Robyn Stone
No Bake Cookies Recipe – These simple chocolate no bake cookies make a perfect sweet treat. Made with cocoa powder, peanut butter, and oats, these no bake cookies are always a favorite.
These classic chocolate no bake cookies have been one of my favorite sweet treats since I was a little girl. I remember standing as close as possible at the stove when Mama would make these, just so I could help in any way possible. From pouring in the oats, to carefully stirring as I got a little older. And then, when they were ready to drop onto the parchment paper, I was always eager to have that job!
No Bake Cookies Recipe
I can’t begin to tell you how much I loved that my sister gave me the recipe for these cookies along with a saucepan and rolls of parchment paper at my recipe shower before I was married. She wrote a sweet note about wondering how many rolls of parchment paper we’d been through in our lives so far making these chocolate no bake cookies with Mama and how many we’d go through making them with our own children. To tell you I cried would be one of the biggest understatements I could make. Ever.
It was a full blown, running mascara, multiple tissue, ugly sort of moment. At my bridal SHOWER for Pete’s sake! The photos of that shower weren’t pretty at all!
I’ve not kept track of the rolls we’ve been through, but thankfully, Little Buddy carries on the tradition of helping when we make them.
How to Make Chocolate No Bake Cookies Recipe
Making no bake cookies is one of the simplest cookie recipes to make and one that I started making as a child and one that my own son started making early as well. There are just a few tricks to making sure that they come out perfect every time.
- Add your sugar and cocoa powder to a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. Whisk until thoroughly mixed. Add milk and butter and cook over medium-high heat. Bring to a rolling boil and boil for 1 minute. This rolling boil and boiling for 1 minute is the key! Otherwise, your cookies will not set properly.
- Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, salt, peanut butter and oats.
- Drop cookies by tablespoons onto parchment paper.
- Allow to dry for about 10-15 minutes until the no bake cookies have become firm.
How to Store this Recipe
Store no bake cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Here’s the recipe for these chocolate no bake cookies. Grab some parchment paper and make them soon!
Chocolate No Bake Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ cup milk
- 8 tablespoons butter cut into large pieces
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup creamy peanut butter
- 3 cups quick cooking oats
Instructions
- Add sugar and cocoa powder to a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. Whisk until thoroughly mixed. Add milk and butter and cook over medium-high heat. Bring to a rolling boil and boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla, salt, peanut butter and oats. Drop cookies by tablespoons onto parchment paper. Allow to dry for about 10-15 minutes until the no bake cookies have become firm.
Nutrition Information
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
From the Add a Pinch recipe archives. Originally published 2012.
Omg amazing! Turned out perfect! Thank you!
These are some of my all-time favorites – I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks so much Amber! xo
These are a fudge lover’s dream – you can claim they are healthy because of the oatmeal! My all-time favorite cookie, and a Christmas must have even though they don’t look like Christmas! You are allowed to be “bad” at Christmas, right?
So easy & yummy even if they look like lil’ ???? pies! This recipe is a keeper – thx????
As a diabetic, I cannot indulge in these wonderful cookies. However, I do make them regularly for my other half. It is the only way I can get him to eat oats. He loves them so much I have to hide half the recipe or he’d be eating them for breakfast, lunch & supper. I add one extra ingredient to mine….a teaspoon of instant coffee. It seems to enrigh the chocolate flavor without adding a coffee taste to the cookies. I know others who use a quarter teaspoon of espresso powder, but it can be expensive.
I’m sure the espresso powder would really enrich the chocolate flavor even more! These are one of my very favorite cookies too, Debbie! Thanks so much for your comment! xo
Debbie, if you use xylitol instead of sugar, you’d only have to be concerned with the peanut butter and oats.
YUM!! I wanted to make these for a friend who is egg free. I tried one and gave the rest to her. They were the most wonderful cookies ever. She loved them and they’ve become a party favorite!! Thank you for this wonderful recipe.
Xo
What a sweet thing to do for your friend, Niamh. I’m so happy everyone loves these cookies. They have been a favorite of mine since I was a little girl.
Best recipe I have tried for these cookies. My niece and I enjoy making them and my husband REALLY enjoys eating them (well, so do my niece and I!)
I’ve made these cookies many times before using other recipes. Unfortunately, this recipe turned out to be more like soft fudge – – never drying or forming up although I followed the recipe exactly as given. I think next time I’ll go back to using old-fashioned oats. Maybe that will make a cookie that will hold together.
I’m sorry yours didn’t turn out this time, Nana. I’ve not a problem with them not forming as they should – they are some of my family’s favorites so I make them often. Thanks!
Is there a way to substitute the amount of sugar used with another ingredient? I have currently don’t have the option to run to the store to get another bag of sugar so I only have about 1/2 cup … do you have any suggestions that might help? We adore these cookies in our house!!
I’ve not used a substitute for sugar in the recipe. I’m so happy you enjoy these so much, Sarah! xo
It was great
Can you use margarine instead of butter?
I’ve not made it with margarine, Crystal so I can’t say how it turns out. Thanks!
Love love the flavor. But for some reason after an hour they have not harden at all. What did I do wrong?
Just made these. They are absolutely the easiest and best so far. Turned out perfect.
Glad you like them, Becky! These have been one of my favorites as long as I can remember! xo
Yes, I made these cookies and also doubled the recipe. They turned out beautiful and so very good. I think this recipe will be the only one I need to use from now on. Nothing but great!
I am happy you like them too, Sue! I’ve always been a fan of them myself! Thanks!
If the cookies don’t then they need to be cooked longer. It is a little tricky as to how long to cook. If you cook them too long they get crumbly. I think the humidity might have something to do with the length of Ike to cook. So the optimum cooking time is somewhere between one and two minutes after they come to a rolling boil.
I agree regarding the humidity. I haven’t tried this recipe yet, but in the past if the humidity is high the cookies didn’t seem to do as well..Looking forward to trying this recipe for my Christmas get togethers.
These are the BEST no bake cookies I have ever made. All other recipes have been thrown out. This is the only one I use.
So good 👍
Over the years I have made a LOT of these. Occasionally the oatmeal gets swapped out for an equal amount of either shredded coconut or crunchy chow mein noodles. To add a ‘festive’ touch quickly press one or two dried cranberries atop each cookie as they are formed. Yummylicious.
Instructions are easy to follow. The ingredients are commonly found in anyones cupboard. Yes, a great starter recipe for any skill set in the kitchen. The one minute boil very important. They came out perfect for me.
I’m so glad you found them easy and delicious too, Nancy! They’ve been a favorite since I was a child! Thanks!
Yummy!! turned out well.
So glad I stumbled onto your website! The key I had been missing from my grandmother’s recipe for this, which said COOK for 1 minute, clearly must have meant BOIL for one minute. So thrilled to have this finally figured out!
So glad you are here, Sherrell! xo
These are a childhood favorite of mine too! As easy as they are, I still ask my mom to make them for me when I visit (and I’m 51! Ha!) So many memories of making these with my mom, when I was a little girl. My favorite part was watching the butter melt. I’ve been craving them for a few days, so thanks for posting the recipe! I’m going to attempt with almond milk, so wish me luck!
I still have the original recipe card in my handwriting when I was in middle school and made them in Home Economics class. They are certainly delicious and easy to make.
Leaving out the cocoa to make a peanut butter cookie only, would that work? Anybody ever try it? I make these a lot and they are very good. Just wondering about leaving out the cocoa.
I’ve never tried leaving the cocoa out of these cookies, Paula. I’m not sure how they’d turn out without it. Thanks!
The original recipe I have said margarine but I use butter. It also says to add walnuts or coconut. I always use coconut but my mother uses walnuts- I think is is 1/2 cup but I have to look for my recipe to recheck.
Do the oats actually get cooked ?? It says boil & remove from heat add remaining items then drop so I wondered about the oats cooking. Thanks, Jim
I like to add extras like raisins or chocolate chips at the very end.
awesome cookies
Thanks so much Mary! xo
We used Hershey’s Cocoa! Delicious!
Thanks Michah! xo
My mom always made these cookies and they were my all time favorite growing up. When she passed, I was devastated that I did not have her recipe. What a Christmas treasure to find it here on your website!!! They turned out perfect and delicious!? Blessings to all and Merry Christmas!!
❤️🙏🎄
I hope you enjoy them – they’ve been a favorite of mine since I was a little girl. I’m so happy to have you here! Merry Christmas Denise! xo
I always had my idea of a rolling boil until this elder lady ,whom was an awesome cook ,ask me my definition of a rolling boil. I was wrong. She had told me a rolling boil is when it’s boiling real good and you can’t stir your bubbles out. I have went by this judement of. Rolling boil in jelly’s and things and I have to say I have been successful.
These are so addictive! I’ve made them for years and LOVE them! My favorite cookie!
Thanks, Leigh!
These are one of my favorite cookies, too. Takes me back to my childhood every time I make them.
can you use chocolate chips instead of cocoa?
Hi Cathy,
I’ve never made this with chocolate chips. My family has always made it with cocoa powder.
Can’t wait to make these. Do you have the fiber content as well?
Hi Susan,
There is 1 gram of fiber in each cookie. I added fiber content to the nutrition information on the recipe. Enjoy!
Can I use almond milk in the recipe instead of the milk? Before asking the question I checked the other comments. Didnt see it.
Hi Karen,
I’ve never tried these cookies with almond milk but I see no reason why it wouldn’t work. Hope you enjoy!
I have a problem with the cookies turning out dry rather than shiny and moist and chocolatey. Have you got a solution for that?
Hi Nancy,
I’m really not sure what happened. The only reasons I can think these would be dry are if they cooked too long, old fashioned oats were used instead of quick cooking oats, or if too much oats were added. Make sure you let the mixture come to a full rolling boil and then time it for exactly 1 minute, no longer. Hope this helps. Thanks
Easy recipe to follow, They turned out great! Added 1/2 cup of dry roasted peanuts to add a bit of crunch.
Thanks, Shelley. I’ll have to try adding the peanuts sometime. That sounds great. xo
Salted or unsalted butter?
Thank you
I use salted butter, Sarah. Enjoy!
I added chopped walnuts and a handful of coconut! Yummm
I put a little cayenne pepper (just a little heat) turned out well. chocolate and heat often goes together
Just made these, they turned out great! Just what we wanted. This will be my go to recipe when I need a quick cookie. They set up very well, excellent chocolate/ peanut butter flavor. They were so yummy!
Cheryl, these have been a favorite cookie in my family since I was a little girl. I am so happy you loved them, too. Thanks!