Birds Nest Cookies
Posted Mar 04, 2026
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These no-bake birds nest cookies are an easy sweet treat perfect for Easter. Chocolate, peanut butter, oats, pretzels and mini eggs make cookies as delicious as they are cute.
I love making cute Easter treats – like these no-bake birds nest cookies. I took my favorite no-bake cookies, added some pretzels (for more realistic bird nest vibes) and mini eggs to make the cutest, most delicious Easter cookies ever.
They’re made in 10 minutes with 10 simple ingredients including butter, cocoa powder, peanut butter, oats and your favorite mini eggs. Plus, these bird nest cookies are fun to make with kids. Mine love forming them into nests and adding the eggs.
Birds Nest Cookies: Ingredients & Substitutions
- Salted butter. unsalted butter and coconut oil both work well.
- Whole milk. half and half or heavy cream are good substitutes.
- Granulated sugar. organic cane sugar is great.
- Creamy peanut butter. I suggest a peanut butter that is solid at room temperature for the best results.
- Quick cooking oats. If you only have old fashioned – pulse them in the blender or food processor 1-2 times before using them in the recipe to give them the texture of quick-cooking oats.
- Pretzel sticks. I added these for a salty crunch, and because I think they make the cookies look more like nests.
- Mini eggs. I love the Lindt mini eggs, but the traditional Cadbury mini eggs work great too.
How to Make Birds Nest Cookies
Let’s walk through this recipe together step-by-step, and don’t forget to watch the video.
Begin by by combining the sugar and cocoa powder in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking often until the butter is melted. Then, bring the mixture to a boil and boil for 1 minute.
After 1 minute, turn off the heat and add the peanut butter, vanilla, and sea salt and whisk until the mixture is smooth.
Then, add the quick cooking oats and pretzel pieces and stir to combine.
Remove the pan from the heat and let the bird nest cookie mixture cool until slightly thickened (about 5 minutes), stirring to release heat.
While it’s cooling, line a large baking sheet with a silicone baking mat (or wax or parchment paper).
Use a 1 Tablespoon measuring spoon or cookie scoop to scoop cookies onto prepared baking sheet.
Then, use the back of the scoop to carefully and gently make a well in the cookies.
Let the birds nest cookies sit at room temperature for 30-60 minutes, or until hardened.
Once the cookies are cooled, add about 3 eggs to each.
Serve
Serve these birds nest cookies room temperature with your favorite Easter treats like mini egg cookies, carrot cake cupcakes, and mini egg brownies.
Store/Freeze
Store bird nest cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, in the refrigerator for up to 1 week and in the freezer for up to 1 month. If freezing, I suggest waiting to add the eggs until you are ready to thaw and serve the cookies.
Birds Nest Cookies Recipe FAQS
Yes! These bird nest cookies are no-bake and so easy to make.
If you will be using old-fashioned oats, you need to pulse them in a blender or food processor 1-2 times so they have the texture of quick oats.
Small, thin pretzel sticks broken into smaller pieces are the best.
No, they don’t need to be refrigerated but popping them into the fridge or freezer does speed up the process.
Scoop the cookie mixture onto a baking sheet, then use the back of a measuring spoon or cookie scoop to make the “well” in the nest.
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Birds Nest Cookies
Video
Ingredients
- ½ cup salted butter
- ½ cup whole milk
- 1 ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- ¾ cup creamy peanut butter
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups quick cooking oats
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup pretzel sticks (broken into smaller pieces)
- 75 mini eggs (3 for each cookie)
Instructions
- Line a large baking sheet with a silicone baking mat (or wax paper or parchment paper). Set aside.
- Add butter, milk, sugar and cocoa powder to a medium saucepan.
- Cook the mixture over medium heat, whisking often until the butter is melted.
- Bring mixture to a boil.
- Boil mixture for 1 minute (set a timer).
- After 1 minute, turn off the heat.
- Add the peanut butter, vanilla and sea salt and whisk until the peanut butter is melted.
- Add quick-cooking oatmeal and pretzels and stir to combine.
- Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool until slightly thickened (about 5 minutes), stirring to release heat.
- Use a cookie scoop or 1 Tablespoon measuring spoon to scoop cookies onto prepared baking sheet.
- Then, use the back of the scoop to carefully and gently make a well in the cookies.
- Let sit at room temperature for 30-60 minutes, or until hardened (or put them in the refrigerator or freezer to set faster).
- Add about 3 mini eggs to the top of each cookie once they are completely cooled.
Notes
- Salted butter. unsalted butter and coconut oil both work well.
- Whole milk. half and half or heavy cream are good substitutes.
- Granulated sugar. organic cane sugar is great.
- Creamy peanut butter. I suggest a peanut butter that is solid at room temperature for the best results.
- Quick cooking oats. If you only have old fashioned – pulse them in the blender or food processor 1-2 times before using them in the recipe to give them the texture of quick-cooking oats.
- Pretzel sticks. I added these for a salty crunch, and because I think they make the cookies look more like nests.
- Mini eggs. I love the Lindt mini eggs, but the traditional Cadbury mini eggs work great too.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
