Very Vanilla Sixlet Cookies!

        As a peanut-free household, sometimes it can be hard to find candy and desserts that Callum likes. I am constantly baking "safe" cookies for Callum. The other day I was walking in the store, happened to pick up a Sixlet box, and was AMAZED that they were made in a peanut-free facility. I mean, I felt like I had hit the jackpot! All this time, my child has been deprived of those delicious looking M&M cookies. Okay, so maybe "deprived" is a bit dramatic. But, when you're a kid, and you see colorful cookies, I'm sure you wonder why you can't eat them like the other little kids.
         Instantly, I knew I had to make some kind of cookies using them. Below is a recipe I reworked from a base recipe I found in Penzey's Spices. I find that I have to adjust a lot of recipes to make them allergy-friendly.  The instant vanilla pudding in this recipe really adds a nice texture and sweetness to this cookie! I hope you all enjoy this delicious cookie recipe as much as my family does!

Ingredients:
2 sticks of butter (room temperature)
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs (room temperature)
1 1/2 tsp. of Pure Vanilla Extract (I use Penzey's!)
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 boxes instant vanilla pudding (1.5 oz each box)
1 box of Sixlets (8 oz box)
4 oz. mini chocolate chips ( I prefer semi-sweet, Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips)

     Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl and add the eggs and vanilla. Mix well.

     In a separate bowl, sift flour, baking soda, pudding mix, and salt.

     Add slowly to the creamed mixture. After all the flour mix is added to the creamed mixture and mixed well, fold in the mini chocolate chips and Sixlets. It's important not to blend because that will smash the Sixlets and take all the fun out of it!

  Roll into walnut-sized balls and place on a greased (or Silpat) cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes.
  Now, if you're like me and like your cookies a little gooey-er, I found that baking these for 13 minutes is a good time.

    Let the cookies cool and try to resist the deliciousness!!!