Watch out…I’ve got a delicious, easy, slightly addictive and crowd pleasing recipe for you today.
Say hello to these Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies. My friends lovingly refer to them as my “chocolate balls” and I get asked all the time if I’m bringing them to get togethers.
They are relatively “clean” as far as sweets go and feature peanut butter, oats, coconut oil and cocoa powder. You do use organic cane sugar to sweeten them. I used chocolate peanut butter for this batch but I usually use regular salted natural peanut butter. You can use rolled oats or quick oats. I prefer rolled for a chewier texture. If it’s too much for you, go with quick oats.
The first step is to make a chocolate peanut butter sauce by melting together the coconut oil, cocoa powder, milk and sugar and then stirring in the peanut butter and vanilla extract. I could drink this in a cup.
And then you add in the oats and let the mixture chill as it soaks up all the good stuff.
Once the mixture is set you roll the cookies into balls and eat away. Sometimes I dust them in powdered sugar but most of the time I leave them how they are. These cookies are chewy and satisfying. I love the slight coconut flavor that the coconut oil adds. I know these are a hit with adults but I bet they’d be popular with kids as well.
The best part? They’re super simple to prep and take under 10 minutes to mix together AND you get to eat the batter while you’re making them. Win, win!
Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies
(Recipe source the now defunct blog Peas and Thank You…I’m glad I can help this recipe live on.)
Ingredients:
1 cup organic sugar
2 tablespoons coconut oil
3/4 cup non-dairy or organic milk (non dairy = almond, coconut, soy, etc)
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup natural peanut butter of your choice (smooth, chunky, chocolate, whatever!)
3 cups oats, quick cooking or old fashioned
1/2 cup organic powdered sugar (optional for rolling at the end)
Directions:
In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, coconut oil, milk and cocoa powder. Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat and then lower the heat and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and add salt, vanilla and peanut butter. Put oats in a large mixing bowl and pour chocolate mixture over the top. Alternatively, skip this step and just add the oats to the saucepan. Stir until peanut butter mixture and oats are fully incorporated. Mixture might seem a little runny but oats will absorb the liquid while they set.
Place dough in the fridge for an hour to let chill. If you’re in a hurry, stick it in the freezer. When dough has chilled scoop out by the tablespoon and roll into balls. If desired, roll them in powdered sugar. Otherwise, store in the refrigerator. They stay good for days in an airtight container.
Yield: 24-30 cookies
*Note: I half this recipe often for a quick treat!
