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5 Ingredient Magic Cookies. Made with coconut, roasted cashews, sweet chocolate chips, quick-cooking oats, and a can of sweetened condensed milk. Just mix, scoop, and bake. Simple as that! These cookies take only a few minutes to prep. Then bake these up, and kind of like magic, you’ll have delicious cookies!
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I think any of you from the Midwest are likely familiar with 7-layer bars. Everyone’s mom or grandma had their own recipe. Some looked the same, and others had slight variations. Either way, they always turned out so yummy!
My mom used to make them all the time. Only she didn’t use graham crackers, which tend to be traditional. She’d use a layer of oats, but no graham crackers. We loved them. These are the cookie version, using just five ingredients.
I was so happy with how these turned out. I think they’re even more delicious than 7-layer bars. A bit chewier and saltier with lots and lots of chocolate chips!
I baked up yet another (double) batch of these just last night for my family to take with them this weekend to Aspen. Everyone is staying together in the same house, and I’m sure these will get eaten right up!
I’ve been making these on repeat!
Here are the details
Ingredients
- unsweetened fine shredded coconut – I like the Bob’s Red Mill brand
- roasted cashews – make sure these are dry roast with nothing else other than salt. You don’t want any weird oils on the nuts!
- semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
- quick cooking rolled oats – this is what my mom used growing up, but I imagine regular oats probably work fine too
- sweetened condensed milk – the magic ingredient
Special Tools
You need just a mixing bowl and a cookie sheet for these cookies.
Steps
Step 1: mix the cookie dough
Do this in a mixing bowl. The order the ingredients that go in doesn’t matter. Just make sure the sweet milk evenly coats all the ingredients. It will be sticky.
Step 2: scoop and bake
Take a spoon or use a cookie scoop, and scoop out mounds of the dough. I do nine cookies per baking sheet, but this will vary depending on the size of your cookie sheet.
If any of the mounds look too loose, push them together with your hands. These do not need to be perfect or uniformly shaped, so don’t stress!
Bake the cookies for 12-15 minutes. I like around 12 minutes, then I let the cookies set and finish cooking on the cookie sheet. Your cookies will come out looking a little puffed, but once they settle and set, they’ll look perfect.
Step 3: time to enjoy!
I found my cookies to be absolutely delicious while warm, but they’re also yummy once cooled.
You can also add a sprinkle of flaked sea salt if you like. I’m sure that’s so delicious!
Some Tips!
These are honestly so easy, you can’t mess them up! I will say that if your dough feels too wet and sticky, you can add up to 1/2 cup of additional oats. The more oats you add, the drier the cookie, as the oats soak up the condensed milk more than the other ingredients.
And then, lastly, if you want your chocolate chips to look more like mine, add a few directly on top of each cookie just after you pull the cookies out of the oven. The chips will get melty on top! YUM!
Looking for other winter dessert recipes? Here are my favorites:
Chocolate Dipped Sesame Oatmeal Bars
5 Ingredient Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies
Healthier Homemade Nutter Butter Cookies
Healthy…ish Homemade Samoas Cookies
Tahini Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Salted Tahini Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Lastly, if you make these 5 Ingredient Magic Cookies be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
5 Ingredient Magic Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1 1/2 cups roasted cashews
- 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup quick cooking rolled oats
- 1 can (14 ounce) sweetened condensed milk
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.2. Mix all ingredients in a bowl until combined. Scoop out mounds of dough (3 tablespoons or a scant 1/4 cup) onto the prepared baking sheet. Use your hands to push any loose dough back into dough mounds.3. Bake 12-15 minutes, until golden on top. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes to fully set. Enjoy warm or room temperature! Delish either way!
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
I love coconut, these are amazing. I am taking them to a gathering this evening. Hopefully everyone gets to try one! They are kind of messy at first but they cool and stiffen up. Worth a try if you have the ingredients ❤️
Thanks so much, Sara! I appreciate you making these cookies and your feedback! Glad to hear they turned out well for you! xT
Fabulous! I used coconut sweetened condensed milk and a pinch of sea salt on top – delicious! The coconut condensed milk version doesn’t spread while baking so I just smooshed them down before popping in the oven.
Hey Lorraine,
Thanks so much for making this recipe! Love to hear it turned out well for you:) Have the best week! xxT
I adore your recipes, Tieghan, but this was a bit of a mess for me. After removing the cookies from the oven, mounds were still piled up, but the cookies were in a bath of sweetened condensed milk. Using a spatula to get them off the parchment was like scooping up raw cookie dough with sticky, tough dried up milk everywhere. With the remaining mix, I ended up spreading it in a Pyrex pan like a 7-layer bar and baking it that way. They were so delicious however and I’d like to add that Maldon salt on top as you suggested is a must. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Danielle,
Thanks so much for trying these cookies and sharing your feedback! They can be a bit messy, due to the limited ingredients. Let me know if you make them again, the bar option is great! xx
What do you think about using coconut milk and cream to substitute for the milk and make these vegan?
Hi Jack,
So sorry, I am not sure that would work for you. I think your best option would be to try sweetened condensed coconut milk. Let me know if you give this recipe a try! xx
Is there a way to make these dairy free (I have a dairy allergy) and still stick together? I tried using some peanut butter and coconut milk as the binder for these and it didn’t work out as well as I hoped 😅
Hi Janie! A friend of mine is vegan and plans to make these with a coconut condensed milk…. I didn’t even know there was such a thing but maybe you can find it! Michelle
Hi Janie,
So sorry, I have not tested this recipe using dairy free ingredients. The sweetened condensed milk is really key here. You could try using a sweetened condensed coconut milk to see how that works! xx
These look amazing. Making them tonight. Love the easy delicious treats for my kids
Thanks so much, Brad! I hope you love these cookies, let me know how they turn out! xx
I made these this morning, and they were so easy and they turned out so good!! Easy cleanup too, since it’s just one bowl.
Hey Leslie,
Awesome! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe, so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have a nice Sunday:) xx
These are truly amazing. So easy and absolutely delicious. As good warm as cold. I live somewhere where raw cashews aren’t super easy to access; I would love to know if anyone has tried these with a different nut! Michelle
Thanks so much, Michelle:) So glad to hear these cookies turned out nicely for you! Have a great Sunday! xT
Can I use regular rolled oats or do they need to be quick?
Hi Colleen,
The regular rolled oats should be just fine for you to use:) I hope you love these cookies! xT
Absolutely delicious and so easy to make. Thank you very much, Tieghan.
Hey Birgit,
Awesome! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe, so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have a nice Sunday:) xx
So… actually 6 ingredients then, counting the rosebuds?
Why were there any rosebuds at all?? You shouldn’t put decorations in your ingredients in the first place, and then you don’t have to worry about any of them (let alone several of them) getting into your cookies.
Given the facts tht ingredients don’t just hop into a bowl, we are safe. Cooking is an art and the rosebuds are beautiful styling.
Except clearly they did hop into her bowl….
Would it work to sub cashews with almonds?
Hi Lesleigh,
I have never tested this with almonds, they would work probably work, just might be a bit crunchier than the cashews. I hope this helps! xx
Do you keep the cashews whole?
Hi Olivia,
Yes, I keep the cashews whole. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Any substitute for the cashews? Almonds perhaps?
Hi Dina,
Yes, another nut that you enjoy will work. I would personally go with something a bit softer like pecans. I hope this helps! xx
Is there a substitute for coconut? I really don’t like coconut
Hi Laura,
So sorry, I found the best results using shredded coconut with this recipe. Here are some others that you might enjoy:
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/peanut-butter-protein-chocolate-chip-cookies/
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/5-ingredient-chocolate-dipped-peanut-butter-cookies/
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/homemade-samoas-cookies/
I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT