Coming in second place for the best Christmas cookie this year by my family are these butterscotch cookies. Apparently this was the year for slice and bake cookies, as three of the varieties I made were slice and bake. It was nice making all the dough one day and baking them the next so they could be at their max freshness when gifted.
I often forget about butterscotch, oh does it make some yummy cookies and scones. Growing up, my best friend’s mom made butterscotch cookies every Christmas, and they were my favorite. Hers were also slice and bake, and she would slice them so thinly. They were so chewy and buttery and scotchy that they would just melt in your mouth.
These butterscotch cookies are not the exactly like those cookies from my childhood – same flavor, different texture. They are crisp and crunchy. And they were hard to keep away from the kids (and myself). The hardest thing about the recipe is trying to shape the dough into a round cylinder. You can see how I succeeded: definitely an F if graded on roundness. Oval looks pretty good too. I use Guittard butterscotch chips. I’m sure Nestle is great too. The If You Care Parchment Paper sheets are my favorite. I just throw them in our compost pile when after I’ve used them.
Butterscotch Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (3 ounces) butterscotch chips
- 12 tbsp unsalted butter, divided into 3 tbsp and 9 tbsp, chilled
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces) packed dark brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 3/4 cups (8 3/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
Instructions
-
Microwave butterscotch chips and 3 tablespoons butter in a microwave-proof bowl until melted, about 1 minute, stirring halfway through. Whisk in vanilla until mixture is smooth; let cool for 10 minutes.
-
Cut remaining 9 tablespoons butter into 9 pieces. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle or beater, beat remaining 9 tablespoons butter, sugar, and salt on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add cooled butterscotch mixture and beat until thoroughly combined, about 1 minute, scraping down bowl as needed. Add egg yolk and beat until incorporated, about 30 seconds. Reduce speed to low, add flour and baking powder, and mix until dough forms, about 1 minute.
-
Turn out dough onto counter and roll into a 9-inch log. Wrap tightly with parchment paper and roll to form a round cylinder (good luck with that… as you can see from the photos, mine were quite oblong). Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.
-
Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 325°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Slice chilled dough with a sharp knife into ¼-inch-thick rounds and place 1 inch apart on prepared baking sheets (16 cookies per sheet – I needed 3 sheets because I ended up with 37 cookies). If the chilled dough begins to split as you slice it, soften it on the counter for 10 minutes.
-
Bake until edges have darkened slightly, about 15 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Let cool for 10 minutes on baking sheets, then transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature.
Notes
Source: America’s Test Kitchen