No Bake Cookies

 No bake cookies! These are so quick and easy to make plus they just melt in your mouth. I LOVE these cookies. I remember eating a no bake cookie in grade school that tasted just like these. I have tried many, many recipes over the years and none of them had the same taste & texture as the ones from grade school....until Alicia Hawley surprised me with a batch for my birthday several years ago. I was in heaven! Not all no bake recipes are exactly the same. My mom's recipe isn't as good as this one (sorry mom). Thankfully Alicia was kind enough to share her recipe with me. I make these a lot at our house. They are my quick....I NEED A CHOCOLATE FIX treat! Plus I only have one pot & a spoon to clean when I am done. No cookie sheets! No heating up my oven in this Arizona heat to bake them either. YAY! Just a quick cook on the stove and drop spoonfuls of this heavenly stuff onto wax paper to set up & cool. Not only are they gluten free but they can be made dairy free too!

I will admit that I have burned my tongue more than once licking the hot chocolate goo off the spoon (when I was done spooning out cookies of course!). These yummy little guys just melt in your mouth. They have a fudge-peanut butter-chocolate thing going on. I guess you get the picture that I absolutely LOVE these cookies. They are also flour-less (gluten free) without me having to change the recipe at all. I use Trader Joe's Gluten Free oats now but I have also used Quaker brand Oats (which are not marked gluten free but I have not had any problems or rash from them unlike the generic store brands where my lips swelled double size!). You can use certified gluten free oats from specialty stores if you prefer. (Of course if you don't have a gluten allergy you can use whatever brand of oats you want!)

Alicia's No Bake Cookie Recipe:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) real butter (not whipped) OR margarine (use margarine that has at least 65% fat, like Kroger brand). I found that if you don't use either real butter or a margarine with a high enough fat content, they will not set properly! Some margarines have too much water content. I am finding it harder & harder to locate margarine that you can actually bake with - Kroger brand works great (you can find it at either Kroger or Fry's Stores). For today's recipe I used 1 stick real butter, unsalted. You can also use Crisco vegetable shortening or Coconut Oil in place of the butter if you have a dairy allergy. 
• 1/2 cup peanut butter, I use crunchy because I like the nut pieces in my cookies
• 2 cups Oats (I use Trader Joe Gluten Free brand), it doesn't matter if you use quick cooking or old fashioned (either will work just fine!). I have also used Quaker oats in the past without any problems although they aren't marked gluten free. I avoid generic brands of oats...had major issues with them!
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Mix the sugar, milk, cocoa powder & butter or margarine (or Crisco or Coconut Oil) in a decent sized sauce pan. I cook on medium high temperature and stir until smooth & begins to boil. BOIL ONE FULL MINUTE stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter & vanilla extract until well blended. Then stir in the oats. (I have all my ingredients ready to go so I can add ingredients right away. Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper to cool & set. 

(They normally look just a smidge darker than this...must be the lighting when I took my picture)

Enjoy!

Tanja 

Gluten Free Casually