Oatmeal Scotches

These oatmeal scotches swap out the expected chocolate chips or raisins for a full 12-ounce bag of butterscotch chips, and the combination with brown sugar and cinnamon is ridiculously good. Every bite has that buttery, caramel-like scotch flavor running through a hearty oat cookie.

The recipe gives you control over your cookie’s personality. Seven to 8 minutes in the oven produces a chewy, soft-centered cookie with barely set edges. Ten to 12 minutes gets you a crispier cookie with more crunch throughout. Same dough, two completely different results depending on your preference.

Three cups of rolled oats to just one cup of flour means these are more oat than cookie in the best way. The oats give body, chew, and that toasty grain flavor that butterscotch was born to complement. The half teaspoon of cinnamon ties the whole thing together with a warm, spicy backbone.

Creaming the butter (or shortening) with both white and brown sugar until creamy builds the structure and sweetness base. The brown sugar’s molasses content keeps the cookies moist and adds caramel depth that echoes the butterscotch chips.

Kitchen Tips

• Use old-fashioned rolled oats, not quick oats. Quick oats dissolve into the dough and you lose the chewy texture
• For chewy cookies, pull them from the oven when they still look slightly underdone in the center. They firm up on the sheet as they cool
• Don’t skip the cinnamon. It’s a small amount but it bridges the gap between the oats and butterscotch beautifully
• Space the dough drops at least 2 inches apart. These spread more than you’d expect from the thick batter

Variations

• Mix butterscotch and semi-sweet chocolate chips for a combo cookie
• Add ½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts for nutty crunch
• Swap cinnamon for a pinch of cardamom for a more exotic, warm spice note