No-Bake Peanut Butter Bird Nests

Celebrate Easter with these festive, simple, and super cute “bird nests.” All you need is five ingredients to make this kid-friendly treat!

Does anyone else think it’s a little odd to celebrate a holiday that encourages kids to take candy from strangers?

No?

I didn’t think so either. I mean, it’s candy, people. Who cares if it comes from some oversized creature that randomly appears out of nowhere?

Even though Easter is a religious holiday (not sure what it stands for in “holy” terms), I’ve always associated it with bunny rabbits, baby chicks, massive egg hunts, and oh yeah, CANDY!!!

Second only to Christmas, Easter is every kid’s favorite holiday. While it’s similar to Halloween in it’s abundance of free candy, nothing can match the adrenaline you get from a good old-fashioned egg hunt. Sure, the candy (and sometimes money) is great, but it always comes down to who collected the most eggs, or who found the treasured golden egg filled with a whopping $20! Hey, that’s equivalent to like $500 in the mind of an 8-year old!

I don’t think anyone’s ever too old for Easter egg hunts. I can say this from experience too since I’m participating in an egg hunt this year. Jealous?

Though you might already be hopped up (Like an Easter Bunny! Get it!?) on solid chocolate bunnies, peeps, and jellybeans, I’m sure you’ll still have room in that sugar-encrusted stomach for these cute no-bake “bird nests.”

Also referred to as “haystacks,” these no-bake treats are very simple to make and require very few ingredients. And they’re tasty at that! When you melt peanut butter with white chocolate chips and stir in those crunchy and toasty chow mein noodles along with salty peanuts, you’ve got the perfect explosion of textures and flavors mixed into one easy treat.  Whether you’re a Julia Child in the kitchen, or a 4-year old in the kitchen, anyone can enjoy making these.

They’re sweet. They’re cute. They’re peanut-buttery. They’re crunchy. They’re simple.

Must I go on?

Most importantly, they’re perfect for Easter!

Make these!

NOW!

The ingredients you’ll need are:

First things first. Pour the 12-oz package of chow mein noodles and one cup of peanuts into a large mixing bowl. Set aside.

Next, pour a 12-oz package of white chocolate chips into a medium saucepan along with one and a quarter cups of peanut butter (smooth or crunchy is fine). Stir until smooth.

Pour the peanut butter mixture over the chow mein noodles and peanuts. Stir until combined.

Now you’re ready to form your birds nests! Before you get to forming, have a couple of cookie sheets lined with wax paper ready. Use two large silverware spoons to scoop out a mound of the mixture and place it on the wax paper. Gently form a little indent in the center for the “nest.” Place three Reese’s Pieces eggs (or any other egg-shaped candy such as peanut M&M’s, mini chocolate eggs, Whoppers Robin eggs, Cadbury mini eggs, jellybeans, etc.) in that indent. Repeat with the rest of the mixture.

How cute!

No-Bake Peanut Butter Bird Nests

Celebrate Easter with these festive, simple, and super cute "bird nests." All you need is five ingredients to make this kid-friendly treat!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Chilling Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 40 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 15 Nests

Ingredients

  

• 1 (12 oz) package chow mein noodles
• 1 cup (150g) peanuts
• 1 (12 oz) package white chocolate chips
• 1 ¼ cup (312g) peanut butter
• 1 (10 oz) package Reese's Pieces eggs (or any other egg-shaped candy)

Instructions

 

• Line two cookie sheets with wax paper.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the chow mein noodles and peanuts. Set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, combine the white chocolate chips and peanut butter. Stir over medium heat until smooth.
• Pour peanut butter mixture over the chow mein noodles and peanuts, and stir until everything is fully coated.
• Using two spoons, scoop out about a 1/4 of a cup of mixture and place on the wax paper-lined cookie sheet. Form an indent in the center of the mound, and immediately place three egg candies in the center. Repeat with the rest of the mixture. Allow them to cool on the waxed paper. To speed up the process, place bird nests in the freezer for ten minutes. Serve and enjoy!

Notes

*This recipe is very customizable! You can substitute the white chocolate chips with butterscotch chips or semi-sweet chocolate chips. Or if you don't happen to have chow mein noodles on hand, use cornflakes instead! The options are endless, so have fun with this recipe!