Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Start by adding the butter, sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and milk into a medium-sized saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium heat.
Once the mixture starts to boil (mixture is bubbly), set a timer for exactly 1 minute.
Turn off the heat and add the peanut butter. Mix until well combined. Add the oats and mix well with a wooden spoon until the oats are covered with the chocolate mixture.
Set a timer for 4-5 minutes to let the mixture cool for a bit before scooping out the cookies. Scoop the cookies with an ice cream scooper onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet keeping the cookies 2 inches apart from each other.
Place the cookies in the fridge to set for about 30 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes
Use quick oats for this recipe, and not old-fashioned oats. Quick rolled oats are great as well. We love using quick oats, they will soften way quicker and will give these cookies a classy fudgy and chewy texture to no bake cookies.Set a timer when the mixture is boiling, set a timer for exactly 1 minute, and take it off the heat when the timer is over. Cooking this cookie mixture for too long can make these cookies dry, and if you undercook the cookies will not set properly.Use a cookies scoop to scoop out the cookies, that way you will have even-sized cookies.Don't use margarine for this recipe! Only butter will work. Margarine has a weird taste and can ruin the flavor of these delicious cookies.Use regular processed peanut butter for this recipe. The natural peanut butter will not work for this recipe. We like to use the smooth kind, but you can use the crunchy kind if you like.Have patience! Before scooping out the cookies, let the hot mixture cool for 5 minutes. Waiting for the mixture to cool a bit will make sure that your cookies won't spread too much.Before you start to make this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.Replace the vanilla extract with almond extract for a different flavor variation.Stir the mixture constantly when you cook. Stirring the mixture constantly makes sure that you don't have unnecessary lumps in the mixture.Make these cookies your own by adding your favorite add-ins: chopped nuts, chocolate chips, chopped fruit, shredded coconut. Be creative!