by Pat Maley
2/7/2019

When I was a Girl Scout  I proudly wore my sash that displayed my badges. I was enamored with the variety of activities.  Each half dollar sized disc repesented a class, field trip, or other learning experience.  One of my favorites was the cooking badge with a mixing bowl and spoon embroidered on a green background. Back in the day much of the learning came from the mothers who volunteered their time and expertise. My mother usually volunteered to drive, Mrs. Lubke was an assistant troop leader, and Mrs. Stone volunteered to teach cooking lessons. We had a few lessons but this is the only one I remember. I think that the "no bake" stuck in my cerebral recipe file for years filed under WEIRD NAMES.  Strangely enough we now call these MRS. JOHNSON'S cookies. Mrs. Johnson was the cookie baker for the Albert S Woodward School in Southboro where my husband attended. He doesn't forget a good cookie.

I always seem to grab this recipe because it is quick and I have the ingredients on hand. They are not baked but they are cooked on the stove. They are great to make in the summer when you don't want to turn on the oven or if time is an issue. My recollection included coconut in the list of ingredients but this one does not so feel free to add it .

INGREDIENTS

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons cocoa

1/2 cup butter

3 cups QUICK oats

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla 

Bring sugar, milk, salt, cocoa and butter to a boil over medium heat. Remove from stove. Mix in the remaining ingredients. Drop by scoopful onto waxed paper. Allow to cool. Store in airtight container.

*** I use scoops, of the ice cream variety, to portion my baked goods. The advantage is consistency in size, shape and cooking time. They are available at Pampered Chef or any good restaurant supply store. I would say scoops in various sizes are one of the essentials in my baking drawer.  Have fun and in the words of my favorite assistant troop leader, Mrs Lubke...."Who brought the cookies?"