Quadruple Chocolate Pudding Cookies — These pudding cookies are packed with cocoa powder, chocolate chips and chunks, and chocolate pudding mix to deliver seriously chocolatey flavor!
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Chocolate Fudge Cookies … Using Pudding Mix!
My first foray into pudding cookies went so well that I wanted to try a chocolate version. So I did with four kinds of chocolate in one cookie. May as well go big or go home.
These chocolate fudge pudding cookies are super soft, tender, slightly chewy, and are for true chocolate lovers. Chips, chunks, cocoa, chocolate pudding.
They’re thicker, bakery-style cookies that are bold and rich, not overly sweet, and oozing with melted chocolate. As you bite down, there’s a little chocolate explosion that happens in your mouth.
There’s an abundance of melted chocolate in every bite between the chips and chunks. I like to use both so that there are varied chocolate flavors and textures present. If you only have one or the other, use what you have.
Keep in mind that chopped chocolate melts in an oozing way, whereas chocolate chips have stabilizers. So while they do melt, they stay more intact.
Sometimes darker chocolate cookies can be almost overpowering but these are one of my favorite non-peanut butter, all-chocolate cookies that I’ve ever made. Pudding mix, I’m sold.
Chocolate Pudding Cookies Ingredients
These chocolate chip pudding cookies use most of your typical cookie ingredients, plus lots of chocolate. Here’s what goes into these chocolate fudge cookies:
- Unsalted butter
- Light brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Instant chocolate pudding mix
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Chopped dark chocolate
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make Chocolate Cookies with Pudding Mix
These chocolate chip pudding cookies are made like most of my cookie recipes are. Quick, easy, and no-fuss!
Here’s an overview of how the fudgy pudding chocolate cookies are prepared:
- Cream together the butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla.
- Then, mix in the dry ingredients followed by the chocolate chips and chunks.
- Scoop out the cookie dough and shape it into balls.
- Place the cookie dough onto a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and chill for at least 2 hours in the fridge.
- Once chilled, place the cookie dough onto a Silpat-lined baking tray and bake until the edges of the pudding cookies have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked and glossy in the center.
Recipe FAQs
The pudding mix helps keep the cookies softbatch-style soft, supple, and gives them a surprising lightness. That’s paradoxical considering how much chocolate is packed into them, but they’re not lead balloons. Nor are they airy or cakey. They’re just right, says Goldilocks.
Yes, absolutely. Do not bake with unchilled dough because the chocolate chip pudding cookies will bake thinner, flatter, and be more prone to spreading.
If you’re not into pudding mix or don’t have it in your area, this probably isn’t the recipe for you. You can simply omit it, although the results won’t taste the same. There’s really no substitutions. Luckily I have oodles of other chocolate cookie recipes that don’t use it and recommend one of those.
The instant pudding mix gets added to the cookie dough like a dry ingredient. You do not actually make the chocolate pudding — just dump it into the cookie dough straight from the box.
You likely can add other mix-ins like chopped nuts or dried fruit, but you’d need to scale back the amount of chocolate chips you add to the cookie dough to compensate for the extra mix-ins.
Make sure to buy instant pudding mix and not the cook and serve kind. You also can’t use sugar-free pudding mix in this pudding cookie recipe. Don’t ask me why, sugar-free instant pudding mix just doesn’t deliver the same results.
Yes! I prefer using dark chocolate in this pudding cookie recipe, but you’re welcome to use a mixture of milk and dark chocolate if that’s what you have on hand.
I have made these for my family and friends on many occasions and everybody loves them! Around the holidays I’ll dip them in white chocolate and sprinkle peppermint crumbles on top. My favorite cookies ever!
Patty
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Fudgy Chocolate Pudding Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened (1 1/2 sticks)
- ¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 packet instant chocolate pudding mix, about 3.7 to 3.9 ounces (not sugar-free and not ‘cook & serve’)
- ¼ cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch salt, optional and to taste
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 5 ounces dark chocolate, chopped (I used Trader Joe’s 72% Pound Plus Bar)
Instructions
- To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large mixing bowl and electric mixer) combine the butter, sugars, egg, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until creamed and well combined, about 4 minutes.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the pudding mix, cocoa, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the flour, baking soda, optional salt, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
- Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the chocolate chips, chopped chocolate, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds.
- Using a large cookie scoop, 1/4-cup measure, or your hands, form approximately 17 equal-sized mounds of dough. Roll into balls, and flatten slightly.
- Place mounds on a large plate or tray, cover with plasticwrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 5 days. Do not bake with unchilled dough because cookies will bake thinner, flatter, and be more prone to spreading.
- Preheat oven to 350F, line a baking sheet with a Silpat or spray with cooking spray. Place dough mounds on baking sheet, spaced at least 2 inches apart (I bake 8 cookies per sheet).
- Bake for about 10 minutes, or until edges have set and tops are just set, even if slightly undercooked and glossy in the center. Don’t overbake which is easy to do with dark cookies. Cookies firm up as they cool.
- Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for about 10 minutes before serving. I let them cool on the baking sheet and don’t use a rack.
Notes
- Cookies will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.
- Alternatively, unbaked cookie dough can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, so consider baking only as many cookies as desired and save the remaining dough to be baked in the future when desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Chocolate Cookie Recipes:
German Chocolate Cookies — An EASY recipe for soft, chewy, fudgy chocolate cookies that are topped with a rich and creamy pecan coconut frosting! If you love German chocolate cake but don’t want to deal with layering and frosting an entire cake, these cookies are PERFECT!
Dark Chocolate Chunk and Peanut Butter Chip Chocolate Cookies — Rich, soft chocolate cookies with chocolate chunks and peanut butter chips
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies — These chocolate crinkle cookies are slightly chewy around the edges with a very fudgy interior and perfectly crinkly seams!
Hot Chocolate Cookies — These gooey hot chocolate cookies are complete with big gooey marshmallows and chunks of melted dark chocolate. This is the perfect holiday cookie recipe!
Andes Mint Chip Soft Fudgy Chocolate Cookies — These quadruple chocolate Andes mint cookies are big, bakery-style cookies that are rich, not overly sweet, and loaded with chocolate and mint chips.
Caramel-Stuffed Quadruple Chocolate Cookies — The cookies are thicker, bakery-style cookies that are bold and rich, and are oozing with melted chocolate and stuffed with Rolos.
Chocolate Ganache Chocolate Cookies — There are chocolate chips and cocoa powder in the cookie dough and the cookies are topped with a rich, cream, fudgy chocolate ganache.
Mexican Chocolate Shortbread Cookies — These buttery shortbread cookies are full of chocolate, cinnamon-and-sugar, and a bit of spice thanks to a couple unique ingredients! They remind me of a good cup of Mexican hot chocolate, in cookie form.
Originally published February 8, 2014 and republished with updated text February 5, 2020.
Averies cookies are my go to and these are no exception!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad these came out great!
Yummy! A chocolate lover’s dream cookie!
Yummy! A chocolate lover’s dream cookie!
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad they turned out great for you!
These cookies are very good after the ten minutes on the cookie sheet. Still warm and gooey like a brownie with a crisp exterior. Once cooled though, it’s very thick and not as exciting. I’d give it a solid “good”, but I’d rather eat a brownie. They DEFINITELY need salt. I put in 1/8 tsp of salt and you could *just* taste it. If making again, I’d add 1/4 tsp. I also sprinkled kosher salt on top before baking and that was a very good addition.
Wow, these are heavenly cookies, more like the best brownies I’ve ever tasted. An incredibly versatile recipe too. I plan to mix this up a tad with nuts, macadamia nuts and white chocolate perhaps, mint, etc. I reside in Colorado, but this recipe needed no tweaking for high altitude. Another keeper! I’m so impressed with your recipes Averie! Thanks a million and keep up the great work!
-Ori
Wow, these are heavenly cookies, more like the best brownies I’ve ever tasted. An incredibly versatile recipe too. I plan to mix this up a tad with nuts, macadamia nuts and white chocolate perhaps, mint, etc. I reside in Colorado, but this recipe needed no tweaking for high altitude. Another keeper! I’m so impressed with your recipes Averie! Thanks a million and keep up the great work!
-Ori
Thanks for the 5 star review and glad you loved them and are going to try other combinations! Great to hear as well that even at altitude they didn’t need any tweaking.
Do you think these would taste good with vanilla instant pudding mix instead? I have like 4 boxes sitting around that are probably never going to be made into pudding that I wouldn’t mind using up. These look delicious!
I just did it with vanilla pudding mix and it was delicious and chocolatey enough 😅 I have a few pudding vanilla mix packs, as i did twice the great six banana bread from Averie and bought them especially for the banana bread recipe. It was a 4 packs for 5 canadian dollars 😁
Gurl these need some salt—
But holy Moly!! Adding in salt these
Would be perfect! So soft!!
Gurl these need some salt—
But holy Moly!! Adding in salt these
Would be perfect! So soft!!
Of course when cooking or baking, always I figure people will salt things to taste, but yes, go for it. Pudding mix also has a fair amount of salt already included in it.
Your quadruple chocolate cookies are beyond amazing, so chocolate-y, dense, moist, and just sweet enough. I followed your recipe to the letter and have made them numerous times, they bake up perfect every time. I now always have a batch in the freezer, ready to bake when friends come over or I have a chocolate attack. I can’t thank you enough for sharing this recipe!
These cookies look amazing! I need to try them asap!
Paige
https://thehappyflammily.com
They’re one of my favorites!
Can I substitute dark brown sugar for light brown sugar and salted butter for unsalted butter? Those are what I have on hand. Thanks!
Yes but don’t add any extra salt and they could be a touch on the salty side but chocolate + salt are a good combo in my opinion!
Your quadruple chocolate cookies are beyond amazing, so chocolate-y, dense, moist, and just sweet enough. I followed your recipe to the letter and have made them numerous times, they bake up perfect every time. I now always have a batch in the freezer, ready to bake when friends come over or I have a chocolate attack. I can’t thank you enough for sharing this recipe!
I am glad to hear you’ve made these numerous times and love them and always have a batch in the freezer ready to bake off for those pesky chocolate attacks :) I get them too!
Have made these many times and they are a winner every time!! Love, love love. Thanks for sharing!!
Have made these many times and they are a winner every time!! Love, love love. Thanks for sharing!!
I am glad you have made them many times and that they’re a winner every time!
I made the dough yesterday and formed the cookie balls. I baked some today. WOW! They are delicious!! I used chocolate fudge pudding and only semi sweet chocolate chips( ingredients I had on hand). They are better than I even hoped!We have friends coming for the weekend and I can’t wait to serve these cookies. Thanks for a real winner!
I made the dough yesterday and formed the cookie balls. I baked some today. WOW! They are delicious!! I used chocolate fudge pudding and only semi sweet chocolate chips( ingredients I had on hand). They are better than I even hoped!We have friends coming for the weekend and I can’t wait to serve these cookies. Thanks for a real winner!
Thanks for the 5 star review and I am glad that they’re better than you even hoped! I am sure your friends will love them too!