Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies
These Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies are full of peanut butter flavor, only require a few simple ingredients, and are incredibly easy to make!
If I had to choose a favorite cookie recipe from my childhood, it would hands-down be these Classic No-Bake Cookies. I shared the recipe for those cookies last year and ever since then, they have been my top cookie recipe. It makes me so happy that so many of you love the same recipes that I do!
Over the last year, I’ve had several requests for a peanut butter version of my no-bake cookies. So a couple weeks ago I took my no-bake cookie recipe and tweaked it to make a super peanut buttery version. It took a few attempts but I finally got the recipe just right and I have to say, these cookies are just as good as the chocolate version!
These cookies are also ridiculously simple to throw together for those times when you need a quick and simple dessert. You only need six ingredients and about 20 minutes to prepare them!
To make these peanut butter no-bake cookies, you’ll start out with some butter, granulated sugar, and milk. You’ll melt the mixture down then bring it to a rolling boil and allow it to boil for one minute.
Here’s the tricky part with no-bake cookies, sometimes they don’t set up properly. I’ve been making no-bake cookies for years now and I’ve found that one of the main reasons is that the mixture doesn’t boil long enough before you add the rest of the ingredients.
You don’t want to set your timer for 60 seconds as soon as you see a few bubbles. You’ll start to see the mixture bubble around the edges, then bubble a little, then it will come to a rolling boil where the top is completely covered and bubbling vigorously. This is when you want to set your timer for 60 seconds! If you set it too soon, then it’s likely that your cookies will not set up properly.
Once the mixture has boiled, you’ll remove it from the heat and stir in some peanut butter and vanilla extract. When it comes to the peanut butter for no-bake cookies, I have not tested these with natural peanut butter. I prefer to use a peanut butter like Jif or Skippy to make sure they set up properly and aren’t too soft.
And, of course, the final ingredient is some quick-cooking oats. When it comes to baked oatmeal cookies, I love old-fashioned rolled oats. But when it comes to no-bake cookies, I prefer to use quick-cooking oats because they’re smaller. If you only have old-fashioned rolled oats you can pulse them a few times in a food processor to break them down a little more.
One important thing with these no-bake cookies, they do take a little longer to set up. If you’ve made my chocolate no-bake cookies you know that they’ll usually start to set up after about 20 minutes or so. I find that these need about 45 minutes to an hour to really set up because of the extra peanut butter in them.
The cookies will continue to set up even more after that, but they’re still delicious even when they’re a little warm!
Baking Tips for Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies
- Make sure to gather your ingredients and measure everything out before you get started with these cookies, it will make the whole process much smoother.
- Be sure to set a timer for 60 seconds once the mixture comes to a rolling boil (the top should be covered in bubbles and bubbling quite a bit). If you set your timer too soon, then the cookies will not set up properly.
- These cookies take a little bit longer than my chocolate no bake cookies to set up. Allow the cookies about 45 minutes to an hour to firm up. You can still enjoy them while they’re a little warm too!
- If you find the cookies aren’t setting up or seem a little too wet after you’ve let them cool for about an hour, you can place them in the refrigerator to help firm them up. I’ve also had a reader mention that she will microwave the cookies for a few seconds and that also helps them set up.
Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (115 grams) unsalted butter cut into pieces
- 1 and 3/4 cups (350 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) milk
- 3/4 cup (190 grams) creamy peanut butter
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 and 1/4 cups (325 grams) quick-cooking oats
Instructions
- Before getting started, make sure to gather all of your ingredients and measure everything out. Line a couple of large baking sheets with parchment paper (I like to just line my countertop with a large sheet of parchment paper, if your countertop is heat resistant you can also do this instead) and set aside.
- Place the butter, sugar, and milk in a saucepan and heat over medium heat, making sure to stir often until the butter is melted and everything is well combined. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil (the top should be completely covered in bubbles and bubbling vigorously) and allow to boil for 60 seconds (make sure to set a timer!) without stirring.
- Remove from the heat, and stir in the peanut butter and vanilla extract until fully combined. Stir in the oats and mix until all of the oats are coated with the mixture and everything is well combined.
- Drop spoonfuls of the mixture onto the prepared baking sheets. I like to use a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop and flatten the cookies out a little. Allow to cool for about 45 minutes- 1 hour or until the cookies have firmed up, serve, and enjoy! The cookies will continue to firm up more the longer they cool.
Awesome cookies. I found myself in a dilemma today. I only had 2 cups of oats. I figured a startch is a startch so I crushed thin pretzel sticks. If you like salty and sweet this is for you. Everything set up perfectly!!
This recipe is nearly identical to my grandma’s except it calls for 2 cups of sugar. I used 1 3/4 cups, bit it’s still extremely sweet to me. Is it possible to use even less without the cookies getting to hard or crumbly?
You could probably reduce it to 1 and 1/2 cups of sugar, I just wouldn’t recommend reducing it more than that or the cookies may not set up. You could also add a little extra salt to help balance out the sweetness.
A great recipe and one my family loved. And for those that can’t have dairy, or frequently use dairy alternatives, coconut oil can be used as a 1:1 replacement. A warning though, coconut oil has a much lower melt point than butter and cooks a lot faster. Pay attention to this! It will start burning very quickly. It will also allow the cookies to set up faster, and give the cookies a distinct coconut flavor.
Thank you for your detailed instructions. They turned out twice already. They are delicious.
Can I use soy milk? I have children who have an allergy to dairy and one is lactose intolerant. I know with chocolate no bakes it just takes longer to set. Same with peanut butter no bakes?
I’ve used almond milk before and it worked, so I think it should be okay to use soy milk. If you find that it takes longer for chocolate no-bakes to set with soy milk, that may be the case with this recipe too.
Okay just made these. Perfect! First time making the peanut butter only recipe, made the chocolate many times.
I’m almost 65yrs old and I’ve never made these cookies before today they look good. I want to eat them all up now. But I will wait the 45mins but pretty easy
Cookies turned out great Added a few chocolate chips on top. I can cook but baking is not my thing. Husband is happy.
I’ve made these cookies about 5-6 times now and they always turn out amazing. One of me and my family’s favorite cookie recipes. Super easy to make and clean up, definitely recommend trying<3
Can I use old fashion oats? I don’t have rolled oats. What is the difference anyways? Just wondering 🤔
They are basically the same thing, quick oats are just rolled thinner and cut smaller so they cook faster. You can use old-fashioned rolled oats, but I would recommend pulsing them a few times in a food processor so they are similar in texture to quick oats.
It’s in the recipe about that…I just read it. Pulse so it is not so big
wondering before i make these if i can mix brown sugar and white sugar ?
Yes, that would be okay.
Yes
I dont have granulated sugar, would powder sugar still work?
No, I don’t recommend using powdered sugar for this recipe.
Can you decrease the sugar and still be okay setting up?
You could probably decrease it by 1/2 cup, but they may take longer to set up.
I tried to follow recipe exactly but they got crumbly . I’m not sure what I did wrong .
Hi, Barb! It sounds like you may have accidentally cooked the mixture too long. Did you make sure to set a timer as soon as the mixture came to a rolling boil? If so, you could try boiling it a little less longer next time.
I have been eating these since I was old enough to lick the pan afterwards!! My mom would use quick oats & coconut, the secret to getting them just right is to keep stirring after ALL the ingredients are stirred in, stir untill they start getting thick, I have even set my pan in some cool water to thicken them quicker..yum, my favorite cookie!
Great No bakes, Thank you.