Jamie here! My very favorite cookie in all the world is a no-bake cookie. It’s probably because my very favorite candy in all the world is peanut butter fudge. And when nothing else can fill that empty void in my heart like peanut butter fudge – it’s time to whip up a batch of no bake cookies. Traditional no-bake cookies have cocoa in them as well, but if you don’t like all the chocolate getting in the way of your peanut butter love affair – these are the ticket 🙂
Now keep in mind, these are probably NOT the cookies you make for your child’s classroom party since many children (like Kasey’s daughter) suffer from serious peanut and tree nut allergies. These are a super-secret-gobble-them-up-at-home indulgence just for you and your inner circle. Ingredients:
- 3 Cups White Sugar
- 1 1/2 Sticks Butter or Margarine
- 3/4 Cup Milk
- 1 1/2 Cups Peanut Butter (Smooth or Chunky)
- 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 4 1/2 Cups Quick Oats
Directions:
- Cook the sugar, butter and milk in a saucepan on medium heat until you’ve brought it to a rolling boil, stirring constantly.
- Once it reaches a rolling boil – cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly (NO MORE!)
- Remove from heat and mix in the peanut butter and vanilla until fully incorporated.
- Stir in quick oats a little at a time.
- Continue to stir gently until the mixture has cooled a bit and is thicker.
- Drop onto wax paper to cool completely and harden.
COOKIE TROUBLESHOOTING: No matter how many times I’ve made these and know exactly what I’m doing – no bake cookies sometimes turn out too soft. When that happens – hide them from the kids until they dry out and firm up a little. Then place on a cooling rack so the bottoms can do the same.
Do NOT do what my mom did when I was a kid and stick them in the freezer until they’re hard enough to hold in your hand. (And possibly dislodge a filling)
Or what the heck – if you’re in a hurry you can do that too. They taste pretty great no matter what little glitches happen 🙂
Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies
Ingredients
- 3 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 sticks butter
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1 1/2 cups Peanut Butter (smooth or crunchy)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 1/2 cups Quick Oats
Instructions
- Cook the sugar, butter and milk in a saucepan on medium heat until you've brought it to a rolling boil, stirring constantly.
- Once it reaches a rolling boil - cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly (NO MORE!)
- Remove from heat and mix in the peanut butter and vanilla until fully incorporated.
- Stir in quick oats a little at a time.
- Continue to stir gently until the mixture has cooled a bit and is thicker.
- Drop onto wax paper to cool completely and harden.
Joyce says
February 22, 2015 at 12:11 pmOMG- so easy& delish!
bella says
July 10, 2017 at 6:07 pmare these gluten free?
Kasey says
July 10, 2017 at 11:15 pmYou would want to check the ingredients since I’m not an expert in gluten free foods. I would hate to miss something and tell you wrong.
helen says
September 25, 2017 at 9:26 pmgluten comes from wheat so since there is no flour there is no gluten
Kelsie says
February 9, 2018 at 12:46 pmYou would want to make sure the oats are gluten free. A lot of oats are processed with gluten. Also, vanilla extract can contain gluten, you can would want to be sure that it’s labeled gluten free.
meeka says
November 20, 2018 at 3:12 pmI love these cookies so much
Jamie Miles says
November 21, 2018 at 12:44 pmThanks so much Meeka – I’m so glad you like them!
Jenn says
September 11, 2015 at 7:47 pmWhat are the calories per cookie
Jamie says
September 11, 2015 at 9:29 pmJenn I’m not sure – I would think there’s probably somewhere online that you can put in ingredients and find out, but I’ve never actually used one. Sorry!
karijane says
September 16, 2015 at 10:18 pmto get your no bakes to set up every time use evaporated milk instead of milk, my grandmother handed down this tip and I have never had any issues since with setting up, also once you put the vanilla and peanut butter in bring it back to a boil 😛
Jamie says
September 17, 2015 at 9:48 amI’ll have to give that a try Kari! Thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂
nancy says
October 24, 2015 at 12:53 amMy recipe is a little smaller, half cup butter, 2 cups sugar, half cup milk and so forth. Also, I make mine with cocoa powder for a chocolate version. It would be about 1/3 cup for your quantities. My recipe says boil one minute, but does not require stirring. I have never, and I mean never, had a problem with them setting up. In fact if you overcook them they are not shiney.
Barb says
October 25, 2018 at 12:20 pmThats the recipe I have too
Brittni says
October 24, 2015 at 4:39 pmLove these cookies!!! I have read that if your no bakes are runny it is because you aren’t getting them to a rolling boil before you time it for two minutes.
Jaimie says
December 4, 2015 at 10:04 pmWow!!! Simple and easy to make! Thank you! We did this recipe EXACTLY except made it in a pan to cut up like fudge instead of cookies… Yummy yummy yummy!! 🙂
Jamie says
December 5, 2015 at 3:40 pmSo happy it worked well for you Jaimie! I love peanut butter fudge… 🙂
Elizabeth says
January 14, 2017 at 2:49 pmThanks for this great recipe! I cut the sugar by 1 cup and had no issues.
Kasey says
January 21, 2017 at 4:39 pmGreat!
Sandy says
March 4, 2017 at 6:05 pmGreat recipe wonderful you can’t eat just one Thanks Sandy.
Jamie Miles says
March 6, 2017 at 3:00 pmSo glad you enjoyed the recipe Sandy – and I agree, they’re difficult to leave alone once you’ve made them 🙂
Tracy says
December 20, 2017 at 11:39 amcan you use old fashioned oats?
Kasey says
December 22, 2017 at 11:57 amI haven’t personally used it, but it is worth a try.
Judy Murray says
February 6, 2018 at 12:04 amI make these all the time. I have found out they are so much better if you put the oatmeal in when it is hot. That way your oatmeal get a little softer.
meeka says
November 20, 2018 at 3:13 pmYum
Jim Seaman says
December 19, 2018 at 12:17 pmHow many cookies does this recipe make.