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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!
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
Servings: 22 cookies
Calories Per Serving: 372 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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!
This post was originally published on January 24, 2025
These were absolutely delicious! They’re not too sweet and come together so quickly. I baked mine separately in two batches and noticed that the 2nd batch held together much tighter on the baking sheet than the first. Maybe letting the batter sit for 10-15 minutes allows the oats to soften a little and the condensed milk to solidify slightly? The 2nd batch looked much nicer, but both were delicious, obviously.
Hey Karen,
Amazing! So glad to hear this recipe was a hit, I appreciate you making it! Have the best week:) xT
They look amazing and perfect for my celiac people. I only have unsalted cashews. Will this be bland ? Thanks
Thanks so much, Nancy! Nope, that will be just fine for you to use. I hope you love this recipe! xT
I absolutely love these
I’m a Midwest gal and grew up eating these types of cookies/ bars. I followed the directions and they came out perfect. I will be making them again, I have a question. Do I need to make all the batch at once or can I leave them in the refrigerator overnight and then make them again? Will the oatmeal get weird?
Hey Shauna,
Thanks so much! I appreciate you making these cookies and your feedback! Ohhh, I’ve never left the batter overnight…my guess is the oatmeal might soak up most of the sweetened condensed milk. xx
OMG
I used sliced almonds , regular oats
They are like an ALMOND JOY candy bar on steroids !!!
OH YES !!
Hi Mimi,
Fantastic! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment, so glad it turned out nicely for you! Happy Sunday! XxT
I’m not a good baker so love an easy 5 ingredient cookie. They taste so good but it’s not a cookie like it’s crumbly granola. What am I missing, how to you get them to bake like a cookie?!
Hi Laura,
Thanks for trying this recipe! Was there anything you adjusted? You can pack them together with your hands to help form the cookie, but they are not a classic cookie texture. xx
Delicious! I love this unique cookie. Not a cake-like base and you won’t be disappointed.
Thanks so much, Elle! Thrilled to hear you enjoyed these cookies, I appreciate you trying the recipe! xT
Big raves!! So good!
I may have left them in the oven a minute too long ( or I have a hot oven) as they were very hard when totally cooled. However… the amazing flavors and crunch meant no complaints!
Great recipe. Thanks!
Hey Kathleen,
Wonderful!! So glad to hear these cookies turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for giving them a try! xT
Such a simple & yummy cookie recipe,thank you!!!
Thanks so much, Catherine! Love to hear these cookies were a hit! Have a great Sunday! xT
These were amazing! So easy and other than cashews everything is in my pantry. My husband has actually asked me to make them again next week and was surprised that we’re not overly sweet. One is very filling.
Hey Sara,
Fantastic! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment, so glad it turned out nicely for you! Happy Sunday! XxT
I’m not a baker, but only 5 ingredients how can I mess this up! Not a fan of shredded coconut what can I use as a substitute?
Hi Tina,
So sorry, I have not tested this recipe without the shredded coconut. Here are some other recipes you might enjoy:
https://fett-weg.today/almond-butter-cookies/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> https://fett-weg.today/6-ingredient-no-bake-chocolate-chip-cookies/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> https://fett-weg.today/5-ingredient-chocolate-dipped-peanut-butter-cookies/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> I hope this helps! xT
These were really delicious. I didn’t have regular chocolate chips so used discs and it was fine. I made the whole batch then froze half. They freeze well so when you just want a cookie or two… Thanks for this delicious recipe 🙂
Thanks so much, Kimi! Love to hear these cookies were enjoyed, thanks for giving them a try! xT
I made these and they turned out great. My husband found them a bit sweet. We went sledding yesterday and brought some with me and shared them at the clubs cabin. There was 25 sleds!!! The kids loved them!
Aww, that’s so awesome! Thanks so much for making this recipe, Paulette!
Those cookies are DELICIOUS!!!!!! I will definitely make them again!! So easy and the Bob’s Red Mill is really good unsweetened coconut!!
I have the pot roast gyro in the oven!!!! Can’t wait to try it!!
Thank you so much, Patti! I am so glad you enjoyed these cookies, thanks for making them! Happy Friday! xT
My mom always 6-in-1 cookie bars at Christmas. These are a delicious update and I love, love the cashews.
Hey Steph,
Thanks so much! So glad to hear this recipe was a hit, I appreciate you making it! Have a great Friday! xxT
These cookies are so easy to make and are so delicious. I have made them for my friends and family and they love them. Thank you.
Hey Darlene,
Yay!! So glad to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it and your comment! xx
I made these last night and while they tasted good, they did not look like the pictures at all. I ended up with blobs on a sheet pan. I’m not sure how you got them to look like so rounded. I followed the instructions and all. Unfortunately, I think I will be sticking to the 7 layer magic bars that is made in an aluminum pan.
Thanks for trying this recipe, Jen! They are be a bit finicky because of the 5 ingredients, but using your hands to form a ball can help! xx
These are amazing!! Im on my 2nd batch in a couple of days as they are addicting!!! I didnt have the roasted cashews so I just used pecans but OMG…delicious!!! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks so much, Deb!! Love to hear you have been enjoying these cookies, I appreciate you giving them a try! xx