When we were young, Mom would whip these Chocolate Oatmeal No-Bake Cookies cookies up for us on the regular. We had them more than any other cookie I remember, I’m sure partly because they are super quick to make, but also because the ingredient list was short and almost always on hand. Nearly every occasion except fancy holiday meals called for this recipe. And if we didn’t have an occasion, we would make one up. End of the school year (day)? Cookies were a great way to celebrate! Scraped knee? We made cookies to help it feel better! Rainy day and nowhere to go (Hello, Oregon)? Making cookies helped pass some time.
The recipe I’m providing comes straight from my mom’s memory as she relayed it to me several years ago. There are a few minor discrepancies between my recipe and those that my siblings have recorded, but given that they’ve all come from Mom, somewhere in the ballpark with your measurements should do the trick. There is one ingredient I typically decrease on purpose. I’m almost afraid to say it…but I put less chocolate in (!!!). They certainly don’t taste bad with the full measure of cocoa, but I love peanut butter — as in, eat-it-by-the-spoonful love — and I’ve found that if I use a little less chocolate, the peanut butter has a real chance to shine, almost as if it deserves a proper place in the name of the cookie. The decrease in chocolate is entirely my personal preference, though, so do as you wish!
Here’s how these little mounds of deliciousness come together:
Melt together the butter, milk, cocoa and sugar over medium heat. You’ll want to heat it slowly to keep the butter from browning/burning and the milk from curdling. If you’re using unsalted butter, throw a pinch of salt in, too.
Gradually bring mixture to a rapid boil, and boil for exactly one minute. This is important because if you don’t boil it long enough, your cookies will be ooey and gooey and won’t set up right. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but you’ve been warned. If you boil the mixture too long, it will seize up and start to harden before you’ve even had a chance to scoop the batter into cookies, and the final product will be dry and crumbly. No bueno.
Remove from heat and add vanilla and “a big glob” of peanut butter. Mom’s words. Stir until peanut butter is fully melted and you can’t see streaks in the batter.
Finally, pour in the oatmeal and stir like there’s no tomorrow, until all the oats are covered in chocolate. Quick is key here, before your mixture starts to firm up.
I like using a cookie scoop like this one (or one from this set of 3) to drop the batter into cookies. Leave adequate space around each as they’ll spread a bit as they cool.
If you can, keep snatchers away until they have a chance to set firmly. This never happens effectively at my house. I typically have several shmears of chocolatey yumminess left behind by all my eager beavers.
Of course, if you choose, you can doctor these up, with your own choice of ingredients (butterscotch chips in place of chocolate, coconut in place of peanut butter, etc). But in my experience, I find it best not to mess with the real deal. There’s really no way to improve on perfection. 🙂
Chocolate Oatmeal No-Bake Cookies
- 1/2 cup butter or margarine (I use salted)
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 4-7 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, depending on preference (mom’s recipe calls for 7, but I prefer around 5)
- Pinch of salt (if using unsalted butter or margarine; otherwise omit)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 3 cups quick-cooking oats
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir together butter, sugar, cocoa powder and milk. Heat until boiling, then boil exactly one minute.
Remove mixture from heat. Add vanilla and peanut butter, stirring until smooth and peanut butter is fully incorporated.
Stir in oats. Using a medium cookie scoop (about 2 tablespoons), drop onto parchment or wax paper and let cool until set, 20-30 minutes.
Store cookies in an airtight container for however long they’ll last (good luck with that – it won’t be long!), or in the fridge up to two weeks.
