Chocolate No Bake Cookies {Soft and Fudgy Recipe}

Name: Chocolate No Bake Cookies
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 5 min
Ingredients: ½ cup salted butter ((1 stick)); ½ cup whole milk; 1 cup light brown sugar; 1 cup granulated sugar; ¼ cup cocoa powder; ¾ cup creamy peanut butter; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 2 cups instant oats; 1 cup high quality dark chocolate ((cut into chunks) (3.5 oz bar))

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Soft, fudgy chocolate no bake cookies like you’ve never tasted before! Chocolate, peanut butter and oatmeal come together deliciously in this easy cookie recipe.

For some reason I never think to make no bake recipes. But my kids LOVE them. Take puppy chow for example. Kinslee started making it last fall and now she’s a pro. We’ve had more puppy chow come out of our kitchen in the past 4 months than I’ve ever seen in my entire life. But I’m not complaining.

A close up of a piece of chocolate cookies

No bake cookies are one of Maddie’s favorites. I never saw what the fuss was. Sometimes no bakes were dry and crumbly…and those are not the adjectives I want used to describe my cookies.

So why are our no bake cookies the best no bakes out there?

Classic No-Bakes with Dark Chocolate

A simple “secret” ingredient makes our no bake cookies amazing. It’s melted dark chocolate. It makes them rich and fudgy.

You’ll want to choose a high quality dark chocolate for the best flavor. Think Ghirardelli chocolate squares or a brand similar to this.

Can you use a different type of chocolate bar? I have only made these cookies with dark chocolate, but feel free to experiment with other types of chocolate. The dark chocolate offsets that sweetness and gives it a really nice depth of chocolatey flavor that I don’t think you can achieve with another type of chocolate. You can also use dark chocolate chips if you wanted to.

*Note…if you use milk chocolate the cookies will be very sweet.**

What type of oats are best for no bake cookies?

Any type of instant or quick oats will work. However, I don’t recommend using old fashioned oats for no bake cookies due to the difference in texture. I have noticed that you won’t get as smooth of a bite when using old fashioned oats. If you are in a pinch and only have old fashioned oats, simply put them through the food processor to chop them up a bit. The cookies will be smoother this way than if you leave them whole.

How to Make No Bake Cookies

All you’ll need is about 5 minutes to prepare and 5 minutes to “cook” no bake cookies. Then plan for about 30 minutes for the cookies to set.

Combine butter, milk, sugars, and unsweetened cocoa powder. Cook over low heat until butter melts, stirring occasionally. Do not be tempted to turn up heat to make the process go by faster. It could cause the sugar to crystallize and the butter to burn.
Once boiling, turn heat up to medium, stirring constantly.
Continue boiling for 1 minute and then take off heat. (Set a timer to prevent overcooking. If you overcook no bake cookies, they become dry and crumbly.)
Add in peanut butter and vanilla extract and stir.
Add in oats and stir again.
Add in chopped dark chocolate and give a quick stir (Don’t mix it in completely. You want a little bit of a chocolate swirl.)
Drop onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Allow the cookies to set for at least 30 minutes.

My no bake cookies became hard and brittle. Can I still salvage them?

The tricky part about chocolate no bake cookies are that they are a hybrid between a regular cookie and a candy. This means that the way they are heated and how long they are cooked for can affect the outcome of your no bake cookie. If your cookie became hard and brittle, it means that you have overcooked them and there’s no going back from that.

I recommend being patient while making these and set a timer while the chocolate mixture is boiling so that you don’t go over a minute of boiling time.

How long can you store no bake cookies?

You can store no bake cookies for up to 2 weeks either at room temperature or in the refrigerator. Just make sure they are sealed well in an airtight container before storing.

You can also freeze no bake cookies for up to 3 months. Once you are ready to thaw them, it is best to thaw them gradually. Start by placing the cookies in the refrigerator for a few hours and then transferring them to the counter. They will gradually warm up to room temperature.

Use this no bake cookie recipe to make Buckeye No Bake Cookies!

Chocolate No Bake Cookies

4.84 from 6 votes

Soft, fudgy chocolate no bake cookies like you've never tasted before! Chocolate, peanut butter and oatmeal come together deliciously in this easy cookie recipe.

Servings 21

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 5

Chill Time 30

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Ingredients

½ cup salted butter (1 stick)
½ cup whole milk
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
¼ cup cocoa powder
¾ cup creamy peanut butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups instant oats
1 cup high quality dark chocolate (cut into chunks) (3.5 oz bar)

Instructions

Combine butter, milk, sugars, and cocoa powder. Cook over low heat until butter melts, stirring occasionally. Do not turn up heat to make the process go by faster.
Once boiling, turn heat up to medium, stirring constantly.
Continue boiling for 1 minute and then take off heat. (Set a timer to prevent overcooking.)
Add in peanut butter and vanilla extract and stir.
Add in oats and stir again.
Add in chopped dark chocolate and give a quick stir (Don’t mix it in completely. You want a little bit of a chocolate swirl.)
Drop onto parchment lined sheet pan.
Chill for 30 minutes.
Store in an airtight container.

Notes

The calories shown are based on the recipe making 21 cookies, with 1 serving being 1 cookie. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information.**

Nutrition

Author Julie Clark

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Calories 241

Keyword chocolate cookies, easy cookie recipes, no bake dessert

Frequently Asked Questions

Are no bake cookies gluten free?

If you use gluten free oats, then these cookies will be gluten free.

Can you make no bake cookies without peanut butter?

You can try using your favorite brand of almond butter in place of peanut butter in this recipe. Make sure you stir the nut butter well.

Do I have to add chocolate to my no bake cookies?

The addition of melted dark chocolate is what makes the cookies really fudgy. You can leave it out and they will work, but they won’t be as chocolatey or fudgy.