Here is a recipe for a chocolate staple at our house.  We have a bit of a sweet tooth when it comes to chocolate.  Rather than spending a few dollars on chocolate snacks every time we go to the store, we started making No Bake Cookies.  Some people may call them Peanut Butter Delights or Preacher Cookies, but I have always called them No Bake Cookies, and I was proven right when Ann brought a pack home from the store a few years ago only to her dismay to realize they said “No Bake Cookies” right on the label.

Even if you can not bake (I am learning), or if you don’t have much time, you can whip up of batch of these in under 15 minutes.  As long as you follow this simple recipe, they will come out perfect every time.

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup butter
4 tbsp cocoa
1/2 cup peanut butter
3 cups oats (I use whole grain oats rather than quick oats)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Add sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa to pot and bring to a boil.  Allowing it to boil for 60 seconds while stirring.  Remove from heat.  Let sit for one minute.  Add peanut butter, vanilla extract, and oats.  Stir until all oats are completely covered in chocolaty goodness.  Plop onto wax paper.  I use a heaping tablespoon, but you can make them bigger or smaller based on how big you want you cookies to be.  I have found that smaller cookies do last a little longer :).  Allow to cool a few hours.  Enjoy.

The hardest part of this recipe is waiting for them to cool.  This can be made easier by scrapping the sides of the pot after you have portioned the cookies.  The mixture will begin to harden along the sides of the pot and makes a great little taste to tide you over until the cookies have set up.