No Bake Cookies

Happy Labor Day!

In the spirit of Labor Day, and being off work, I decided to put the least amount of effort possible into baking. Well that, and I wanted to make something quick and fool-proof to take to my writing group tonight (as a reward for the people who show up on a holiday!)

Not wanting to go to the store, I decided to bake with what I had around the house, and wound up re-discovering no bake cookies! I haven't made them for yeaaars.
Mine ALWAYS seem to come out a little crumbly, but I boiled them for a little less time than normal. I added more oats than I meant to though, so that defeated the purpose!

Afraid that they'd be dry, I melted some peanut butter and drizzled it over them. Super cute!

Now, Wilton's makes this thing called Peanut Butter Drizzle Icing, and I found it on sale (discontinued, I believe) so I bought it awhile ago. It tastes...funky. Like a bad peanut butter icing. After reading the ingredients list, I'm convinced that it's sugar, chemically altered to taste like peanut butter.
So, even if you see something like this, I suggest just taking the 45 seconds extra to melt the peanut butter.

No Bake Cookie Recipe

• 1 3/4 c white sugar
• 1/2 c milk
• 1/2 c (1 stick) butter
• 4 T cocoa powder
• 3/4 c peanut butter (I prefer creamy)
• 3 cups quick oats

Preparation

• Line two cookie sheets with waxed paper; set aside.
• Combine sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa powder in medium sauce pan over high heat. Stir often to combine.
• Bring to a rolling boil. Once it begins to boil, heat one minute longer, stirring often still.
• Remove from heat. Add peanut butter and stir until melted/combined.
• Stir in 2 1/2 c oats, then slowly add in the rest of the oats, or enough to get the consistency you desire.
• Drop immediately onto the waxed paper, in whatever size you prefer. Leave to cool.

Optional Peanut Butter Drizzle

• Melt about 1/2 c peanut butter on 50% heat in the microwave for 45 seconds, stirring halfway through.
• Pour into a Zip-Loc bag. Snip off a small corner of the bag.
• Drizzle!

Peanut-Butter-Scotch Pretzels

Oh man, it's finally happened. I've got LOSTmania.

My older brother and I made a deal this week: He watches Doctor Who, if I watch LOST. I spent the ENTIRE day watching episodes. I was so into it, in fact, that I forgot that today was Sweet Day!

So, looking for something simple to whip up, I settled for something that I haven't made in a couple of years: Peanut butter butterscotch dipped pretzels! (Or peanut-butter-scotch for short.)

Sorry for the sideways picture! I can't get it to rotate.

They're really easy to do, but also time consuming. It took me an hour to dip about 40 mini pretzels, which filled one cookie sheet. They're sooo tasty, though. Mom and I first made these as a seasonal treat, but I figured that I'd mix it up and make them now!

Everything was fine, except for the dip itself. It was a little on the thick side, and for whatever reason stayed slightly lumpy. Afraid to overcook it though, I simply left it. Someone trying this recipe on their own might add a tablespoon (or two?) of solid vegetable shortening to help smooth it out.

Note: Another great thing about making these is that it makes the house smell like butterscotch!

Peanut-Butter-Scotch Pretzel Recipe

• One bag of pretzels (mini or full sized, your preference)
• One 11oz package of butterscotch morsels (found in the baking aisle with chocolate chips)
• 1/3 cup peanut butter
  

Preparation

• Melt the peanut butter and the entire bag of butterscotch morsels together.
• Line a cookie sheet with wax paper.
• Drop some pretzels into the mix, and coat well. Using a fork for regular pretzels, or a toothpick for mini-pretzels, gently shake off the excess coating and leave on the wax paper to dry.
• For a little extra oomph, put them in the fridge. Being chilled makes the coating more firm.
  

Well, that's it! I'm giving it the 'quick and easy' tab even though it isn't neccessarily quick. With so few ingredients and instructions, though, it definitely deserves the 'easy'!

Buckeyes

One of my friends discovered recently that she has Celiac disease-- or, she can't eat gluten. So when our group got together for Movie Night, I decided to make something gluten free for dessert. They're either called buckeyes or buckeye candy, depending on how you've heard it.

I discovered this recipe on the internet (link at the end of the post.) In short, they're peanut butter balls dipped in melted milk chocolate. Reese's, eat your heart out!

After a bit of research, I discovered that they're called buckeyes because they resemble the nuts that come from Buckeye trees. Google images proved it!

Everybody at work loved them. LOVED them. They're so simple to make, too. I'm giving them the "quick and easy" stamp because, even though they have to be chilled for an hour, the preparation is otherwise very...quick and easy.

The recipe directs you to use a toothpick to dip the PB ball halfway in the chocolate. This leaves a less-than-pleasing hole in the top though. My solution: After putting them in the fridge to chill, I simply smoothed over the tops with my finger!

Note: When chilled, I put most in a glass 9x13 pan. The rest went into a metal pan. Both pans went into the freezer, but when they were taken out, the balls in the metal pan had spread and flattened slightly. I suggest using a glass pan to help them retain their shape.

Buckeyes recipe

• 2 cups creamy peanut butter (NOT all-natural, according to the recipe)
• 1/2 stick (or 4 tbsp) butter, softened
• 3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 12-oz package of milk chocolate chips (recipe calls for semi-sweet, but I substituted and think they came out even better this way)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening (to keep the chocolate smooth and creamy)

Preparation

• Beat peanut butter and regular butter in a bowl until creamy/smooth.
• Beat in the powdered sugar, a little at a time. This amount was perfect, so don't go short! Otherwise the balls will be too difficult (sticky) to roll.
• Roll into 1" balls. Place in a wax-paper lined 9x13 pan. Freeze for about one hour.
• Once the hour is up, melt together your chocolate and vegetable shortening, checking on/stirring until entirely melted.
• Prepare a cookie sheet (or two) with wax paper.
• Take 7-8 balls from the freezer at a time.
• Using a toothpick, dip each ball about 1/2-3/4 of the way into the chocolate.
• Shake off the excess chocolate, then run the bottom edge on the side of the bowl (this eliminates the chocolate blob that forms on the bottom of the ball otherwise.) Place on cookie sheet.
• Once all of the balls are dipped, put in the fridge to help them set.
• Before packing them up, use your finger to smooth the toothpick hole off of the top.

Be sure to keep these chilled if it all possible, even when they're being served. The coldness provides an extra crispness to the chocolate, and gives the peanut butter an extra somethin'-somethin'.

Recipe came from here: http://www.verybestbaking.com/recipes/detail.aspx?id=121354