Classic No-Bake Cookies (2024)

Who doesn't love classic No-Bake Cookies? Fudgy oats, chocolate, and peanut butter are such a deliciously-classic favorite combination, for sure. And they're just so darn easy to make, too!

You know,a lotof my friends think I'm a "perfect" cook -- which let me tell you, I am sooo not. I mess up all the time. For me, that's actually part of the adventure of cooking ... figuring out what works and what doesn't. And sometimes, just plain messing up.

I decided when I started this blog, I wouldn't be afraid to share my mess ups. Well, not all of them. -- Just some. I do still want you to think I'm at least somewhat of a decent cook!

So I'll share some every now and then, like these Funfetti Cake Balls that started out as a botched up batch of cupcakes, or Peeps Brownies that just made me think of some horror movie where Easter Peepswere maliciouslyburied alive, or my oh-so-over-crispy-and-black Sweet Potato Chips.

And then. Then there's this cheesecake.

My poor little Honey Cheesecake that I've been working on developing a recipe for.

As you can see, I'm not at the point of success yet. Just look at those disappointing cracks (they were DEEP!), and very over-browned sides.

So what's a girl to do when she's supposed to bring said disappointing cheesecake to her parents' house for dessert?

Well, the first thing is to try to cover up the mistakes.

So I decided to cover the cheesecake with chocolate ganache. When in doubt, cover it! Frosting, ganache, sprinkles ... they are our baking friends. But in this case, even ganache couldn't come to the rescue. The cheesecake cracks were so deep, the ganache just fell in.

Made with basic pantry staples, you're pretty much guaranteed to be able to whip up a batch whenever the No-Bake Cookies craving hits.

Onto another plan.

I looked through my pantry to see what options I had. It seemed I was lacking one or two ingredients for just about everything that came to mind!

So eyeing what was needed, I went to these good-old classic No Bake Cookies. Which I knew my Dad would be thrilled with. Probably thrilled with much more than he would be with a cheesecake, to be honest.

With their fudgy oats, chocolate, and peanut butter combination, who doesn't love classic No-Bake Cookies? They're a deliciously-classic favorite, for sure. And just so darn easy to make, too!

They're made with basic pantry staples, so you're pretty much guaranteed to be able to whip up a batch whenever the No-Bake Cookies craving hits. Or, like in my case, whenever you're in need of a quick and easy emergency dessert.

All that's needed is some peanut butter, baking cocoa, old-fashioned oats, a little vanilla, butter, sugar, and milk. All things most people keep on hand.

To make a batch of these fudgy little gems, bring butter, milk, sugar, and some baking cocoa to a boil on the stove. Boil the mixture for about a minute, forming basically a chocolate fudge base for the no-bake cookies.

Then, off the heat, stir in peanut butter, vanilla extract, and a whole bunch of old-fashioned oats.

While it's hot, drop the chocolaty oat mixture by spoonfuls onto waxed paper ...

Then let the cookies cool completely to set up. And that's all there is to it to make a batch of these tasty favorites. Super easy, for sure.

Then off to my parents we went with these No Bakes in tow.

The funny thing is, just as I expected both my Mom and my Dad were super excited about me bringing a batch of No Bake Cookies! I guess we just can't resist the simple classics ... after all, they did became classics for a reason.