No-Bake Recipes for Kids to Try in the Kitchen

When I was a child, my brother and I gave a 4-H food demonstration at the mall on how to make quick and easy cookies. My mom brags about how her little tots were the hit of the event. And people also loved sampling the no-bake cookies, as I recall.

My children also love to make no-bake, quick-and-easy cookies. I like to make a special sugar-free version as well as traditional versions.

Living in Florida, I love trying out no-bake cookie recipes because it doesn't heat up the kitchen in the hot summer. Also, it's much safer for my little ones to help. Some recipes do involve melting butter or other ingredients on the stove so I always supervise my kids when they are in the kitchen.

Quick-and-easy cookies

To make the no-bake, quick-and-easy cookies, we mix ½ cup milk with ½ cup melted butter, 1 cup white sugar and 1 cup brown sugar. I bring it to a boil, continuing to boil for 2 minutes. After removing from the heat, my children add 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder, ¼ cup peanut butter and 3 cups of quick oats. Sometimes I use macadamia nut butter or almond butter instead of peanut butter. For myself, I prefer to use natural sweeteners instead of sugar. We drop the batter, in heaping teaspoons, onto wax paper until they cool.

Rice cereal cookies

Making rice cereal cookies is fun because they are so versatile. My children love to add in chocolate chips and other candies. To make the base, we melt ¼ cup of butter and add either marshmallow cream or marshmallows over medium-low heat. I like to use a non-stick pan. My children then stir in 5 cups of rice cereal. Sometimes we add peanut butter, decreasing the amount of butter. It's fun to roll the "batter" out and use cookie cutters to make different shapes.

Crazy coconut ball cookies

To make crazy coconut balls, we heat up 1 cup of white chocolate pieces. After removing from the heat, we stir in ¼ cup corn syrup and ½ tsp. of coconut extract. In a bowl, we mix together 3 cups of vanilla wafer crumbs and 1 cup of finely ground almonds. We pour the white chocolate into the crumbs and blend. The kids shape the cookies into 1 inch balls, pressing a cherry into the center of each one. Then, we roll in finely shredded coconut.

No-bake cookie monster cookies

To make the no-bake cookie monster cookies, we melt 1 ½ cup of butter and mix with 6 cups of graham cracker crumbs. We then melt 1 cup of chocolate chips. We stir the chocolate and cracker mix together. We shape into 1 inch balls. We place different kinds of candy in bowls. Everyone customizes their monster cookies, coating their cookie balls in different candy pieces, coconut, finely chopped nuts, raisins, and small pieces of pretzels.

Peanut butter fudge ball surprise

My children love to make peanut butter fudge ball surprise cookies for company. We mix 1 ½ cup peanut butter with 1 cup butter and 1 tsp. vanilla extract. My children roll them into 1 inch balls, adding little hidden pieces of candy in the middle. Then, we place them on waxed paper. We chill them for 1 hour. I melt chocolate chips on the stove. We dip the balls in the chocolate, using a toothpick to hold each one. Then, we return to the waxed paper and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Content by Laura Cone.