No Bake Chocolate Oat Clusters

I have been a baking (or in this case, a no bake) machine lately.  Until a few weeks ago, I hardly ever removed my cupcake tins or baking loaf pan from the upper kitchen cabinets.

What started as a love for Chocolate Chip Banana Mini-Muffins has turned into a page long list of recipes I want to try and make my own versions of.

Of course, with baking comes baker’s regret.  I define this as being unable to resist the urge to eat and finish the majority of your baked good in the house.  To be honest, this is exactly why I avoided baking all-together for quite some time: I have no self control here.

If I don’t make it, I don’t think about it.  If I don’t buy it and don’t have it in the house, I don’t have an urge to eat it.  The out of sight, out of mind theory works well for me, and I have decided that if I am going to bake then it is going to be somewhat healthy.

That… and I better keep up with my running routine!

I try to start my week off right by running outside on Mondays.  Yesterday, I knocked out four miles with Scott before 9 a.m.  Ideally, I would like to run earlier, but since I teach barre at sunrise I usually start my run shortly after getting home around 8 a.m.

With that said, let’s move on to what you clicked on this post for! 😀

No Bake Chocolate Oat Clusters

Are you looking for a quick and incredibly easy no bake cookie recipe?  How about a cluster or a haystack?  These chocolate peanut buttery oat clusters could be considered all three of those and only take twenty minutes to make and serve.

I am partial to anything that combines peanut butter and chocolate, and mixed with oats these clusters tasted like a little drop of heaven.

Go ahead, try them out and and see for yourself…

No Bake Chocolate Oat Clusters

Ingredients

4 tbsp peanut butter

4 tbsp milk (I used skim)

1/2 cup chocolate chips

1 1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats

prep time: 10 minutes, ready in 20 minutes

servings: 14-16 clusters

Directions

1. Place peanut butter, milk and chocolate in a saucepan.  Cook for a few minutes over low-medium heat until chocolate chips melt.

2. Stir in oats, then remove from heat.

3. With a table spoon, drop ball-shaped portions onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Depending on the cluster size, you will have enough for about 16 balls.

4. Cool in refrigerator for 10 minutes, or until clusters firm.

Warmed and melted…

Chocolate peanut buttery goodness…

Waiting for you.

These cookie clusters were a hit in my household and I encourage you to share them with anyone in yours.  I remember my grandmother making something similar around the holidays, but you certainly don’t have to wait until then to give these a whirl.

Enjoy!