These 3-Ingredient No-Bake Cookies are healthy, no-bake oatmeal chocolate cookies, delicious as a quick snack. They are crunchy and made with roasted oats, dark chocolate, and peanut butter. That’s it!
I love simple cookie recipes and in particular the ones that you don’t need to bake, like my Healthy No-Bake Oatmeal Cookies, No-Bake Coconut Cookies, or No-Bake Almond Butter Cookies. This new recipe is high in fiber and protein and low in sugar. It’s a great healthy snack!
Ingredients and Substitutions
This paragraph gives you all my tips about picking the right ingredients. For the full recipe with measurements, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post!Go to Full Recipe
You only need 3 ingredients to make these cookies. Here’s how to pick them.
- Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats – These oats form the crunchy, fiber-packed base of the cookies, providing structure and a wholesome bite. They toast beautifully to enhance their nutty flavor. If needed, you can swap in quick oats for a slightly softer texture, but avoid using steel-cut oats as they won’t crisp up properly. You can also use puffed rice or puffed quinoa as an alternative.
- Dairy-Free Dark Chocolate Chips – The dark chocolate chips bring a rich, bittersweet cocoa flavor that complements the oats and peanut butter while keeping the recipe low in sugar. You can choose different cocoa percentages—55% for sweeter cookies, 70% as a balanced option, or 85% for an ultra-low sugar treat. Make sure to select a high-quality, vegan dark chocolate; milk chocolate or any dairy-based chocolate won’t work for this recipe.
- Peanut Butter – Acting as the binding and flavoring agent, peanut butter adds creaminess, healthy fats, and protein to the cookies, as well as that irresistible nutty taste. For variation or a nut-free version, you can substitute with almond butter, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter. It’s important to use a fresh, runny variety (avoid brands with added oils or sugars) so the mixture comes together smoothly.
- Optional Extract – add 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract, almond extract, or vanilla extract to the melted chocolate to flavor the cookies.
How to Make 3-Ingredient No-Bake Cookies
Let me walk you through how to make these cookies with a few pictures.
Roast the oats for 12 minutes in an oven at 350 °F (180 °C).
Combine the dairy-free chocolate chips and butter in a pan.
Stir them over medium heat until the chocolate is fully melted and has incorporated the peanut butter.
Pour the roasted oats into the chocolate mixture and stir to incorporate.
Line two plates with parchment paper and flatten balls of batter to form cookies.
Place the plates in the freezer for 15 minutes to set the cookies.
Expert Tips
Let me share a few more tips to help you make the best cookies.
- Roast for Extra Crunch: Roast the oats until they turn a light golden color—stirring halfway through—to bring out their natural flavor and crunch.
- Mind the Nut Butter: Use a fresh, drippy jar of peanut butter (or your chosen alternative) because a dry or overly processed butter will result in a crumbly mixture that won’t hold together.
- Work Quickly: Once you combine the melted chocolate and peanut butter with the roasted oats, stir vigorously and quickly, as the mixture will start to set as it cools.
- Portion Consistently: Use a small cookie dough scoop to portion out the mixture evenly. Press firmly into the scoop to compact the dough, then gently flatten each cookie with lightly oiled fingertips for a neat finish.
- Experiment with Flavors: Feel free to add a twist by mixing in ½ teaspoon of peppermint, almond, or vanilla extract into the melted chocolate-peanut butter blend. You can also swap out about ⅓ cup of oats for thinly chopped nuts or unsweetened coconut for additional texture and flavor.
- Mix Chocolate Types: You can try mixing two types of chocolate—for instance, using 1/3 cup of 85% dark chocolate along with 1/3 cup of semi-sweet chips, or even adding a few dairy-free white chocolate chips for an extra layer of sweetness.
- Storage Suggestions: After forming, freeze the cookies for 15 minutes to set them quickly, or chill in the fridge for about 3 hours until firm. Store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 weeks, or freeze for up to 1 month, enjoying them straight from the freezer or after a short thaw at room temperature.
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3-Ingredient No-Bake Cookies
These 3-Ingredient No-Bake Cookies are healthy, no-bake oatmeal chocolate cookies, delicious as a quick snack. They are crunchy and made with roasted oats, dark chocolate, and peanut butter. That's it!
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Servings: 16 cookies
Calories: 122.2 kcal
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats - (note 1)
- ⅔ cup Dairy-Free Dark Chocolate Chips - see note for % cocoa (note 2)
- ½ cup Peanut Butter - (note 3)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F (180 °C).
- Line a large plate or board that fit your freezer width as you will pop this in the freezer later. Cover with parchment paper, lightly oil paper. Set aside.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange the oats on the tray in a single layer.
- Roast the oats for 12 minutes, stirring halfway. Let them cool down on the tray at room temperature.
- Meanwhile, in a saucepan add peanut butter and your favorite chocolate chips. Make sure you pick the cocoa level that matches your tastebuds. I recommend 70% cocoa for a healthy treats, it's lightly sweet but not too sweet, not too bitter. Go for 85% cocoa for ultra-low sugar, not sweet cookies and health conscious palate. If you prefer the cookies sweet, try 55% cocoa chocolate.
- Bring the saucepan over medium heat, warm, and stir with a rubber spatula until the ingredients are nicely melted. Remove from the heat.
- Stir the roasted oats immediately and vigorously. It's okay if your oats it's still warm. Stir quickly, to coat fully with the mixture. It's important to be quick as the mixture dries out as you stir.
- Use a small cookie dough scoop to scoop out some cookie dough mixture, press firmly in the scoop to compact the cookie mixture then release it on the prepared plate. Lightly oil your finger tips and press the top of each cookie to flatten.
- Repeat until the whole mixture as been formed into cookies.
- Freeze the cookies for 15 minutes to quickly set them or simply place them in the fridge for 3 hours to firm up.
Notes
Note 1: Quick oats work too. Pick gluten-free certified oats if needed.
Note 2: I am using 70% dark chocolate for this recipe as I like my cookies on the healthy side, but still sweet. For sweeter cookies, use 55% cocoa chocolate chips also called semi-sweet chocolate chips. For ultra-low sugar cookies, use 85% chocolate.
Note 3: You can also swap for almond butter, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter for a nut-free option. Make sure your jar of nut-butter is fresh and runny, if it’s dry – not enough oil – the no-bake cookie dough will be super dry and never stick together.
Storage: Store the cookies in the fridge for up to 3 weeks in a sealed box, or freeze them for up to 1 month and eat them frozen or thaw them for 30 minutes at room temperature before serving.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 122.2kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 3.6g | Fat: 7.1g | Saturated Fat: 3.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2.3g | Cholesterol: 0.1mg | Sodium: 43.1mg | Potassium: 125.1mg | Fiber: 1.6g | Sugar: 3.5g | Vitamin A: 0.8IU | Vitamin B12: 0.02µg | Vitamin C: 0.04mg | Calcium: 31.3mg | Iron: 0.6mg | Magnesium: 28.6mg | Phosphorus: 73.1mg | Zinc: 0.8mg
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