Cake Batter Pudding Cookies

This was my third attempting at perfecting this recipe, and I think I got it to the point of being share-worthy. I apologize for the low-quality iPad photo; I know photography is the big sell for recipes but you'll just have to take my word on these bad boys, because they are delicious and because I was too lazy to find the camera. I gave a sample to a friend who said, "It tastes like I am eating a tube of dough right now and I couldn't be more happy about it."

Here she is. My notes are in italics.

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 c. flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 c. brown sugar (I use dark because I think it makes the cookies richer, but light works, too.)
• 1/4 c. granulated sugar
• 3/4 c. (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened (I love a good salty/sweet combo, so I use salted butter but if you're not into that or if you have hypertension, use unsalted.)
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 3.4 oz package of vanilla Jello-o pudding mix (dry)
• 3/4 c. Funfetti cake mix (dry)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking soda and salt.
3. In a large bowl or mixer, blend together butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth.
4. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until smooth.
5. Add in dry pudding and cake mix until well combined.
6. Slowly add in flour mixture and mix until smooth.
7. Spoon about 1-2" size lumps onto an ungreased cookie sheet.
8. Drop a pinch of decorative sugar crystals on the top of each cookie.
9. Bake for 6-8 minutes, depending on your oven temperature. (I'm a big fan of gooey cookies, so I always undercook mine. Take them out when they still look underdone and they'll continue to cook as they cool on the pan.)
   
   Happy eating!
   -Emily