Chocolate No Bake Cookies Take Me Down Memory Lane

I first made these no bake cookies with my cousins when I was a little girl.  I loved them so much that every time we visited I wanted to make them and many times we did!  Those were the good old days! Too bad they don't last.  But the cookies do!

2 cups sugar
4 tablespoons cocoa
1 stick butter
1/2 cup milk
1 cup peanut butter
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 cups old fashioned oatmeal
Waxed paper


Here is my "healthy recipe"


1 cup sugar
4 tablespoons cocoa
1 stick butter
1/2 cup milk
1 cup peanut butter
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 cups old fashioned oatmeal
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts.

You can put all kinds of good stuff in these cookies, like flax seed, wheat germ, dried cherries and coconut are a few additions I have tried.  The recipe is very forgiving so you can just do your own thing!

In a heavy saucepan bring to a boil, the sugar, cocoa, butter and milk. Let boil for 1 minute then add peanut butter, vanilla and oatmeal. On a sheet of waxed paper, drop mixture by the teaspoonfuls, until cooled and hardened.

I have been making these since I was a little girl and have a couple of tips that I have learned through the years. 

Start timing your sugar boil when the whole pot is boiling. The longer you boil the sugar the firmer your cookies will be. Boil at least a minute, if you boil just over a minute they will be shiny. If you boil longer you will be sure they will set better. But be careful not to boil too long, any more than 4 min. and they could be crumbly