Slimmed Down
No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Prep time: 1 min
Cook time: 5 mins
Total time: 6 mins
Serves: 24

 

Just like mom used to make - without the extra calories and fat!

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 1/2 cup sugar in the raw (turbinado sugar)
  • 1/3 cup vanilla coconut milk
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 2 1/2 cups old fashioned oats

Instructions

  1. Add the first four ingredients into a saucepan and bring to a boil.
  2. Allow to boil for one minute.
  3. Remove from heat and immediately add the peanut butter and vanilla extract, mixing well.
  4. Add in oats, mixing until completely coated.
  5. Dropped by rounded tablespoons onto wax or parchment paper. Place another sheet of wax/parchment paper on top of the cookies and slightly press down (to flatten).
  6. Allow to cool completely.
  7. Enjoy!

Nutritional data

Serving size: 1 cookie
Calories: 74
Fat: 3.1 grams
Carbohydrates: 10.7 grams
Protein: 1.7 grams

Each cookie has 2 WW points.

Nutritional data is approximate.

 

Like most of America, I love Pinterest. I'm on there daily seeing what's new and I love seeing what my friends are pinning. One of my fitness buddies, Erica, was pinning a lot of No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies. When I saw this I laughed because my mom and I were just talking about these the week before. She and I were talking about how I lived off of them when I was a kid and how they were so easy to make. Of course, living off of them probably helped me add some chunk as a kid. But I digress. After seeing Erica's pins I posted on her FB wall that I was going to try and slim down these cookies. A couple of my friends responded that they would love that so I got to work. The first batch was not good. Actually, I liked them, but my Hubs was here and said they needed more sugar and "I don't like dark chocolate" (I used dark chocolate cocoa powder). So I tried again (using regular cocoa powder) and while it was cooking I knew this would be closer. I whipped them up, persuaded the Hubs to try a bite and then sat back to watch his reaction. It was good! He said it tasted like he remembered. Normally that would be enough but this was a classic. Something a lot of us grew up with as kids. I wanted to get it right. With that in mind, I put 4 or 5 in a plastic bag and took them with me to pick up my son. When I got to his preschool I asked the teachers if they had had them before (all but one had) and then I asked them to taste them and let me know what they thought. They all said they were good but I said "it's ok. Be honest if they aren't so I know what to fix." They replied that no, they were really good. Almost there. When I picked up my daughter I gave her and my son one. Since the Princess is the tough one I waited with baited breath for her response (of course I had to act like I wasn't paying attention). After a bite she says (to herself, mind you) "ummmmm.... these are good." Success! Now before I post the recipe I want to do a comparison of nutrition. I'm basing the nutrition on the Betty Crocker version my mom always used (the old school method).

Betty Crocker Version (per cookie)

Calories: 175

Fat: 7.5 grams

Carbs: 25  grams

Protein: 3.0 grams

My Version (per cookie)

Calories: 73

Fat: 3.1 grams

Carbs: 10.7 grams

Protein: 1.7 grams

Quite a difference don't you think? Note: Both were based off of a recipe that yields 24 cookies. 

And now, with all of that I can finally give all of you my version of the slimmed down no-bake chocolate oatmeal cookies. I hope you enjoy them!