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Monday, July 26, 2010

Too Hot To Bake: No-Bakes: No Problem

I adore no-bakes. My mom makes the best ever (shut up, she does!) and they always set up right and they always have this amazing sort of crust, if you will on them and I could eat a batch all by myself....yeah, well, I didn't date much in highschool.
Anyways, I found a recipe that puts aside the question of whether or not your cookies will set up because this is a bar cookie, so there's no where for them to run.
First, the ingredients:

1 stick of butter OR margarine (yes, yes, I'll allow it here)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar PLUS 1 tablespoon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup quick oats
1/2 semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter. Almond butter will work in this as well for those of you who can't have PB

*so, please note, this recipe is gluten free, egg free, and can be dairy free and PB free for all you mommies who are trying really hard to give your kiddos a little something sweet without worry.

Spray either an 8x8 or 9x9 pan lightly with pan spray.











Melt butter or margarine over very low heat in a saucepan. Don't use a high heat here-you don't want to brown the butter or burn it all off accidentally.










Add the brown sugar and vanilla, stirring until all the sugar is dissolved.











Stir in the oats all at once and coat completely with the butter/sugar mixture. Keep stirring until the oatmeal has completely absorbed the butter.










When the oatmeal looks like this, set it aside for a moment while you prepare the chocolate and peanut butter.










In a heat-proof bowl over a small pot of simmering water (called a bain marie or water bath), heat the peanut butter and chocolate together and stir until smooth. You can also do this step in the microwave if you are careful, by heating the mixture in 15 second intervals and stirring in between but-honestly-that takes more time than this did. I simply heated it while I was making the oatmeal part and just kept an eye on it.





Put half of the oatmeal mixture in the bottom of the pan and press in with a piece of either parchment paper or waxed paper. It will be a thin layer but it will easily cover the bottom of the pan.







Spread the chocolate peanut butter (oh man, this is when I start licking my fingers) over the oatmeal crust until level.









Top the chocolate with the remaining oatmeal. Here, I have crumbled the remainder over the surface of the still-warm chocolate instead of dropping it all on one spot. It will be easier to press in this way.







Press in the paper again until it is all flat. Some chocolate will seep through but you will still have 3 distinct layers.
Cover and chill until the chocolate hardens some. Cut and serve.




I seriously don't think this pan will last the night.
Good thing they are so easy to make.

5 comments:

Matt said...

Unfortunately, the point where it reaches the bowl is probably the point where it gets eaten for me.

Mrs. V said...

i only made it right because i knew it was "research." The second batch may not fair as well.

ash said...

i'm making these right now!

ash said...

done! yum!

Katie said...

This looks amazing!! (I've always wanted a no-bake recipe) I hope to try it soon!