Gluten Free No Bake Cookies

Looking for a last minute cookie idea for Christmas? Make gluten free no bake cookies. One of the easiest cookies you'll ever make is also one of the best. What could be better than peanut butter and chocolate with oatmeal?

These cookies have been around for decades and everyone has a version of them. I don't know the origin of them, but what I do know is that I love them. They're so simple, but sometimes simple is all you need to really pack the flavor in.

When I first met Scott, we got to talking about our likes and dislikes, generally just getting to know each other. We somehow got on the topic of cookies (strange, huh? or maybe not so strange considering the sweet tooth we both have). He said his absolute favorite cookie of all time was something his mom would make and send him boxes of at Christmas--no bake cookies. I was floored because it's also one of my favorite cookies of all time!!

After finding out we had cookies in common, we also found out that our mom's birthdays are on the very same day (August 20th) and that my kids and one of his kid's names started with Br (Breanna, Brandon, and Brielle). We knew it was fate at that point 🙂

How to Make Gluten Free No Bake Cookies

As the name implies, no bake cookies are, in fact, not baked. All it takes is a handful of ingredients and just a few minutes (literally!) to make these wonderful cookies. And they are naturally gluten free. HOWEVER, please make sure to get gluten free quick oats. There is such a risk of cross contamination when buying oats as they are usually processed with other gluten-containing ingredients.

Bob's Red Mill has certified gluten free quick-cooking oats, and I just found a canister of Quaker certified gluten free quick-cooking oats at Walmart. But none of these are purity protocol oats. They don't bother me, but if you want to be absolutely sure, I would suggest you get purity protocol oats.

You also need to make sure to use quick-cooking oats versus old fashioned oats. Old fashioned oats take longer to cook and will be raw if you use them in this recipe. My mother-in-law happily gave me her recipe, which call for more peanut butter than most, and these are the easy steps:

• A chocolate syrup is made using butter, sugar, cocoa powder, and milk. Bring to a rapid boil and let boil for one minute.
• In a large bowl, add the oatmeal and peanut butter.
• Remove the chocolate mixture from the heat and add vanilla. Then pour the mixture over the oats and peanut butter and stir well to combine. Make sure all oatmeal is well distributed.
• Drop by spoonfuls (or cookie scoop) onto waxed paper or parchment paper lined baking sheets. Let cool for about 30 minutes, or until set. Store at room temperature in an airtight container or in the refrigerator for two weeks.

If these cookies aren't on your radar this holiday season, they should be. They're so easy you can whip them up in just a few short minutes and be enjoying them soon after.