Butterscotch Bliss in Every Bite
Have you ever made scotcharoos before? They’re a fun cross between rice krispie treats and peanut butter bars, and boy are they good. Once set, they have a candy-like chewiness and sweetness to them without being over the top. I add a pretty (and easy!) butterscotch swirl throughout the chocolate top of mine, because easy desserts can be beautiful too 🙂 I originally shared this recipe a few years ago, and today I’m just slightly modifying it with some coconut oil to make the topping extra smooth and glossy. In case you’re new around here or haven’t heard of scotcharoos before, here’s everything you need to know about this unique no-bake dessert:
What’s So Great About Scotcharoos?
They’re the perfect combo of salty & sweet. You can make (and decorate!) them easily and quickly.My recipe makes quite a lot of bars, so it’s perfect for bringing to parties or making for a crowd.Kids can have fun helping with greasing the pan, spreading the chocolate, and creating the swirl.
What You Need
Here are a few of the key ingredients that will make your scotcharoos turn out just like the pictures:
Peanut butter. Use regular, creamy peanut butter. I have not tried making these with “natural” peanut butter, and I would be hesitant to recommend it as it could make the scotcharoos fall apart or be too oily (a problem some people have reported when making my no-bake cookies!).Corn syrup. This helps hold the ingredients together and balance the flavors. Notice I’m not using the controversial high fructose corn syrup–just plain old light corn syrup. Granulated sugar. I tried making scotcharoos with brown sugar and found them to be too sweet, so stick with all granulated.Coconut oil. A tiny bit of coconut oil melted with the chocolate and butterscotch toppings makes them pour and spread more evenly and smoothly and gives a nice sheen once cool.
SAM’S TIP: The swirl on top is optional, but isn’t it so pretty!? It’s very easy to do, but if you’d like you can skip melting the butterscotch chips by themselves and just combine everything for a classic scotcharoos. Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Scotcharoos
SAM’S TIP: You’ll want to wait for the chocolate to firm up before cutting your scotcharoos. If you’re impatient, you can place them in the refrigerator to speed things along, but ultimately scotcharoos are best when stored and served at room temperature. This keeps them nice and chewy and not too hard. Next time you’ve got some rice krispies in your pantry, give scotcharoos a try. They’re a nice break from the traditional marshmallow-y versions! Enjoy! Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
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This Scotcharoos recipe was originally published 02/22/2017, post has been updated 05/16/2022
