No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (2024)

by Debbie Chapman

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These no-bake chocolate haystacks cookies are so easy to make and they taste soooo good! You can make Haystacks in less than 15 minutes in one pot on the stove. They’re packed with oats and coconut so as far as sweet snacks go, they’re on the healthier side.

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.

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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.

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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!

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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!

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Just look at all that oatmeal, coconut and chocolatey goodness in there! Soooo good!

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Print Recipe

5 from 3 votes

No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies

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!

Servings: 14 to 18

Ingredients

  • 1 cup Sugar
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
  • 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder heaping
  • 1 1/2 cups oats
  • 1/2 cup shredded coconut sweetened or unsweetened

Instructions

  • Add the sugar, milk and butter to a medium pot and bring to a rolling boil over medium heat.

  • Add cocoa and and let boil for 1.5 to 2 minutes (don't over boil it).

  • Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.

  • Add the oats and coconut and stir until completely combined.

  • Spoon onto a parchment lined baking sheet.

  • Allow to cool at room temperature for about half an hour or until firm.

  • Enjoy!

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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 bookLow-Mess Crafts for Kidsis 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!

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Where to buy:

You can purchase Low-Mess Crafts for Kids from Amazon, or wherever books are sold:

Amazon |Barnes and Noble | Books- A- Million | Indiebound |Indigo |Amazon Canada

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About Debbie Chapman, the Author of this Post

I'm Debbie Chapman, founder of One Little Project and author of the book Low-Mess Crafts for Kids. I love creating fun and easy crafts and cooking up delicious recipes for my husband and 3 kids.

More by Debbie Chapman

Filed Under: Cooking with Kids, Desserts and Sweets, Recipes, Snacks and DrinksTagged With: cocoa, coconut, Cookies, Kids food, no-bake, oats

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Reader Interactions

Let us know what you think:

  1. No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (13)Debby says

    No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (14)
    The fiddle diddles were just like the ones we made in school. Super easy and soooo delicious.

    Reply

  2. No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (15)Tess says

    No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (16)
    Just made these. Reminded me of being a kid. Sooo good. Thank you.

    Reply

    • No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (17)One Little Project says

      I love food that’s nostalgic! So glad you enjoyed them, Tess. 🙂

      Reply

  3. No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (18)Jude says

    No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (19)
    This is one recipe for the grandkids and myself to definitely make very soon thankyou for the recipe

    Reply

    • No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (20)One Little Project says

      Sounds like a lot of fun, Jude. Hope you enjoy! 🙂

      Reply

  4. No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (21)Erica says

    I think I overboiled mine the first time I tried, because they became a crumbly mess (not the recipies fault). In the end, I added 1/2 a cup less of oats and a bit more butter, and they turned out great! in the end we put them in muffin tins to give them a basket look and put mini eggs on top, they were a hit for Easter! thanks for the recipie.

    Reply

    • No-Bake Chocolate Haystacks Cookies - One Little Project (22)One Little Project says

      Glad they ended up working out, Erica. The basket idea sounds adorable!!

      Reply

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