There it goes again. That nagging, undefined craving comes with no hints of how to satisfy it. You search the pantry to no avail. Staring into the fridge does nothing except let out the cold air. You may do an internet search or ten to see what sparks your taste buds. The final resort is to flip through cookbooks to find that one recipe to end the craving. It’s what happened with me recently and the result was oatmeal peanut butter trail mix cookies.
Savory or sweet? That was the first question I had answer to get on the path of what I was craving. I thought about Shrimp Fra Diavolo for a second or two then crossed it off. The craving started pointing toward sweet so I went from there. I sat on the floor and started going through my stack of recipe booklets. About half way down the pile I ran across THE recipe. The list of ingredients is all it took. Peanut butter, oatmeal, butter, sugar, eggs, and trail mix – oh my! Just the possibilities of different flavors depending on which trail mix caused me to smile. There could be chocolate or bananas or cranberries or pretzel bits or whatever you think would go with oats and peanut butter.
One usual cookie ingredient was missing. Which one? Flour. I couldn’t recall ever making cookies without it. The adventure to see how they turned out was another reason to make them. They are soft right out of the oven. After cooling for a minute on the baking sheet they still need careful handling to transfer to a cooling rack. They become crunchy once fully cooled so be sure not to over-bake.
Enjoy Oatmeal Peanut Butter Trail Mix Cookies any time of the day. I’d say they might even qualify for breakfast. They are full of oats and have the protein power of peanut butter. Plus I’m sure trail mix is another healthy component. And, of course, all things are good in moderation.
What was your most recent craving? Was it specific or did you have to figure out how to satisfy it? It can be tough to pinpoint sometimes. At least you can start with cookies and go from there.

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Trail Mix Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/3 cups creamy peanut butter
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups trail mix
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking or cookie sheets with parchment or non-stick liner.
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Beat sugar, brown sugar, peanut butter, and butter in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
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Add eggs and vanilla. Beat to combine.
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Stir in oats, baking soda, and salt.
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Stir in trail mix.
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Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets.
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Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until light golden brown.
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Cool cookies 1 minute on baking sheet. Carefully transfer cookies to a cooling rack and cool completely.
Recipe Notes
A recipe for Oatmeal Peanut Butter Trail Mix Cookies. These easy to make cookies are great for snacks and are made with oats, peanut butter and your choice of trail mix.
Recipe adapted from Pillsbury Classic Cookbooks #117 Home Baking November 1990
Brianne @ Cupcakes & Kale Chips
Monday 3rd of February 2014
Peanut butter and trail mix are two of my weaknesses. I could put away many, many of these cookies!
Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies
Thursday 30th of January 2014
I love cookies with lots of stuff in them!
Anita at Hungry Couple
Thursday 30th of January 2014
Well, you know you had me at peanut butter. But all the rest of the stuff in there sounds good, too! :)
Tina Muir
Wednesday 29th of January 2014
These sound wonderful! I love your description of the craving! I feel like I was finally able to put it into words and read it on a screen! I am definitely making these if they worked for you!
I have a 6 mile hard run this morning, with 6 miles easy, surely that qualifies for a nice fresh batch of cookies? :)
The Ninja Baker
Wednesday 29th of January 2014
Recent craving is for sticky white rice and umeboshi (pickled plum) and futomaki (which has bits of spinach and scrambled egg.) But I may be developing a hankering for your cookies now that I've read the recipe!