Peanut Butter and Oatmeal No Bakes

Peanut Butter and Oatmeal No Bakes

I like to think of these cookies as "Cafeteria Cookies" because they were a staple at our school.  It always surprises me when people say have never had these (or seen these) before.  They are simple, delicious, and gluten-free (if you use GF oats).  I added M&M's, because I seem to be doing that to recipes lately - and I never said these were healthy.

Peanut Butter and Oatmeal No Bake Cookies

2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup milk (any type is fine)
3 cups old fashioned oatmeal
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup M&M's

In a saucepan, bring sugar, butter, and milk to a boil.  Allow to boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat and stir in vanilla, peanut butter and oatmeal.  Carefully stir in M&M's, if using. Drop by spoonfuls on to waxed paper. Allow to cool - they will harden as they cool.  

*another recipe called for 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup peanut butter (total of 1 cup for pb and butter), so you can probably do either. 

Wondering why the M&M's are sorted?  I had a bag of Christmas M&M's and I didn't want it to be obvious that they were from Christmas, so I sorted them and planned to use them in separate recipes.