As much as I love the thousands of food blogs & online recipe sights, there is nothing like cracking open a new AMAZINGLY written, published & printed cookbook! I'm a cookbook junkie! I love to read them like novels, cover to cover. I also love my local library. They have a great selection of cookbooks, almost always have the newest releases & anything on the best sellers lists. I almost always have a cookbook on hold at the library & I currently have 4 cookbooks checked out, 1 overdue.
Baked Explorations by Matt Lewis & Renato Poliafito is one of my current favorites! The subtitle is "Classic American Desserts Reinvented", which is right up my alley. I LOVE Classic Desserts! What's more classic than peanut butter, chocolate & oats?
When I begin reading a new cookbook I get a piece of paper to use as a bookmark. As I read the book, I write down the recipes that I want to make. I gathered a long list from this book, which explains why it is past due.
The first recipe I made from this book is the classic No-Bake Oatmeal Cookies, page 185. I grew up on these & often came home from school to find a batch of them on the kitchen counter. My mom is THE expert on these sweet treats!
No-Bake Oatmeal Cookies
makes 48 cookies (recipe can be halved)
ingredients
1/2 cup whole milk (I used 1%)
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup peanut butter (smooth or crunchy)
3 cups old fashioned oats
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
directions
1. Line counter top area with waxed paper or parchment paper.
2. Cut the softened butter into 1/2 inch cubes.
3. In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stir together the milk, sugar, cocoa & butter until the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved.
4. Bring mixture to a boil, stop stirring, and boil for a full 90 seconds. Don't overcook or cookies will be overly dry & crumbly.
5. Remove from heat and add the peanut butter, oats & vanilla. Quickly stir until the mixture is combined.
6. Use a small scoop or a tablespoon to drop the no-bake cookies on to the waxed paper. If you do this very quickly the cookies will spread a bit on the wax paper while the mixture is still hot, which most people prefer. I took my time, snapping a picture, so my cookies didn't spread since they set up very quickly. Allow to cool. Can be stored in tightly sealed container for 3 days.
P.S. My mom sometimes did this & so do I: Make the exact recipe MINUS the cocoa powder for a yummy No-Bake PEANUT BUTTER cookie treat!
Next on the list is this GORGEOUS Mississippi Mud Pie, page 156.
I literally found your blog on facebook and spent a good two hours reading your recipes!! I love the stuff you make and I totally plan on trying these recipes out. No-bake oatmeal cookies are my favorite and I prefer the chocolate kind myself. I actually add chocolate chips to mine and mix it in before putting it on the wax sheet then freeze them. They turn out really good, kind of messy but still tasty :P
ReplyDeleteThis is one of those recipes I intend to give as a gift to the family this Christmas. Super easy and I can do it Christmas morning so they are super fresh. I love this!
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