Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies

No-bake cookies are one of my favorite cookies.  Ever.  There is nothing fancy about them, and I'm sure they've been around forever.  But they are just so good I had to include them in my blog.  I have always just called these "no-bake cookies."  But I thought I might make it a little clearer as to what kind of no-bake cookies these are.  Chocolate.  Peanut butter.  I think that says enough about why these are so good!  And don't forget about oatmeal, sugar, and butter!  These are a few of my favorite things.


Another great thing about chocolate peanut butter no-bake cookies is that they are incredibly fast and easy to make.  I made these for a coworker over my lunch hour one day.  I mixed it all up in one saucepan, so I had only one dish to clean.  And because they are no-bake, you don't even have to turn on the oven.  That makes them fast, easy, delicious, and eco-friendly!

This was far from my first time making chocolate peanut butter no-bake cookies.  I have a recipe scribbled down that I have used for years.  And while my cookies always tasted great, they always ended up soft and not quite set.  I would have to keep them in the refrigerator to keep them hard enough to eat without getting cookie all over my fingers.  Messy fingers never stopped me from eating them, though!


But when I felt like making chocolate peanut butter no-bake cookies the other day, I decided maybe it was time to try another recipe.  Maybe one that would actually turn out right.  I flipped through an old cookbook I had lying around and quickly came across a recipe entitled "boiled chocolate cookies."  I checked out the ingredients and directions and decided that meant "chocolate peanut butter no-bake cookies."  And I gave it a shot.


The only changes I made to this new recipe were that I used dark chocolate cocoa powder becauses that's all I had.  I'm sure either dark chocolate or regular would be fine.  I also added some peanuts, because that's just how I like my no-bake cookies.  And I added 1/2 cup extra oatmeal because I felt like the "dough" was a little thin. 

And I am happy to report that these cookies turned out amazing.  They set perfectly, and didn't need to be refrigerated.  I took them to work and they quickly disappeared.  I guess I'm not the only one who can't resist the chocolate/peanut butter combo!  And after many years of searching, I am so glad I have a chocolate peanut butter no-bake cookie recipe I can count on!  If you have had no-bake cookies that didn't turn out great, please try these!


Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies
Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
3 Tbsp cocoa powder
3 Tbsp butter
3 C quick-cooking oatmeal
1/2 cup roasted peanuts
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
Directions:
In a medium saucepan, stir together sugar, milk, cocoa, and butter.  Heat to boiling, stirring frequently.  Boil for one minute, stirring constantly.
Stir in oatmeal, peanuts, peanut butter, and vanilla until thoroughly combined.  Drop by heaping tablespoons onto waxed paper.  Allow to cool.
Makes about 2 dozen cookies.