These Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies (Oatmeal Scotchies) are soft, chewy, and loaded with butterscotch chips! Perfectly chewy and no chilling required!
If you love oatmeal cookies, check out these Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies and these Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies next!
I’ve mentioned it before, but I’m saying it again: I love cookies.
I will take a stack of freshly baked cookies over a slice of cake any day, and I have no problem stealing from my stash and eating them straight out of the freezer.
I have a few requirements for perfect cookies, and these Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies tick all the boxes.
Why these are the perfect Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies:
- They are soft, but not fluffy or cakey.
- They are chewy and a little crispy around the edges,
- They are not too thick and not too thin.
- And most of all? Loaded with butterscotch chips. I loooooove oatmeal cookies with butterscotch chips!
What people are saying
“This is a fantastic recipe. My favorite oatmeal cookie base that I have ever made. Not sure what it is that does it, but excellent. Thanks!” Allison
Oatmeal Scotchies ingredients:
- Butter: I like to use unsalted butter so I can control the saltiness in the end, but you can also use salted butter and reduce the added salt.
- Brown sugar: gives it a rich flavor and chewy texture.
- Rolled Oats: use the large flake or rolled oats for the best texture! Quick oats will work in a pinch.
- Flour: you can swap all of the flour with whole wheat flour or gluten-free oat flour for more fiber or a gluten-free cookie.
- Cinnamon: you can increase it or omit it according to your tastes.
- Butterscotch chips: gives it that distinct Oatmeal Scotchies flavor, but you can easily swap these for another kind.
How to Make Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies:
This is a quick overview with some photos to guide you! Jump to the recipe card to see the full recipe and measurements.
- Cream the butter and sugar together, then add the egg and vanilla.
- Add the dry ingredients to the cookie dough.
- Stir in the butterscotch chips.
- Scoop and bake, keeping in mind the bake time will vary depending on the size.
How long to bake oatmeal cookies:
As with all cookies, you really want to find that sweet spot for bake time.
You want to pull them out when they are a bit glossy in the middle. Cookies will continue to set somewhat on the hot pans out of the oven, so a little underbaked coming out of the oven is actually okay.
Rather than relying on set bake times, set your timer a couple minutes early and look for visual cues of doneness.
How to freeze Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies:
Having a freezer stash of homemade cookies is one of my greatest pleasures. They’re perfect for quickly adding to lunches, picnics, dessert trays, or for those days you have unexpected company drop by right around coffee break 😉
The best part is that cookies freeze perfectly, and for quite some time, so you never have to worry about a loss of quality (only quantity!).
To freeze these Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies, place in a large freezer bag or freezer-safe container and seal completely. You want to ensure a tight seal to prevent freezer burn.
Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies Recipe
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed (about 200 grams)
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1½ cups large rolled oats
- 1¼ cups all purpose flour, (about 160 grams)
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1¼ cups butterscotch chips, (about 210 grams)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉ and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 3-4 minutes).
- Add egg and vanilla and beat until smooth.
- Add oats, flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt and stir with an electric mixer or by hand until completely combined. Stir in butterscotch chips.
- Drop by heaping tablespoonfuls (if you’re using a cookie scoop, you’ll want to use a 2 TBSP scoop) onto parchment paper 2 inches apart (I do 12 per pan). If you like thinner, chewier cookies, press down slightly (this step is optional).
- Bake at 350℉ for 8-9 minutes (longer for larger cookies), until the edges are beginning to brown and the centers are almost set (a bit of glossiness in the center is okay, as they will continue to set on the hot pans).
- Let sit for 5 minutes before removing from the pan to cool completely. Store in an air tight container up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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My mom is the expert on this one. She has a few recipes that she’s stuck with over many, many years because they are perfect. I’ve shared quite a few of them here, including:
How to make other varieties of oatmeal cookies:
You can absolutely feel free to swap out the butterscotch chips and hint of cinnamon for other varieties. Here are a few ideas:
- Leave out the cinnamon if it’s not your thing (I personally love the warmth it adds!) or increase it and add in a pinch of nutmeg, ginger and cloves as well.
- Swap out the butterscotch chips for white chocolate chips and add in toasted macadamia nuts or dried cranberries.
- Swap out the butterscotch chips for chocolate chips or raisins, or both!
Marie Mott says
My mom made these today. So tasty.
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Marie!
Patricia says
If I have medium sized eggs do I use 2 instead of 1?
Ashley Fehr says
I would use 1 still. I would test bake 1 cookie and if they are too thick you could add a tablespoon of oil or butter to help
Amy says
Doubled the cinnamon and sea salt
Deeeeeelicous
They do not last long enough to cool
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so glad you loved them!
Tana says
Making these cookies now and wonder if I should’ve used two eggs instead of one because the batter is so thick?
Jeri says
I was wondering the same and was disappointed to see so many questions answered and yours was not.
Ashley Fehr says
I cannot be online 24/7 to answer questions as they appear, though as you can see I do my best to respond in a timely fashion. The recipe is as written.
Amy says
Do not. This recipe is perfect.
Heather says
Yikes, these are good! I made chocolate chip and these for a ‘mommy-toddler’ play date and these were hands down the favorite and fastest to disappear. Great recipe!
Ashley Fehr says
I’m so glad they turned out well!
Jo Wilmes says
Amazing recipe! I doubled the recipe and used half and half butterscotch and chocolate chips, they were delicious! The recipe made exactly 80 small cookies (I put 15 per cookie sheet).
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Jo!
Sonja says
Turned out amazing! Thank you!
Ashley Fehr says
Thank you Sonja!
Kirsten says
Delicious! I ate 5 of these when they were fresh out of the oven because they were so good 🙂
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Kirsten! They’re some of my favorites!
Karin says
Can I sub the flour with the same measurement of wheat flower?
Ashley Fehr says
Yes, you definitely can!
Karin says
Thank you! I can’t wait to try!
Catherine says
Great recipe! Thank you! 🙂
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Catherine!
Courtney says
Finally had an old friend share this recipe after a decade of me bugging for her mom’s recipe! I LOVED them. So happy to have made them last night for a party and everyone adored them! Added to my cookie repertoire. 🙂 <3
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Courtney! I’m so glad to hear that!
Charlene says
Can you freeze the cookie batter in rolls for future baking?
Ashley Fehr says
I would probably freeze them in balls, ready to bake. But yes, definitely!
Kimberly says
Just made these, they’re so good.
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Kimberly!
Maya Engel says
Can you double this recipe???
Ashley Fehr says
Absolutely!
Rachael says
These cookies are delicious! I’ve made them twice following the recipe exactly, and another time I added cacao powder and some walnuts. They’ve come out perfectly every time and are a new go-to recipe. Thank you for sharing!
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Rachael! They are one of my favorite cookies!
Becky Bergherr says
These look yummy. I was too try them tomorrow. Did you use light or dark brown sugar?
Ashley Fehr says
I use light brown but you could use dark if you prefer
Elizabeth says
Combines two of my favorite ingredients oatmeal and butterscotch…reminds me of a cookie my grandma used to make! Thanks for recipe!
Ashley Fehr says
You’re welcome! Thanks for leaving a comment!
Marjory says
These are irresistible. Luckily they freeze well or we would eat way to many at one sitting!
Ashley Fehr says
Yes! I made the mistake of not putting mine in the freezer and I think I ate about 20 out of 24! Lol
Britni says
These are so good! Soft and yummy!
Ashley Fehr says
Yay! So happy to hear that!
Danielle says
I am drooling over these cookies!! I actually like to add a little sprinkling of coarse sea salt on cookies like this. I love that salty sweet flavor. I can’t wait to try these!!
Ashley Fehr says
Yes, me too!