Pinterest has become sort of like a trend timeline for my recipes here on this blog. For instance, during the Fall, when it’s peak pumpkin season and everyone is craving comfort food, I see a lot of pins and likes for Smoked Gouda and Pumpkin Mac and Cheese. This past spring, when a lot of people were trying to shed winter weight gain, it was all about this No Carb Roasted Garlic Mashed Cauliflower.
During the last couple of months, I’ve seen an uptake on repins and likes for my No Bake Desserts, particularly for these Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles. And the trend makes sense: in this hot and humid weather, no one wants to turn on the oven to bake.
Which is why I came up with another easy, no bake recipe. It involves oatmeal, brown rice crispies, almond butter, and a little bit of milk. It’s up to you if you want to consider it breakfast.
It also involves a lot of Nutella. But isn’t Nutella marketing itself as a breakfast spread, anyway? And really, when I was in Italy, Nutella was always part of the breakfast spread. Who am I to argue against the Italians?
To add even more to the stellar list of ingredients, I included a generous pour of Frangelico. Fragrant and sweet, the hazelnut liqueur flavor intensifies after a few hours of chilling the cookies in the fridge (or better yet, the freezer). So on second thought, it’s probably not the best idea to eat these boozy cookies for breakfast. Unless, of course, you have the willpower to stick to just one cookie. The alcohol content is minimal, anyway, so you can get away with eating a liqueur-enhanced treat to start your day.
Otherwise, I suggest saving it for dessert. Maybe serve it with a sweet red wine, to complement the salty burst of flavor from the espresso salt. Or maybe bring it to a barbecue, and watch friends enjoy it with beers. Or maybe, for your friend’s birthday, buy a giant mason jar, fill it with the cookies, wrap a big bright ribbon around it, and voila – a gift made with love, no sweaty baking time required.
No Bake Salted Nutella Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup almond butter
2 cups Nutella
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 1/2 cups brown rice crisps
1/2 cup Frangelico
1 tablespoon espresso salt (or any coarse salt)
Directions
- In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the milk, cocoa powder, sugar, and vanilla extract, and whisk together until combined.
- Stir in the dark chocolate chips and stir until melted. Add almond butter and Nutella, and stir until smooth. Turn off heat, pour in Frangelico, and mix until well incorporated. Fold in oatmeal and brown rice crisps.
- Using a standard cookie scoop (or a heaping 1 tablespoon of dough), portion out the dough and place evenly on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle liberally with espresso salt or coarse salt. Refrigerate or chill in the freezer for at least an hour before serving.
Recipe
The salt really brings the flavors together, and if you can find espresso salt (I buy mine at a spice and specialty store), it adds another flavor dimension to these cookies. I’m a big fan of salted desserts, and if you’re looking for more salty-sweet treats, try one of these:
Salted Peanut Butter Fudge Squares
Salted Dulce De Leche Macaroons
And my latest salty-sweet dessert: Salted Nutella Oatmeal Cookies
Do you have a favorite salted dessert? What about a no bake treat?
Welcome, I’m Bianca Garcia. I love food, yoga, running, sangria, and my job. I'm an advertising professional, social media enthusiast, blogger, freelance writer, and obsessive list-maker. I think about dessert constantly. 
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i’m all over anything salted + chocolate- great treat for the summer! i, unfortunately, have been doing plenty of baking this summer… time to rethink and make some no-bake treats!
It’s so funny what recipes get pinned during what months! SO many people have been pinning my cold tuna pasta salad recipe…which totally makes sense in this heat wave. And I can totally understand why people want your no-bake recipes. This one looks amazing!!!
These look divine and SO delicious, Bianca! I love that they’re no-bake, too. Any excuse to not have to turn my oven on is a good one, hehe! Thanks for sharing.
looks amazing.. i love salted anything… the sweet and salty flavor is insane.
Love no-bake!
Since I am not a huge sweets fan, I always love when there’s salt is involved. These look fun and easy!
There is so much to like about this dish — no-bake, NUTELLA, espresso salt, Frangelico… Love!
No Bake is KEY right now… it’s so hot outside! These are probably the best no-bake cookies I have ever seen. Need to pick up some oats so I can try them…
I just tried Frangelico for the first time a few months ago, holy delicious :) These cookies look great, a new twist on an old favorite.
I say nutella (and consequently, these cookies) are almost certainly breakfast foods! So.Good.
Ooo, I love the almond butter. You’re doing it right. I baked through the heat wave. That was not my wisest decision ;).
Bianca Garcia replied July 24th, 2013 at 9:44 am
Haha sometimes baked goods make me do crazy things, too ;)
these are so similar to the delicious cookies i know as preacher cookies…but they’re even better. nice creation!
Bianca Garcia replied July 25th, 2013 at 11:11 am
I love the name Preacher Cookies!