It’s a good old 1980’s recipe, straight from the recipe book that my elementary school put together in 1988 with family favourite recipes. It just works. And it’s super simple. And most importantly the kids love them! Did you ever have these Haystacks when you were a kid? They were a staple in my house. It was one of the first recipes my sister and I learned to “bake” when we were little and we used to be so proud of ourselves! We’d stand at the kitchen counter – driving our mom crazy with all the unnecessary dishes and mess we’d make – and we’d whip up batch after batch of these awesome cookies.
My kids aren’t old enough to bake unattended at the stove yet (we have a gas stove, which makes me sooooo scared!), but I’ve made Haystacks for my kids plenty of times and they always go over really well. They make a great after school snack because they’re surprisingly filling. And check it out! It’s our first One Little Project food video that we made in house. Woo hoo! Other than a minor oh-shoot-we’re-burning-the-butter-on-the-brand-new-hot-plate moment (because come on, who is actually experienced with cooking things on a hot plate?!), I thought it turned out really well!
Check out our video for how to make No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks:
If you’re looking for other easy and delicious no-bake snack recipes, check out our recipes for: Peanut Butter Cheerios Bites Chocolate Peanut Butter Energy Bites Apple Slice Cookies
No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies
The full printable recipe is at the end of this post, but here’s what you’ll need:
Sugar Milk Butter Vanilla Cocoa Oats Shredded Coconut
I used sweetened coconut, but if you prefer less sugar in your treats you can definitely use unsweetened coconut. We don’t go through a lot of coconut or oats these days, so I went to the bulk store and bought pretty much the exact measured out amounts of the ingredients I needed so I wouldn’t have any waste. Also, I used quick oats (or maybe they were 1 minute oats? Either will work…) when I made this particular batch. Since you don’t need to bake them, you could even use regular oats if that’s what you have at home.
I love that all you need is a pot on the stove top. It makes it so easy! You don’t even need high heat. A good old medium heat setting should work perfectly. You can scroll to the recipe at the bottom, but basically, you boil together the milk, sugar and butter, then stir in the rest of the ingredients. Easy peasy!
When all the ingredients are completely mixed and coated in chocolate, you can spoon them out onto a parchment lined baking sheet – And you’re done! They take about half an hour to set to the point that they’re firm enough to pick up with your fingers. But I’ve definitely been known to sneak a taste when they’re still warm. Yum!
Just look at all that oatmeal, coconut and chocolatey goodness in there! Soooo good!
These no-bake chocolate haystacks cookies are SO EASY to make and they taste so good! This is such an awesome kid friendly snack recipe to make with the kids! Loaded with oats and coconut they make an excellent after school snack. They’re hearty, reasonably healthy and kids love them! Plus they’re super fast to put together! Don’t you love no-bake treats!? Check out a few of our other no-bake snack recipes below: Peanut Butter Cereal Bites:
Chocolate Peanut Butter Energy Bites:
Apple Slice Cookies:
Our book Low-Mess Crafts for Kids is loaded with 72 fun and simple craft ideas for kids! The projects are fun, easy and most importantly low-mess, so the clean up is simple!
Where to buy:
