S’mores Pudding Cookies

I will freely admit that I love marshmallows, whether roasted on a stick and charred, hidden in chocolate or baked in cookies or bars. The feeling of surprise when biting into a small sugary, half-melted, gooey pocket of sweetness is quickly replaced by unadulterated happiness. Psychologist Walter Mischel knew exactly what he was doing when he used marshmallows as a treat to test children’s reactions to delayed gratification in the sixties. Needless to say, I would have failed the challenge. The recipe for these soft, chewy s’mores cookies which include miniature marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate chips is by the talented sister team of Lisa Gnat and Julie Albert, from their most recent cookbook, Lick Your Plate: A Lip-Smackin’ Book for Every Home Cook.

S’mores Pudding Cookies

When I recently prepared to share this delicious recipe with you I encountered an unexpected challenge: the marshmallows in the cookies melted completely and the cookies spread into caramelized, flat discs with nary a sweet, white, puff of chewiness . I had made these cookies many times and this was an unforeseen result. I studied all my ingredients carefully and switched out the bargain brand of marshmallows that I had used for the more expensive brand that I usually have in the pantry. The results were the same. The cookies were tasty but not the well-formed cookies with pockets of soft marshmallows in the baked dough that I usually enjoyed when I made this recipe.
A little bit of investigation offered three possible solutions:

1. freeze the marshmallows before adding them to the unbaked cookie dough
2. allow the marshmallows to dehydrate and become a bit stale by leaving them uncovered in a container on the counter for a day
3. and finally, freeze the balls of cookie dough for an hour before baking them.

Are you still there? The conclusion will astound you.
I divided a single batch of cookie dough into three and treated each one differently based on my research. I also kept aside a small batch of cookie dough to which I did nothing. This was my control group. (I know… watch out Madame Curie. Is there a Nobel prize for cookies?) All three batches of cookies turned out amazing. In fact, even the control group, to which I did nothing, baked up perfectly formed cookies with marshmallows intact! (See the pictures below) Clearly the culprit for my misshapen cookies was not the marshmallows.

After careful thought, I realized that I had used Osem instant vanilla pudding in the experiments in which all the cookies had been a success and I had used Jello brand instant pudding in the two batches in which the cookies spread and the marshmallows vanished. Comparing the nutrition facts in both pudding mixes I saw that the Osem pudding has 12 grams of sugar per serving and the Jello pudding has 15 grams of sugar for the same size serving. Sugar becomes liquid when melted and more liquid causes spreading. Was it the added sugar in the cookie dough made with the Jello brand pudding that caused the cookies to spread excessively? Unlikely. The difference in sugar in the two puddings was equal to one tablespoon. I don’t think that was enough sugar to cause the spreading of the cookie dough that occurred. Although I was unable to analyze the difference in the cornstarch used in the two pudding mixes, I can only conclude that the cornstarch in the Osem pudding mix was more effectively binding the liquid in the cookie dough resulting in less spreading when the cookies baked. Use Osem instant vanilla pudding mix in this recipe for cookies with the best texture and shape and most importantly, to preserve those delicious, gooey marshmallows hidden inside.

Please see the pictures above for the results of my cookie experiments.

Assemble your ingredients. I recommend that you use Osem instant vanilla pudding in this recipe for the best results. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Cut up graham crackers into little pieces. I used a knife for neater edges. (I see you rolling your eyes.) You will use approximately one sleeve of graham crackers. One cup of chopped graham crackers is for mixing into the cookie dough. The excess chopped graham crackers is for pressing into the tops of the cookies before baking for added crunch. Using a stand mixer, cream the butter or margarine, and sugars using the flat beater on medium speed. Add the vanilla pudding powder and beat to combine. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract. Stop the mixer. Add the dry ingredients all at once and pulse the mixer on low speed (turn it off and on) about 8-10 times until the flour mixture disappears. Add the marshmallows, chocolate chips and one cup of chopped graham crackers. Refrigerate the dough for one hour or up to 24 hours.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line baking sheet(s) with parchment paper. Scoop out the chilled cookie dough using a cookie scoop measuring one tablespoon. (The cookie dough can also be dropped from two spoons.) Using your excess chopped graham crackers (or chop up another 4 graham crackers) press one or two cracker bits into the cookie. This adds visual appeal and texture. Bake the cookies one sheet at a time on the middle rack of the oven for 10 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool completely on a cooling rack. These cookies freeze beautifully in an airtight container. Place parchment paper between each layer of cookies in the container to prevent the cookies from sticking to each other.

Print Recipe

S'mores Pudding Cookies

Cookies, Cakes, Pies and Desserts

By Julie Albert & Lisa Gnat, Lick your plate : a lip smackin' book for every home cook – Serves: 50

Prep Time: 10 minutes + 1 hour refrigeration – Cooking Time: 30 minutes – Total Time: 40 minutes

Soft chewy cookies with puffs of mini marshmallows, semisweet chocolate chips and graham cracker bits in every mouthful

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter or margarine, at room temperature
• 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 package, 4-serving size, instant vanilla pudding powder (for best results, use Osem instant vanilla pudding)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup coarsely chopped graham crackers + 1/3 cup coarsely chopped graham crackers for the tops of the cookies before baking
• 1 cup mini marshmallows
• 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Instructions

1

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set this mixture aside.

2

Cut up graham crackers into little pieces. I used a knife for neater edges. You will use approximately one sleeve of graham crackers. One cup of chopped graham crackers is for mixing into the cookie dough. Reserve the excess chopped graham crackers for pressing into the tops of the cookies before baking. Set aside the graham crackers in two separate bowls.

3

Using a stand mixer, cream the butter or margarine and sugars using the flat beater on medium speed. Add the vanilla pudding powder and beat to combine. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract. Stop the mixer. Add the dry ingredients all at once and pulse the mixer on its lowest speed (turn it off and on) about 8-10 times until the flour mixture disappears. Add the marshmallows, chocolate chips and 1 cup of chopped graham crackers. Refrigerate the dough for one hour or up to 24 hours.

4

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line baking(s) sheet with parchment paper. Scoop out the chilled cookie dough using a cookie scoop measuring one tablespoon. (The cookie dough can also be dropped from two spoons.) Using your excess chopped graham crackers (or chop up another 4 graham crackers) press one or two cracker bits into the cookie.

5

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time on the middle rack of the oven for 10 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool completely on a cooling rack.

Notes

These cookies freeze beautifully in an airtight container. Place parchment paper between each layer of cookies in the container to prevent the cookies from sticking to each other.