Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

     Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies...or should I just call them "Omg Cookies" because Omg they are so good!! I came across this recipe when my husband was on his deployment to Afghanistan.  I tried to make him a care package at least once a month.

Going out buying things, decorating his boxes, and sending baked goodies made the deployment a lot easier on me because I was so excited to make them and hopefully send a smile to his face.  I would send his favorite candy bars, toys for him to play with, body care products, cute laminated pictures of us, and other things.  He wasn't big on sweets or even cookies, but I loved to bake for him anyways.

I have a food sealer so I would bake him cookies, seal them up, and send them over seas where they hopefully still tasted chewy and delicious when he got them a month or more later.  While he was gone I joined a military spouse support website where military girlfriends and wives would share stories, advice, recipes, ideas, etc.  I came upon this recipe and instantly knew I had to try them!

This cookie had everything good from other cookies all in one!  When I talked to Levi about the cookies he recieved he said my cookies had fallen apart because I vaccuum sealed them :( but the crumbs were devoured anyways by all of the guys! YAY!  I was happy I could put a smile on their face when they were so far away from home.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies:


1 1/2 c brown sugar
1 c butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 c oats
1 1/2 c flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 c chocolate chips
1/2 - 3/4 c peanut butter (depending on how much pb you like)

-  Heat oven to 350

-  Stir together brown sugar and butter until blended.  Stir in vanilla and egg until light and fluffy.

-  In another bowl mix oats, flour, baking soda, and salt.  Mix into the brown sugar mixture.

-  Stir in chocolate chips and peanut butter.

-  Drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet and bake 9 - 11 minutes.

- Cookies will harden up after cooled so do not wait until they are hard in the oven to take out.

OPTION:  You can add nuts or even leave out the peanut butter if you are allergic.

Gluten Free Triple Chocolate Layer Pie

Before my husband and I lived together, he hated sweets.  He hated them so much he would not even try them!  I couldn't believe I married someone that didn't even like cookies!  Here I am a total chocoholic, sweet tooth, crazed cupcake fanatic!

However, I won him over to the dark side with this pie recipe I found on the Kraft site!  WOOHOO go me!  Not only is this a very very easy dessert to make, but it's loaded with cookies, chocolate, AND whip cream!  What can get any more sweeter than that?  

After making this pie, my husband was making me make it for everyone in the family.  We lived in Jacksonville so family would often drive to visit for the weekend.  His father is on a gluten free diet so before they would come down I would go crazy trying to think of food recipes without gluten.  It seemed that everything I thought of had some little part of gluten..even this pie. 

I had an idea! What about gluten free chocolate cookies instead of Oreos?  Yes, that's right...they do have them!  The pie was a huge hit for the in laws!  One of their favorites, and nothing is better than having your in laws rave about your food :)

Triple Chocolate Layer Pie:

1 package Glutino Vanilla Creme Cookies

1/4 c melted butter

2 small packages Jello chocolate instant pudding

2 c cold milk

1- 8 oz tub of cool whip divided in half

-  Finely crush 24 oreos until they are a create a fine powder texture like the above picture.


-  Mix with butter until all of crushed cookies are covered and then press them onto the bottom of a pie
    plate.

-  In a large bowl, beat pudding and milk with a whisk for about 2 minutes or until the pudding is very thick.

-  Spoon half of the pudding onto the pie crust and even out with a spoon.

-  Mix half of the cool whip with the rest of the pudding and it will create a mousse.  Spoon this over the
    pudding layer in the pie plate and even out with a spoon.

-  Top off the pie with the remaining cool whip and top with any remaining cookies.

-  Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.




OPTION:  1)  If you do not want gluten free, use Oreo's.
                 2)  If you do not want a whole pie you can use 1 c milk and 1 pk pudding.  Layer into glasses to 
                      make a trifle and just top with cookies instead of making a crust.