MERRY NO-BAKE COOKIE RECIPE
MERRY NO-BAKE COOKIE BALLS are a delicious cookie made with lots of healthy ingredients that you mix together and roll up! No baking so they are easy to make and a cookie ball is perfect to pop right into your mouth.
It’s CHRISTMAS COOKIE WEEK! My blogging friends and I are sharing our best Christmas cookies with you! I made some scrumptious No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Balls! That’s a mouthful and so are these yummy cookies!
My cookie contribution is very easy peasy! It’s no-bake and with just a few ingredients you probably have in your pantry you can whip these scrumptious peanut-buttery chocolate balls up in no time at all!
Actually, you can use the basic recipe and add other ingredients to make it your own!
It’s all about mixing up the ingredients and rolling them into balls with your hand! Yes, they are that easy!
I did dip some in chocolate and they are so so delicious!
If you like not-too-sweet sweet treats then these cookies will be perfect for you.
What I love about this recipe is that it is not rocket science! You can add a little more of this and a sprinkle of that and they will still come out delicious.
I’m not much of a baker (except for cookies) and I really like the idea of not having a chemistry lesson while I’m in the kitchen! And I feel like you need either a science degree or some special innate talent to bake!
Here’s the best thing about these no-bake cookie balls, I don’t feel guilty if I want one for dessert after dinner! They are pretty healthy! YUM!
Oh, and I should mention this no-bake cookie recipe is gluten-free! Oatmeal gives this cookie a great texture!
NO-BAKE COOKIE RECIPE INGREDIENTS
Just dump the ingredients into a bowl and mix. I found mixing it with my hands works best. Clean hands are God-given tools!
Look at those great ingredients!
After mixing the ingredients, I ate a bit from my finger for quality control! Really! I did add a bit more honey and peanut butter to keep the consistency just slightly sticky but not too sticky to roll!
And when I was happy with the taste and consistency of the cookies I put the dough into the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.
The secret to really fabulous no-bake cookies is NO DRY COOKIES! Don’t be afraid to add a bit more peanut butter (or any nut butter you choose) to make the mixture stick together. Remember this no-bake cookie recipe is not rocket science!!!!
If you want you can substitute the peanut butter, nuts, dried cherries, chocolate chips, and honey for other add-ins.
I’m going to try the recipe again with cashew butter, honey-roasted cashews, dried apricots, and broken up brittle. And coat the cookies with butterscotch using butterscotch chips. And I’ll top them with a little more broken brittle! Double YUM!
Get creative! Just make sure to use enough nut butter to hold the cookie together!
MAKING COOKIE BALLS
I used a tablespoon to scoop out the cookie dough then rolled them between my palms to make a ball. Then I put them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
When they were all rolled out I put them in the freezer for about 30 minutes.
EMBELLISHING THE COOKIE BALLS
The last part of making this cookie was a bit of an afterthought. Although these no-bake cookies are super delicious they just did not look festive! They did not say CHRISTMAS to me.
So what’s a girl to do? Dunk them in chocolate, what else!!!!
Or make a pretty drizzle design… USING MORE CHOCOLATE!
Covering the cookie balls with chocolate was brilliant! They tasted even more amazing! And certainly looked more festive!
And that is how covering the cookie balls with chocolate came to be a part of this Christmas no-bake cookie ball recipe!
Because covering them was an afterthought I forgot to take pictures. Sorry!
Covering the cookie balls was easy. I just made a chocolate coating using chocolate chips and a little shortening (see the recipe below). Don’t use butter! Use something like Crisco.
I melted the chips in the microwave at 15-second intervals. And stirred them to see if they would melt. It took microwaving them for just 30 seconds for chips and shortening to become soft enough to stir. And stirring them made them soft enough to melt into a beautiful, silky coating!
I dunked the frozen cookie balls into the chocolate, one at a time, and rolled them around until they were covered. Then I fished each cookie ball out of its chocolate bath with a fork and let the excess chocolate drip back into the coating. Then they went back on the parchment-lined baking sheet to completely dry.
Ready to make this no-bake cookie recipe?
NO BAKE CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER OATMEAL BALLS
Ingredients
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup peanut butter or other nut butter
- 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
- 3 Tbs honey
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup dried fruit
- 1/2 cup chopped nuts
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 cups chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp shortening
- 2 tsp shortening
- 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
- pinch sea salt
Instructions
- TO MAKE THE NO-BAKE COOKIE BALLSMix the first 8 ingredients (up to and including the vanilla) together in a large bowl. Refrigerate the dough for about 30 minutes.
- Roll dough into small balls and put the balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Freeze
- TO MAKE THE CHOCOLATE COATINGPut 2 cups of chocolate chips plus 1 Tbs plus 2 tsp shortening into a microwave proof bowl. Microwave for high in 15-second intervals. After each interval take the bowl out of the microwave and stir. Do this until you can stir the chips and they melt into a silky chocolate coating. DO NOT OVERHEAT! The heat of the bowl will melt the chips.
- Take the cookie balls out of the freezer and dip one at a time in the chocolate coating. Remove them from the chocolate with a fork and let the excess coating drip off the cookie ball back into the coating. Place the coated cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Dry completely at room temperature.
- TO MAKE THE WHITE CHOCOLATE DRIZZLEPut 1/2 cup white chocolate (no shortening) in a small microwave safe bowl. Use the chocolate melting technique above.
- Put the melted chocolate into a small plastic sandwich bag and cut a small hole in one of the bottom corners with scissors. Push the white chocolate down to the corner of the bag until al little squirts out.
- Put the cookie balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Push the white chocolate so it comes out of the bag in one thin line. Using a back and forth motion, move across each cookie ball from top to bottom. Then turn the cookie 90 degrees and repeat. This will make a stylized crosshatch design.
- Add a tiny sprinkle of sea salt or other embellishments to the cookie before the white chocolate dries.
- When the cookie balls are completely dry refrigerate or freeze them.
- I love them frozen! The dried fruits give a candy-like crunch!
You might like to make StoneGable’s other Christmas cookies…
I’m sure you will want to see the other delicious cookies.
These sound so good and I love that they are no-bake. Rolled in chocolate or rolled peppermint sound so to me. A cup of coffee and plate of these would make me a happy girl.
These look and sound delicious, Yvonne, and no-bake makes them even better! Have a lovely week.
If I were to make them now, how long will they be good for?
You can freeze them and that is the best way to keep them. They will last a long time then.
For some reason I haven’t been able to Pin anything from your blog for the last several days. Is the problem on your end? Everything seems to work fine from other sites. I want to save your great ideas for future reference. Thanks!
These look yummy,I will have to try them.
Hi Really love this post. I have found that allot of the links are not working and I can not get the recipes. Would love if I could get more of them.
Thank you
Erika
Let me check into that Erika!
Erika, only one link was broken and I fixed it. The other’s that are not working are links that go live Thursday and Friday. Stop back to see those cookies on the day they go live! YUM, right?
These no bake cookies look absolutely delicious. I think I need them for breakfast with a cup of hot tea. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
My family will love them.
Yes, doesn’t that sound glorious!
I’m not able to pin these cookies. Is there a problem?
oh wow these look sooo good!
These look amazing, Yvonne! I love hearing that they’re on the healthier side, gluten free and not too sweet. The icing definitely gives them a holiday look. The round shape adds interest to a cookie tray, too. I would love have one of these after dinner, guilt free! It’s a pleasure to be joining you on this hop!
Your cookies look so beautiful, Yvonne! I enjoyed watching your latest video, too! XO
What a great gluten-free no-bake cookie option! I love that you can add different ingredients to make it your own! Love hopping with you, dear friend! Sharing!
Love you back!
These super easy and yummy. I think my kids will love making these for the holidays. Gorgeous photos as well. So fun to be on the cookie hop with you.
Hi Sonya! This is such a fun hop! Enjoy making the cookies with your children.
Such a gorgeous no-bake cookie & you had me at peanut butter!
Hi Maryann! Thanks so much for inviting me to be a part of this delicious Christmas cookie event!
Love this idea for a new twist on no-bake cookies. They are so pretty and look delicious! Can’t wait to try this recipe:)
Thanks so much Carrie!
I can’t wait to try these. They look delicious. I was wondering how you got them flat on the bottom. When you rolled them out on the parchment they looked like a ball then when you showed them with the drizzle over them they look flattened out. Did that happen naturally?
The flat-is bottom happens when the chocolate naturally slides a teddy and makes a bit of a flat bottom.
These look absolutely amazing and your photography is just stunning!
You are so sweet Jenn! xo
Yvonne… these look insanely delicious! I love adding in a few no-bake sweets during the holidays and I can’t wait to try these out!
xo
Trish
Thanks, Trish! We take one out of the freezer every night and eat them for dessert!
These look amazing, Yvonne! A no-bake peanut butter cookie…yum! I will be making these this weekend. Pinned!
Do you use old-fashioned oats or quick oats?
Great question, Jean! I used rolled oats
I am referring to the no-bake cookie balls when I am asking whether the recipe is made with old-fashioned or quick oats. Which one or either?
Yvonne,
We made these cookies this weekend AND they are delicious! Thank you so much for sharing this tasty recipe. Perfect for our holidays.
So glad you liked them!
Yvonne, these sound so yummy and look amazing. You have such a knack for making everything beautiful. Definitely going to try these!
Love the beef brisket and casserole recipes. But adding cranberry sauce to the beef mixture was new to me. Also I can’t see the casserole ingredients fitting into a 9 X 13 pan. Maybe one of those foil roasting pans. I won’t be making either because I am alone, but they look good!
I definitely will make the no-bake cookies!
Can you use instant or regular oatmeal? Do you use butter for the shortening?
They look delicious!
Hi Gloria, I don’t use instant oatmeal, but you can give it a try. Also the buttrer sounds good too.