Secret Kiss Cookies (with Soft Pudding Mix Cookies!)

Name: Secret Kiss Cookies
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 87 min
Ingredients: ¾ cup unsalted butter (room temperature); ¼ cup shortening; 1 ½ cups granulated sugar; 2 large eggs (room temperature); 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract; 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour; 3.4 ounce instant vanilla pudding mix; 1 teaspoon baking powder; ½ teaspoon salt; 60 Hershey Kisses (unwrapped); 2 cups confectioners' sugar (for coating)

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Secret Kiss Cookies are soft and chewy cookies with a sweet surprise hidden in the center– a chocolate Hershey’s Kiss!

They make perfect Christmas cookies for your holiday cookie exchanges or for leaving out for Santa on Christmas eve.

Of course, hidden kiss cookies make for a yummy treat any time of the year!

Hidden Kiss Cookies, covered in powdered sugar, on plate with one cut in half to show Herhsey Kiss inside.

I mean who can resist a soft, sweet chocolate-stuffed cookie?

For more Hershey Kiss cookies, give these peanut butter blossoms or these candy cane kiss cookies a try.

soft sugar cookies stuffed with chocolate kisses and rolled in powdered sugar. Unwrapped kisses are on platter with cookies.

These secret kiss cookies are made with a vanilla pudding cookie dough base that can also be used to make sprinkle cookies, thumbprint cookies, and frosted Christmas cookies. So feel free to portion out your dough to make a dozen or two of each.

The pudding mix is the secret ingredient in these cookies. It gives them a wonderful vanilla flavor and keeps them nice and soft. If you love pudding cookies be sure to try this soft and chewy kitchen sink Christmas cookie recipe as well.

Ingredients

This section includes ingredient notes and substitution options. Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

Unsalted butter. At room temperature.
Shortening. I like to use a combination of butter and shortening for this cookie recipe. The butter gives the cookies that real butter flavor while the shortening helps prevent the cookies from over-spreading while baking.
Granulated sugar.
Eggs. Let your eggs come to room temperature on your countertop with your butter.
Vanilla extract. I always use real vanilla extract. It is so much better than imitation!
Flour. Regular all-purpose flour.
Instant vanilla pudding mix. A 3.4 oz size box of vanilla instant pudding mix. Be sure not to grab a box of cook & serve pudding instead as it will not work.
Baking powder.
Salt.
Hershey Kisses. Please remember to unwrap them first!
Powdered sugar. For coating the baked cookies to help hide the hershey kisses in the center. It gives thema lovely snowball cookie look and a sweetness added to each bite as well.

Recipe Variations and Substitutions

Chocolate Pudding Mix: Swap vanilla pudding mix for chocolate to make chocolate hidden kiss cookies.

Salted butter: You can use salted butter for this easy recipe, but then I suggest only adding 1/4 teaspoon salt instead of 1/2 teaspoon.

Hershey Kisses: Switch up the flavor with peppermint kisses, cookies n’ cream kisses, Hershey Hugs, etc…

Cocoa powder: Separate the powdered sugar into two bowls. Mix a few teaspoons of cocoa powder into one of the bowls and coat half your cookies with each for half regular and half chocolate-powdered cookies.

No surprise: Instead of hiding the kisses in the middle of the cookies, roll your dough into balls and bake. Then simply press a kiss onto the top of each cookies when they come out of the oven.

How to Make

This section shows you how to make the recipe with step-by-step photos and instructions. For the full printable recipe, see the recipe card below.

Step one. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats and set aside.

Step two. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer and large bowl, beat together butter, shortening, and sugar until light and fluffy (about 4-5 minutes).

Step three. Beat in eggs, vanilla, and instant pudding mix.

Large mixing bowl and electric mixer with creamed sugar and butter and pudding mix, egg, and vanilla extract added.

Step four. In a separate bowl, whisk to combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, a little at a time, mixing between additions.

Handheld electric mixer on the side of a large mixing bowl with butter mixture and dry ingredients being gradually added.

Step five. Scoop out dough with a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop or by the tablespoonful, shape it into balls, and press a Hershey Kiss into the center. Pinch the dough up and around the kiss to create a cone-shaped ball of dough. Repeat until all dough is used, placing each cookie about 2 inches apart.

Note: It will likely take 4 large baking sheets to fit all the cookies. If you don’t have room for 4 baking sheets in your fridge (who does?!) then I suggest splitting the dough in half and working with one half while keeping the rest refrigerated until ready to prep and bake.

Three image collage: On left, dough rolled into ball. In middle, chocolate kiss pressed into the center of the dough. On right, cookie dough pinched up and over kiss, in a cone shape.

Step six. Place the cookies in the refrigerator to chill for at least an hour.

Step seven. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F.

Step eight. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet until cool enough to handle but still warm, about 5-10 minutes.

Step nine. Add the powdered sugar to a shallow bowl and gently turn to coat each cookie in it. Place coated cookies on a cooling rack to cool fully.

Cookie dough in middle of bowl of powdered sugar. A spoon is sticking out of the bowl and wire cooling rack with powdered sugar coated cookies are next to bowl.

Once cookies are fully cooled, cover in powdered sugar once more before serving. This helps give them a thicker coating of confectioners’ sugar.

Storage

Countertop: The cookies will keep for up to 4 days in an airtight container at room temperature.

Freezer: For longer storage, fully cooled cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months. However, I would recommend freezing before coating in powdered sugar.

Recipe FAQ

Do I make the pudding before adding it to the batter?

No, just dump the dry mix into the bowl with the other ingredients.

Can you make the dough ahead of time?

Yes! Prep your dough, cover, and chill in the refrigerator until ready to bake (up to three days).

Can I freeze the cookie dough?

Yes, this cookie dough freezes very well. I would recommend preparing the kiss-stuffed dough balls then flash freezing them on a cookie sheet before adding the frozen cookies to a freezer baggie for longer storage.