Chocolate No Bake Cookies

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When I was a kid, there was this grandma, not mine, but someone's no doubt (she just had that “grandma” look). My brother and I would pass her house on our way home from school, and once in a while, she would come to the door and holler at us to come get a “boilt” cookie as she called them. I later realized she was giving us Chocolate No Bake Cookies with lots of chocolate, peanut butter, and love.

I have no idea if she just felt sorry for us or maybe she hollered at random kids from time to time. Heck, maybe we reminded her of her own kids or something. But man, those cookies were good!

I have looked at several recipes over the years and taken bits and pieces of them to tweak things a little and develop my own, and I think what I came up with is pretty darn good. But I never eat one without thinking about my grandma angel. And grandma, if you're listening up there, this recipe's for you!

Helpful Information

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 3 minutes

Key Ingredients

• Milk – The recipe calls for whole milk but I rarely have whole milk since I use 2%, and I can affirm that it works just fine.
• Butter – I use the salted butter and the real stuff. Don't skimp and use the fake butter or the chocolate no bake cookies just want taste the same.
• Jeff's original rub – Just kidding, this recipe does not use any of my seasonings and doesn't even get cooked in the smoker, so what's it doing on this website? Well, I have a sweet tooth and after a rack of ribs, you need a no-bake cookie!
• Quick Oats – Make sure you use the oats that say “Quick Oats” and often it will say, “cooks in 1-minute”. If you use regular rolled oats, they will just not have the right consistency and be too chewy. Ask me how I know😑
• Peanut Butter – Most recipes I've seen for these cookies calls for smooth and creamy peanut butter. I say, “nay, use crunchy instead”!
• Salt – This recipe calls for a quarter teaspoon of salt. I recommend sea salt or larger-grained sea salt if you have it available.

Are there other names for chocolate no bake cookies?

Yes, they are also known as preacher cookies, boiled cookies, T.O.S cookies (top of stove), cow pies and mudballs. With any other name they are just as delicious. If you've heard them called something else, let me know in the comments below, I'd love to hear about it!

Here's How I Make My No Bake Cookies

Step 1: Lay Out Ingredients

This recipe is easy, but things move fast and if you want everything to go smoothly, I highly recommend you go ahead and measure out your ingredients and make them easy to access.

First, open your stick of butter and cut it in half then each piece in half again, then each of those smaller pieces in half again. That gives you eight pieces and makes it easier to melt in the pot.

Tip: Another good alternative for the butter is to melt it in the microwave instead of cutting it up into pieces. Hey, you do you!

Go ahead and put the sugar, cocoa, milk and butter into a medium, heavy-bottomed sauce pan, but don't turn on the heat just yet.

Pour 3 cups of the quick oats into a bowl and set them within easy reach of the stove.

Next, add ½ cup of peanut butter to a small bowl. I use crunchy and it's phenomenal but if you prefer smooth, it's your cookies.

The only ingredients we have left are the vanilla and the pinch of salt. I like to make a teaspoon sized divot in the peanut butter and add the vanilla and salt to that. When I dump in the peanut butter, it includes the vanilla and salt. Easy peasy!

Now, lay a few sheets of parchment paper on the countertop and you're ready to make some chocolate no bake cookies.

Step 2: Now We Cook!

Turn the stove top burner you are using to medium heat and give it a couple of minutes to heat the ingredients. Stir the ingredients in the pan together with a silicone spatula or a whisk and continue to stir occasionally until it begins to boil.

Once you have a full rolling boil, start a timer for 2 minutes and 45 seconds.

Continue stirring constantly during the boil.

When the timer goes off, dump in the peanut butter, vanilla and salt and stir that in quickly until everything is combined.

➡ Remove the pan from the heat now.

Then dump in the quick oats and fold that together with the chocolate mixture. Don't spend too much time with this because the chocolate no bake cookies are already trying to set up before you even make them.

Step 3: Onto the Countertop

Preferably, you have parchment paper already laid out on the countertop. I was out of parchment paper when I made this last batch, and I just cleaned the top of my counter and went straight onto the granite, and it worked fine.

Scoop out the chocolate no bake cookie mixture in 2-3 inch blobs and give them a quick press to flatten them a little.

Did I mention you need to hurry with this?

Step 4: Clean Up the Bits

While you wait on them to set up, there are lots of small bits and pieces of no bake cookie laying around, on the spatula, in the cooking pot, and that must be cleaned up, by the cook, of course. 😋

Also, if there are a few blobs that just don't look very good, you can eat those as well.

Step 5: Into a serving bowl or Container

You may need a spatula to lift the chocolate no bake cookies from the parchment paper or countertop. Help each one to release and then place them individually into a serving bowl or container with a lid.

Or, alternatively, you can serve them up immediately with a tall glass of cold milk.

Got more tips or tricks for making chocolate no bake cookies? Post them in the comments area below!

Also feel free to submit other cookie or dessert recipes for me to try and possibly include in a future post. All submitted recipes are given full attribution.

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