the eggs one at a time until completely mixed.
- Next, add the vanilla, oatmeal, and baking soda. Mix until well combined.
- Stir in the coconut, chocolate chips, and M&Ms.
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or spray it with cooking spray and use a large scoop (about ¼ cup) to place cookies 2 inches apart. If you don't have a large cookie scoop you can use two spoons to place large ¼-cup-size portions of the dough on the cookie sheet. (If you prefer smaller cookies, that is fine, too. You can use a regular-sized cookie scoop if you prefer.
- Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes. Let cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.
- Enjoy!
If you like Grandma's Cookie Recipe, try these...
Help!!! I followed the recipe exactly and I can’t get my cookies to bake enough to take them off of the tray
Hi Shelly, Because the cookies don’t have flour they can crack and come apart easily when hot. I usually let them sit on the tray for about 5 minutes before I try to take them off. The cooking time shouldn’t need adjusting unless you are making giant cookies.
These are amazing!!! I used a small cookie scoop and smashed the balls down because I felt like the first ones were too big. Everyone is obsessed with them! I can’t wait to take them to my cookie party!!!! I do think next time I will half the chocolate chips and maybe use mini. I used quick cooking oats. Thanks for this amazing recipe!!!!
So glad you liked them! They are one of my absolute favorite cookies! The flavor and chewiness are just so dang good!
Made these today and they are so yummy! Recipe overflowed my 6 quart kitchen aid mixer so I offloaded the dough to a bigger bowl to add all the goodies! Using convection and a baking stone – 14 minutes was perfect.
I had the same problem when I tried to use my mixer. I am so glad you made them. They are one of my very favorite cookies and I really do eat them for breakfast because I like to think the oatmeal, peanut butter and eggs cancel out the m&ms and sugar. 🙂
I made these today and they are sooooo good!! However I cant mine as thick as yours. Mine came out thin…how do you make them that thick??
I am so glad you liked them Amanda. I have had times where mine come out thinner too. My grandmas were actually really flat. I think it can depend on the oats as well as altitude.
Is the Karo syrup used in the recipe light or dark syrup? Thank you… looking forward to making them🤗
Hi Jill, I use light, but it wouldn’t make a big difference to use dark.
MAKE.THESE.COOKIES! So yum. I spit the recipe in half, and still, so yum!! I followed step by step, down to the 5 minutes before removing from tray. This will be a new favorite!
So glad I found this recipe!!
Thank you Aleigh! I love these so much too. The chewyness and the flavor. They’re just the best! So glad you found the recipe!
I am trying to figure out how I will add 9 cups of oatmeal to my mixing bowl. I’m thinking I need to add everything and then at the end when I star in the M&Ms and chocolate chips, I will just add the oatmeal then. I don’t think that all of that oatmeal or fit into my mixing bowl
It is definitely tricky. My grandma had a big old-fashioned washing bin she would mix this up in.
#aprilgiveaway I am excited to try this one this weekend with almond butter substitute for the pd. They look so yummy btw thanks for the smaller recipe!
You are so welcome! Let me know how they turn out with almond butter, I’ve never tried that.
What happens with the 1 1/2 cups of milk in the ingredients list
Ooops, I am sure that is supposed to say Milk Chocolate Chips…I will go fix it. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.
I tried with almond butter. The flavor was great but it changed the consistency. Maybe more oil in the almond butter or that the oil separates easier, I don’t know. But the cookies spread out too thin and it took longer to finish cooking them. But still tasted great.
Interesting, I’m glad you tried it and can give a report. It probably does have to do with the oil content, maybe cutting out some of the butter would help next time. Did you use quick oats or old fashioned oats? I’ve noticed mine are flatter when I use all old fashioned oats.
How did they turn out with almond butter? I would like to try SF Jif PB…..hmmm guess I’ll have to experiment.
Can I make bars with this recipe? Oh, and can I omit coconut? Daughter in-law is gluten free but doesn’t like coconut.
HI Phyllis, I haven’t ever tried making this recipe into bars. It would be worth a shot. They recipe is really large though and would probably need to be made in two large cookie sheets as bars or maybe one cookie sheet and one 9×13 pan. Or you could half it and try it in a cookie sheet.
The trick will be getting it cooked right. I would start with 350 for 17-20 minutes and check it. It will also need to cool completely before cutting and serving or it will fall apart. It should also work fine to sub more oatmeal in place of the coconut.
Do you use salted or unsalted butter?
I use salted
#septembergiveaway
I like making the dough and freezing it in balls. Free cookies all the time
I’m excited to make these. Would it be alright to make the dough and store in the fridge – baking a few cookies along?
You are going to love this recipe Anna! Yes, you could leave it in the fridge covered tightly for up to three days. Another option is to make dough balls and freeze them to pull out whenever you want to.
I have this same recipe, except for the coconut. That sounds like a good addition. But I add butterscotch chips with the milk chocolate chips and mini m&m’s. It is wonderful with the butterscotch chips.
Yum! That sounds delicious! I will have to try butterscotch chips next time and you definitely need to try adding coconut, it makes them so chewy and delicious!
Back in the 70’s I received this recipe from a coworker. The one I had called for double everything you listed, except I don’t remember coconut. My coworker said she just dumped everything in a large bowl, stirred it all together and then baked large cookies (I think it was 4 or 6 on a cookie sheet, they were that large). Well, my mother and I decided to make them. I had a set of stainless steel mixing bowls. We used the largest bowl (9 qts?) and began dumping in ingredients. Now to stir, NOT! There was no room. So we took the second largest bowl, poured out half from the largest and began to stir both batches. when they were properly mixed we were able to combine everything in the larger bowl to stir it all up. Everyone loved the cookies. Mother & I had a fun memory and a lesson learned. “Stir after each addition.”
lol, that’s awesome Cheryl. My grandma used the huge original recipe too and used what she called a dish pan to mix them. So fun to have those memories.
Wish I could print this
You should be able to, there should be a print button on the recipe card in the post.
Hi, does it matter if you use sweetened or unsweetened coconut? Thanks.
Hi, I use sweetened, but I’m sure they would also turn out great with unsweetened.
These have become my new favorite cookies. I have made them several times now and my family and friends can’t get enough!!
Yay! That makes me so happy!
Is it okay to refrigerate the dough for a couple of hours before I bake them?
Hi, Bella. You can refrigerate the dough. When you are ready to bake the cookies, take the dough out of the refrigerator an hour before so you can scoop it out onto the cookie sheet.
So good! A recipe to keep forever!
I am so glad you like them!
Love these cookies. Everyone who tries them does. I actually make bars out of them. Granola bars are great i use a small glass square baking dish cook at 350 for 15 then turn down to 300 till middle is done. Id say maybe another 10 to 15 . I also substitute the butter with butter crisco. Sometimes i put instant coffee in with it too.
Awesome Kim, I recently made them as bars too and I’m excited to get that recipe posted! I haven’t tried crisco in them, I’ll have to do that!
I’m a cook in a camp and I love this recipe because it’s huge! The guys love these cookies and I love making them.
I love that you are making these at a camp! There really are so delicious and I agree, they are fun to make! Thanks for sharing!
It would be very helpful if you had a printer version of this. I only want the recipe, not the other 29 pages. Frustrating
It will only print the recipe if you go to the recipe card and click on the little printer that is under the small picture on the recipe card. I am sorry that you wasted paper and ink.