Butterscotch Cookies That Taste Like Christmas and Nostalgia

These butterscotch cookies deliver nostalgic candy flavor in a perfectly chewy package that’ll have everyone asking for your recipe. They are loaded with buttery toffee notes and crunchy pecans, making them standout cookies that’ll disappear first from any holiday cookie platter!

These are one of my favorite Christmas cookies to make because they taste like pure nostalgia, but require no decorating skills. Just drop spoonfuls of dough on a baking sheet and you’re done, with no royal icing disasters or Pinterest-perfect sugar cookie pressure required.

You will love how the butterscotch chips melt slightly into the dough while baking, creating pockets of rich toffee flavor that infuse the whole cookie. The secret to getting that perfect butterscotch flavor is using both butterscotch chips and brown sugar.

And they are super easy! In less than 30 minutes, you’ll have warm, homemade cookies ready to enjoy. They are as easy to make as standard chocolate chip cookies, but give you an unexpected and exceptional, rich, buttery caramel flavor.

I’ll walk you through the simple steps to make these irresistible cookies and share my top tips for getting the perfect texture every time. These easy cookies will make you the cookie exchange champion this year!

Ingredient Notes

For exact amounts needed see the recipe card below

These cookies use baking staples including butter, brown sugar, white sugar, cooking oil, egg, vanilla extract, flour, baking soda, and salt. You will also need:

• Cream of tartar
• Butterscotch chips
• Pecans

How to Make Butterscotch Cookies

1. Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees F. 
2. In your mixer bowl, cream together the butter with both sugars until the mixture is light and fluffy – about 2-3 minutes.
3. Add the oil, egg, and vanilla to your butter-sugar mixture. Beat until everything is well combined and smooth.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients – the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt.
5. Gradually add the flour mixture to your wet ingredients, mixing just until combined. Be careful not to overmix, as this can make your cookies tough rather than tender.
6. Fold in those butterscotch chips and chopped pecans. I like to do this by hand or with a spatula to make sure everything is evenly distributed without overmixing.
7. Drop rounded spoonfuls onto your greased cookie sheets. I use a cookie scoop to make this super easy and get uniform cookies, but two spoons work just fine too.
8. Put them in your preheated oven and bake for 7 minutes. They might look slightly underdone, but don’t worry – they’ll continue setting up as they cool.

Serving Ideas

My family goes crazy when these butterscotch cookies come out of the oven! Pair them with a cold glass of milk for the classic cookies-and-milk combo that never fails.

If you’re serving these at a party, try placing them on a tiered cookie stand with some fresh fruit for a beautiful presentation that always gets compliments!

How to Store

Store these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. They also freeze beautifully, which is handy since this recipe makes four dozen cookies. 

Place them in a freezer-safe container or zip-top bag and freeze them for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to enjoy them, just thaw them at room temperature for about an hour.

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Butterscotch Cookies Recipe

Published By Anne

These chewy butterscotch cookies are packed with rich toffee flavor, crunchy pecans, and nostalgic charm. Quick, easy, and perfect for holiday platters or everyday cookie cravings!

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time8 minutes mins

Total Time23 minutes mins

Servings: 48

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Ingredients

 

1x2x3x

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• ¾ cup white sugar
• 1 cup cooking oil
• 1 egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 4 ½ cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 package butterscotch chips
• 12 ounces pecans chopped

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a mixer cream together the butter with both the brown and white sugar until creamy.
  1 cup butter, 1 cup brown sugar, ¾ cup white sugar
• Beat in the oil, egg and vanilla and mix until well combined.
  1 cup cooking oil, 1 egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla
• In a small bowl mix the flour with the baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl and mix until just combined.
  4 ½ cup flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon cream of tartar, 1 teaspoon salt
• Mix in the butterscotch chips and chopped pecans.
  1 package butterscotch chips, 12 ounces pecans
• Use a cookie scoop or spoons to drop the batter onto greased cookie sheets and bake for 7 minutes.

Notes

• Once you add the flour mixture, mix just until combined. Overmixing leads to tough cookies, so stop mixing as soon as you don’t see any more flour streaks in the dough.
• These cookies don’t spread much on the cookie sheets, so they will hold the shape that you give them. So they will be prettier and rounder after baking if you use a cookie scoop instead of spoons to put them on the cookie sheets.
• You can skip the pecans if you have allergies or just aren’t a fan.If you prefer crispier cookies, simply bake these a little longer, for 10-12 minutes. That will make them crispy on the outside but still moist and chewy inside.

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Nutrition Information

Calories: 198kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 105mg | Potassium: 61mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 127IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 12mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition facts are estimates.

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