The first time I made these chocolate chip pudding cookies, I was in love. I'm not sure what it is about adding in a packet of vanilla pudding mix to the dough that completely transforms the texture and flavor of the cookie into perfection. But, it does. And it's brilliant.

These cookies turn out sweet, but not too sweet... with a crunchy edge and an ooey-gooey warm and soft center. Just the way that a chocolate chip cookie is supposed to be!

Seriously, my dad will fight you over his belief that a proper chocolate chip cookie is suppose to have a soft and chewy center. Never hard and/or crunchy.

To lighten this recipe up and make it more healthy, I swapped out some of the flour for white whole wheat flour, used light butter, and used stevia in place of some of the white sugar. I also used a sugar free fat free pudding mix and some dairy free chocolate chips.

It's all these minor swaps that can help make the biggest changes to your waistline and your health. Especially around the holiday season when each and every bite you take better be well worth it.

Of course, I had to add some festive holiday sprinkles to them. My daughter and I are huge sprinkle fans. So... there's sprinkles in everything around the holidays!

As an ode to the original though, I did keep some of them standard and without all the 'bells and whistles'.

That's the great thing about these cookies, if you want, you can add any array of other toppings such as nuts, sprinkles, candies, etc. Feel free to make them your own!

Healthified Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies
TheSkinnyFork.com

The Skinny:
Servings: 44 • Size: 1 Cookie • Calories: 106.6 • Fat: 5.1 g • Carb: 16.2 g • Fiber: 1 g • Protein: 1.6 g • Sugar: 9.4 g • Sodium: 90.9 mg

Ingredients:
1 C. Whole Wheat White Flour
1 1/4 C. White Flour
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
1 C. Light Butter
3/4 C. Brown Sugar
2 Tbsp. Sugar
2 Tbsp. Sweetener (I used Stevia in the Raw.)
1 (1 Oz.) Package Sugar Free Fat Free Vanilla Instant Pudding
1 Whole Large Egg
2 Large Egg Whites
1 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
1 1/2 C. Mini Chocolate Chips (I used 'Enjoy Life' brand.)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.

Sift together the flour and baking soda in a small bowl and set aside as well.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and sweetener.

Add in the pudding mix and continue to combine until well blended.

Stir in the eggs and vanilla.

Add the flour mixture and stir until just combined.

Finally, fold in the chocolate chips.

Spoon rounded 1" scoops of the dough onto a baking sheet.

Press down slightly with clean fingers or the back of a spoon.

Place into the oven to bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the bottom edges are beginning to brown.

Once done, remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.

Stare in awe at the amazingness.

Serve fresh and warm or store in a sealed container for up to a week.

Enjoy!