Ingredients
Red Velvet Protein Cookies
- 215 g red velvet cake mix approximately half of a 15.25-ounce box
- 3 scoops chocolate protein powder 140 calories and 25g protein per scoop
- 1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin puree approximately 425g; do not use pumpkin pie filling
Cheesecake Protein Frosting
- 4 ounces Cool Whip thawed
- 3/4 cup plain nonfat yogurt approximately 170g
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
- 2 tablespoons sugar-free cheesecake instant pudding mix approximately 14g
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Large cookie scoop
- Piping bag and large piping tip
Method
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk the red velvet cake mix and chocolate protein powder in a large bowl until evenly distributed.
- Add the pumpkin puree and stir until no dry cake mix or protein powder remains. The dough should be thick, soft, and sticky.
- Divide the dough into eight equal portions, approximately 90g each, on the prepared baking sheet.
- Use damp hands or the back of a damp spoon to shape each portion into a round cookie approximately 3 to 3 1/2 inches wide and about 1/2 inch thick.
- Bake at 350°F for 13 minutes, until the edges look set and the centers remain soft. If the centers still look like visibly wet batter, continue baking in 1- to 2-minute increments.
- Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then carefully transfer them to a wire rack and cool for another 20 minutes.
- Whisk the nonfat yogurt, vanilla protein powder, and sugar-free cheesecake pudding mix until smooth.
- Let the yogurt mixture rest for 3–5 minutes so the protein powder and pudding mix can begin thickening it.
- Gently fold in the thawed Cool Whip until smooth. Do not beat aggressively.
- Cover and refrigerate the frosting for 20–30 minutes while the cookies finish cooling.
- Transfer the chilled frosting to a piping bag and pipe it evenly over the eight completely cooled cookies. Keep the finished cookies refrigerated.