No Bake Buffalo Chips

These are the classic no-bake cookies every American childhood remembers, sometimes called Buffalo Chips, sometimes Preacher Cookies, sometimes Boiled Cookies. Sugar, cocoa, milk, and butter boiled briefly, then peanut butter and oats stirred in until they hold a shape. Drop spoonfuls onto wax paper and walk away.

The boil is the most critical part. Bring the cocoa-milk-sugar mixture to a steady, rolling boil before turning down. Underboil and the cookies stay sticky and never set. Overboil and they turn dry and crumbly. The sweet spot is a confident boil for about a minute.

The order of additions matters. Butter melts first, then peanut butter goes in. Adding peanut butter to a too-hot pan causes the oils to separate and your cookies turn greasy. Let the butter melt, then drop the heat before stirring in the peanut butter.

Old-fashioned oats, not quick or instant, give the cookies their proper texture. Quick oats turn mushy and dissolve. Instant oats are too fine and lose all character.

Pro Tips

• Have wax paper laid out and a tablespoon ready before you turn off the heat. The mixture sets fast once the oats hydrate.
• Drop cookies in even-sized mounds. Uneven sizes set unevenly, with some too soft and others too firm.
• The full hour rest on wax paper isn’t optional. Rushed cookies stick and fall apart.
• Store airtight at room temperature for a week, or freeze in a container for up to 3 months.

Variations

• Use natural peanut butter for a less sweet, nuttier cookie.
• Add ½ cup of shredded coconut or chopped walnuts for texture.
• Swap peanut butter for almond butter or sunflower seed butter.