There is something comforting in the foods we ate as children. They are usually simple and easy to make, short on ingredients, and big on flavor without being spicy or complex or fancy. And, of course, they always have wonderful memories associated with them!
Here are some of our favorite childhood treats--peanut butter balls from me, and no bake cookies from my husband. The peanut butter balls are delicious and relatively wholesome, and the no bake cookies taste like fudge. Is it any wonder we liked these when we were growing up?!
Peanut Butter Balls
I made peanut butter fudge last Christmas. It was a lot of work and turned out to be a disappointment. These tasty treats, on the other hand, come together in about 5 minutes and taste amazing! Don't tell the kids, but I'm the one who polished off the last four or five!
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup nonfat powdered milk
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
Combine all ingredients in a bowl; mix well. Using your hands, roll the dough into balls about the size of large gumballs. Place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper, and refrigerate until set.
No Bake Cookies
When my husband wanted to make these for me for the first time, I was skeptical. I didn't think they could be that good. But they are that good! We routinely eat the entire batch in one sitting!
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 stick butter
3 Tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup shredded coconut
3 cups rolled oats
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)
1 cup mini marshmallows
Combine sugar, milk, butter, cocoa powder, and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, add remaining ingredients, and stir well. Drop by spoonful onto waxed paper to cool.
"No-Bake Cookies" is a much nicer way to call those yummies.
ReplyDeleteGreg's family calls them "Monkey Poop Cookies". It's hard to enjoy them with that name.
I'm striking Monkey Poop Cookies from my memory! I used to make no-bake bars which were similar and loved them! I'm definitely going to try the peanut butter balls. Peanut butter is huge in our house, and they do seem rather "healthy"!
ReplyDeleteOne of the first cookies I learned to make on my own were the no bake cookies. I could feed the entire neighborhood with them. Unfortunately we also had a name for them that involved poop.
ReplyDeleteMimi
those cookies sound so easy and good!!! i've never done no-bake cookies yet but these sound irresistible
ReplyDeleteI could so gobble up those peanut butter balls right now.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE those peanut butter balls. Sometimes I stir about 1/4 cup of mini chocolate chips in.
ReplyDeleteThose peanut butter balls are almost exactly like a recipe for edible peanut butter playdough my Mother used to make, just minus the oats!
ReplyDelete