Equipment Needed
- Medium-sized saucepan
- Heatproof spatula or wooden spoon
- Large mixing bowl
- Measuring cups
- Baking sheets
- Parchment paper or wax paper
- Tablespoon or small cookie scoop (optional, but helpful)
Step-by-Step Instructions
First, you’ll want to line your baking sheets with parchment or wax paper. Do this now, because your mixture will set up quickly once it’s combined, and you won’t have time to fuss with paper later. I’ve learned this in a panic, spooning sticky clusters directly onto a bare pan—trust me, the cleanup is no fun. Next, grab your medium saucepan. You’ll combine the chocolate chips and peanut butter here. I start on the lowest heat possible, stirring almost constantly. The goal is to melt them together gently into a smooth, glossy, homogenous mixture. You must be patient. If the heat is too high, the chocolate can seize or the peanut butter can scorch, leaving you with a grainy texture.
Once the chocolate and peanut butter are fully melted and beautifully combined into a silky pool, take the saucepan off the heat immediately. This is important because the residual heat will continue to cook the mixture. Now, pour this warm, fragrant blend into your large mixing bowl. To this, you’ll add all your crunchy components: the toffee bits, chopped cashews, and chow mein noodles. I love this part—the sound of everything hitting the bowl is a promise of the texture to come. Now, use your spatula to fold everything together. Be gentle but thorough. You want every single noodle and nut to be completely coated in that chocolate-peanut butter glue.
Now, for the forming. Using two spoons or a small cookie scoop, drop tablespoon-sized mounds of the mixture onto your prepared baking sheets. Don’t press them down or try to shape them too much. The beauty of a haystack is in its rustic, craggy, haphazard look. Let them be little piles with lots of nooks and crannies. I try to work relatively quickly here, as the mixture becomes firmer and more difficult to scoop as it cools. If it does start to stiffen in the bowl, you can gently place the bowl over a pot of warm water for 30 seconds to loosen it back up.(See the next page below to continue…)