All praise to the best flavor combination in the universe!
I firmly believe chocolate and peanut butter can fix just about anything — at least they fix my problems.
These cookies are embarrassingly easy, taste like heaven, and make the perfect late-night snack.
And the secret ingredient? Cereal.
Yes — cereal. Before you unfriend me, hear me out: not only do these cookies use puffed cereal for texture, they also include actual peanut butter cups blended into the dough. The recipe uses just four main ingredients and yields chilled, sliceable cookie rounds that are different from the classic no-bake oat cookies.
Chilled peanut butter-chocolate slices on a hot night — this could be the new summer treat.
Full disclosure: the dough looks a little unappealing raw. I made and photographed these several times because I didn’t want to serve up a plain brown blob. Even so, the flavor makes up for any aesthetic shortcomings — they’re incredibly simple and unbelievably delicious. If you love peanut butter and chocolate, you’ll wonder where these have been your whole life.
I first found the idea in a Food & Wine recipe and was instantly intrigued. The concept seemed ideal for warm weather: rich, chocolatey, and best served chilled.
The original recipe recommends Corn Pops, but I had peanut butter panda puffs on hand, so I used those for extra peanut butter flavor. The method is simple: pulse most of the cereal into crumbs, add peanut butter cups, peanut butter, and cocoa in a food processor until the mixture is glossy and comes together. Then fold in the remaining cereal so some texture remains.
I used four dark chocolate peanut butter cups and creamy peanut butter. Because my dough looked a bit underwhelming in color, I stirred in a bit of dutch-processed cocoa to deepen the chocolate flavor. I rolled the dough into a log, coated it in chocolate sprinkles, chilled it, and sliced it into rounds once firm.
Texturally, these are almost like a light fudge, thanks to the crushed puffed cereal. They’re rich yet not heavy, and they keep beautifully chilled. This technique opens the door to many variations — imagine vanilla almond butter or chocolate coconut cashew versions.
No-Bake Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
15 cookie slices
1 hr
Ingredients
- 4 to 5 cups puffed corn cereal (I used peanut butter panda puffs)
- 4 large peanut butter cups (dark or regular)
- 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (avoid natural with oil separation)
- 2 tablespoons dutch-process cocoa powder
- Chocolate sprinkles for rolling
Instructions
- Place 3 cups of the cereal in a food processor and pulse until it becomes powdery crumbs. Add the peanut butter cups, peanut butter, and cocoa powder and blend until the mixture is glossy and comes together. Add the remaining cup of cereal and pulse just until the pieces break up — you want some texture.
- Use your hands to shape the dough into an 8 to 10-inch log. Wrap it in plastic and smooth the surface; if it gets too sticky, chill for 15 minutes. Spread sprinkles on parchment and roll the log through them to coat evenly. Wrap the log and chill in the refrigerator or freezer for about 30 minutes, depending on how firm you want it. Slice into rounds before serving.
- Store leftovers in the fridge or freezer. These are best chilled — if left at room temperature for too long they can become slightly soft and lose their preferred texture.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
I appreciate you so much!
Plus lots of crushed-ice coffee. Forever.