Classic No Bake Cookies – This childhood classic brings big-time chocolate peanut butter flavor without any baking! (Gluten-Free + Dairy-Free Friendly)
No-bake cookies are one of my childhood favorites.
I love that they’re easy to make (no baking!), use minimal butter (just 2 Tbsp.!), and don’t require any flour or eggs. They’re the perfect chocolate peanut butter cookie AND they’re done in no time!
I’ve eaten LOTS of versions of no-bake cookies over the years, but these Classic No Bake Cookies are the ones my mom always made for us. I LOVE them and feel so nostalgic whenever we make them.
This is–by far–the best no-bake cookie recipe I’ve ever tried. And here’s all you need to make them…
HERE’S WHAT GOES INTO MY MOM’S CLASSIC NO-BAKE COOKIES
BUTTER OR VEGAN BUTTER. I love that these no-bake cookies only use 2 Tbsp. of butter or vegan butter. They’re great when you’re running low on butter! (In a pinch, I’ve also used coconut oil)
UNSWEETENED COCOA POWDER. It’s amazing how much chocolatey flavor you can get from unsweetened cocoa powder!
SUGAR. These are a childhood classic, so they haven’t been “healthified.” I like using 1/2 white sugar and 1/2 coconut sugar, but I don’t recommend using all coconut sugar, as they won’t set up the same.
MILK OR DAIRY FREE MILK. A little milk helps loosen up the mixture. You can use dairy-free or dairy milk–your choice!
PEANUT BUTTER. Unless you have strong objections, use crunchy peanut butter. It adds one more delicious dimension to classic no-bake cookies that you just don’t get from smooth. (But honestly, smooth totally works. Just use what you have!)
VANILLA + SALT. You’ll round out the flavor of these classic no-bake cookies with a little vanilla and salt. LOVE what these bring to the table!
OATS. Lastly, you’ll add rolled/old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats to the chocolate-peanut butter mixture. My favorite is to use 1/2 rolled oats and 1/2 quick-cooking oats. (Be sure to use certified gluten-free oats, if needed!)
TIPS & TRICKS FOR THE BEST CLASSIC NO-BAKE COOKIES.
PREP EVERYTHING BEFORE YOU GET STARTED. Things go pretty quickly once you get started, so I recommend prepping and setting out your baking sheet and ingredients before you get going. That way you’re not scrambling later!
WATCH THE PAN SO YOU DON’T OVER-COOK THE MIXTURE. It’s important to watch the chocolate mixture while you’re stirring so it doesn’t start boiling before you notice. You *really* only want the mixture to boil for about 1 minute. Any longer than that and the cookies will turn out dry and a little crumbly.
CONSIDER A COOKIE SCOOP. Cookie scoops make it really easy to measure equal-sized cookies. But using a tablespoon (like the kind you eat cereal and soup with), also works!
LOOKING FOR A HEALTHIER OPTION? You can do 1/2 coconut sugar and 1/2 white sugar in this recipe, but I don’t recommend doing all coconut sugar as the cookies won’t set properly. Or, you can try this Healthy No-Bake Cookie recipe (naturally sweetened)
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No-Bake Cookies
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 24 Cookies 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Classic No Bake Cookies – This childhood classic brings big time chocolate peanut butter flavor without any baking!
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp butter (or vegan butter)
- 3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
- 1/3 cup milk (or dairy free milk)
- 1 1/2 cups sugar*
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cups peanut butter (use crunchy. Just do it.)
- 2 cups quick or rolled oats** (gluten-free, as needed)
Instructions
- Set out a baking sheet lined with parchment, a silicone baking mat, or waxed paper.
- Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Stir in cocoa, milk, and sugar. Stir to melt ingredients together.
- Bring mixture to a boil (bubbles all across the surface), and boil 1 minute. Remove pan from heat. (Note: allowing the mixure to boil for even a few minutes will completely dry out the cookies and leave you with nothing more than chocolatey granola. Believe me. It’s happened to me before)
- Stir in vanilla, salt, peanut butter, and oatmeal until well mixed. Stir until mixture has thickened a bit.
- Scoop heaping tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheet pan and allow cookies to set (you can speed this up by popping the pan into the refrigerator for a few minutes).
- Transfer set cookies to an airtight container or bag.
- Makes about 2 dozen
Notes
*You can do 1/2 coconut sugar and 1/2 white sugar, but I don’t recommend doing all coconut sugar for this recipe, or the cookies don’t set up properly.
**I love doing 1/2 rolled oats and 1/2 quick oats for the best texture. Use whatever you have on hand!
- Category: Cookies
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: No Bake Cookies, Classic No Bake Cookies
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