Carney's Culinary Creations: #17 Sugar Pudding Cookies

'Tis the season! I'm SO beyond excited that it's Christmas season, although it's flying by and is almost over now. No! Slow down! I made these last week for a little Christmas get together I went to, and they were super easy. (Brownie points, check)

I wanted to make a batch of cookies. Not a huge batch. Not three dozen, not even two dozen. Just a plate full of cookies to take over to the Christmas party. I didn't want any left over at my house, and I didn't want to spend hours making them. So I came up with this little recipe. And she's a keeper.

This recipe can make 12-18 cookies. I made mine smaller, so I got 18 out of it. But, if you wanted bigger cookies, this is a great recipe to use for just one dozen, too.

Of course, these don't have to be green. You can keep these sugar cookies plain if you want, or make them pink, blue, or any color you need. I wanted to make mine a little festive, so I went with green food coloring and red sprinkles to top them off.

I would definitely recommend these! They are quick, easy, and extra soft, courtesy of the pudding. If you really wanted to, you could go without the frosting, but honestly, who wants to do that? Load it on!

Merry Christmas and I hope these help you out this season when it comes to taking or making just ONE batch of cookies! There are SO many goodies, chocolates and desserts around my house, I am begging for more one-dozen recipes! Enjoy!

Sugar Pudding Cookies

Prep Time: 10 minutes. Cook time: 8 minutes. Total time: 18 minutes.

Yields: about 18 cookies

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons sugar-free, fat-free instant vanilla pudding mix
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
food coloring, if desired
additional sugar, for rolling and coating
heaping 1 cup vanilla frosting, if desired
sprinkles, if desired

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

2. With a mixer, beat together butter, sugar and gelatin until soft and creamy. Add eggs, vanilla and if desired, food coloring, and continue beating until smooth and fluffy.

3. Gradually add flour, salt and baking powder, mixing while adding them. The dough will be very soft, but not sticky.

 4. Shape the dough into approximately 1-inch balls and roll them in sugar. Place the balls on the baking sheet and flatten them with the bottom of a cup (or something similar) until they are about 3/8 of an inch thick.

5. Bake for 6-8 minutes until the bottoms are a light golden brown. Be sure to not overcook them.

6. Remove from oven and let cool completely. Once cooled, top each cookie with about 1 tablespoon of vanilla frosting and sprinkles, if desired.

Enjoy!

Click here to print recipe!