These chewy Oatmeal Scotchies have a butter and brown sugar base and are packed full of butterscotch pieces! Soft, buttery, and chewy, these are classic cookies that are so simple to make! Includes a how-to video below the recipe!
Oatmeal Scotchies
Today’s cookies are similar to oatmeal cookies, but slightly richer, slightly sweeter, and with a butterscotch base flavor. However, I didn’t just take my oatmeal cookie recipe (beloved as it is), toss some butterscotch chips into the cookie dough, and call it a day.
That would have been easy, sure, but today’s recipe required a bit more work than that. Oatmeal scotchies revolve around butterscotch flavor. Sure, the butterscotch chips that we’re adding are the most obvious way to drive that flavor profile home, but there’s more to be done with the cookie dough overall.
Butterscotch, as you may already know, is made by melting together sugar and butter. It’s similar to caramel in this way, but made exclusively with brown sugar instead of granulated (so technically my caramel popcorn might be more appropriately called butterscotch popcorn, but I digress). Knowing that this melted butter and brown sugar combo is key to butterscotch flavor, you might be able to guess how today’s recipe starts off…
Classic Cookie Ingredients 👆🏻
While we’re doing some things differently with these oatmeal scotchies than we’d be doing with a traditional oatmeal cookie recipe, the ingredients largely remain the same (with the exception of the chips, of course). Here’s how we’re using them to make a soft, chewy cookie with a strong butterscotch flavor…
Start with melted butter
I love using melted butter in my cookies because it 1) makes for an easy dough — everything can be stirred together by hand and, 2) enriches every molecule of your cookie dough with buttery flavor and makes for a chewier, more flavorful/buttery cookie. In this oatmeal scotchie recipe it serves yet another purpose. We’ll be combining the melted butter with sugar to give these cookies a butterscotch-flavored base.
A “true” butterscotch would require melting the sugar along with the butter, but keep in mind that you don’t want to melt your sugar here (more on that in the tips section below).
All brown sugar
Since butterscotch is made with brown sugar instead of granulated, that’s what we’re using. I like to use a blend of both light and dark brown sugar, but if you only have light brown sugar on hand then just use that (substitute the dark brown sugar in the recipe for light brown). Using all dark brown sugar could also work, but these already sweet cookies will be even sweeter.
Then, of course, we’ll need to add some butterscotch chips…
Tips for Oatmeal Scotchies
- Make sure your butter has cooled until it’s no longer warm to the touch before adding your sugar. Adding sugar to hot butter can melt your sugar, leaving you with a greasy cookie dough that spreads into thin, messy cookies.
- For best results use all room temperature ingredients.
- To quickly bring eggs to room temperature, place them in a bowl of warm (not hot!) water for about 10-15 minutes.
- Some oatmeal scotchie recipes also use orange extract or orange zest. If desired, reduce the vanilla extract to 1/4 teaspoon and add 1/2 teaspoon orange extract or the zest of one orange to your cookie dough (add with wet ingredients).
- Don’t substitute instant oats for old-fashioned or the cookies will be dry and crumbly.
- For round cookies, roll the dough between your palms briefly to make smooth cookie dough balls before placing on baking sheet. Totally optional and totally for looks, but who doesn’t like a pretty oatmeal scotchie?
- Reserve a few butterscotch chips and gently nestle them into the tops of your cookies within 1-2 minutes of them coming out of the oven. Again, this is just for looks, but it makes them look extra nice!
Enjoy!
More Cookie Recipes to Try:
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Oatmeal Scotchies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled until no longer warm to the touch (226g)
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar firmly packed (150g)
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar¹ firmly packed (150g)
- 2 large eggs room temperature preferred
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour 230g
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon optional
- 3 cups old fashioned rolled oats² 270g
- 1 ½ cups butterscotch chips plus additional for topping if desired (255g)
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Combine butter and sugars in a large bowl and stir until well-combined.
- Add eggs and vanilla extract, stir well.
- In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon (if using).
- Gradually stir dry ingredients into wet until completely incorporated.
- Add oats, stir until combined. Finally, stir in 1 ½ cups butterscotch chips.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and transfer to refrigerator to chill for at least one hour,
- Once dough has chilled, preheat oven to 350F (175C).
- Drop cookie dough by 2 Tablespoon-sized scoops onto parchment paper lined baking sheets³, spacing cookies at least 2” apart.
- Bake cookies in 350F (175C) preheated oven for 12-13 minutes or until edges are beginning to look golden brown. Centers may look slightly underdone when cookies are finished baking, they will cook completely as they cool on the baking sheet (don’t over-bake or the cookies will be dry).
- If desired, press additional butterscotch chips into the surface of the cookies within 2 minutes of them coming out of the oven.
Nici says
OMG. Major heart eyes for this recipe!
Alan says
Hello Sam. I made these tonight and they’re delicious! And perfectly chewy. I followed the recipe exactly and the videos are always helpful. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Sugar Spun Run says
I am so glad that you enjoyed the recipe and that you found the video helpful, Alan! I hope that you enjoy your scotchies! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Emily K says
I made these twice because they were so good that we ate them all in one night!! I love all your recipes and videos! Keep up the great work!
Emily K.
Sugar Spun Run says
Thank you so much, Emily! I am so glad that they were such a hit and that you enjoyed the oatmeal scotchies. Thanks for trying my recipe! 🙂
Sarah says
I made these today and they are melt-in-your-mouth good! I had been eyeing oatmeal scotchie recipes for a few months waiting for the right time to make them and when I saw that you had posted them I decided it was time. I’ve had success with every recipe of yours that I’ve tried! This was no exception. Thanks for posting!
Sugar Spun Run says
Thank you so much for trying my recipe, Sarah! I am so glad that you enjoyed the scotchies. Thanks for being a fan of my recipes. I appreciate it! 🙂
lisa g. says
Thank you for this delish recipe! I’ve read many of these recipes but yours looks the best. Can’t wait to make them.
Do you have a cookbook?