Soft peanut butter cookies filled with butterscotch chips and finished with a sprinkle of sea salt. Sweet, salty and absolutely perfect!
If there was ever a time to get excited about a peanut butter cookie, THIS IS IT! Oh my gosh, you guys – these Peanut Butter Butterscotch Cookies are to die for.
This here is your warning. Prepare to lick beaters, nibble bites of dough from the bowl, and consume every last crumb of this peanut buttery-butterscotch goodness.
You might also like: Special K Bars (Scotcheroos), Salted Butterscotch Cookies, Peanut Butter Brownie Cookies
Why you’ll love this recipe
There are a few things that set this cookie recipe apart from other peanut butter cookies I have had.
- These cookies are loaded with peanut butter flavor. No bland barely-there peanut butter in here. Sweet and salty peanut buttery goodness in every single bite.
- Brown sugar, and lots of it. The combo of peanut butter and brown sugar is a match made in heaven. I like to use more brown sugar than white in this recipe to ensure a soft, tender, perfectly sweet cookie.
- Salt! This is the key. Sprinkle the top of these cookies with a little sea salt right after they come out of the oven. This creates a salty-sweet balance that will make you swoon with every bite.
- Butterscotch Chips! Duh, why had I never thought of this before? Butterscotch chips aren’t just for oatmeal cookies, they are a tasty complement to peanut butter, and they take these cookies over the top! Note: These are my favorite butterscotch chips.
Tips for making cookies
Here are my top three cookie baking tips:
- Butter should be softened just slightly. Not just about to melt and not so soft that it’s lost shape. You should be able to lightly press your finger into it and it should mostly hold shape. An hour or two at room temp is usually all I need. Butter that is too soft makes cookies that spread thin. If you accidentally over-soften your butter, proceed with the recipe but refrigerate the dough for 1 hour.
- Do NOT overbake your cookies. I can’t stress this enough. When you remove the cookie sheet from the oven, the cookies should be slightly underdone in the very center. The cookies will continue to cook as they sit on the baking sheet.
- Cookies need salt! We don’t want our cookies to be salty, but we want enough salt to balance the sweetness. Butterscotch chips are very, very sweet, so salt is absolutely necessary to create a well rounded flavor for these cookies. There is a little salt in the cookie dough, as well as additional salt sprinkled on top after baking. Flaky Maldon Sea Salt is my absolute favorite for finishing these cookies, but regular sea salt works fine, too.
Prefer chocolate chips instead of butterscotch chips? Go for it! I’m thinking just about any “chip” would be good in here (dark chocolate, white chocolate, peanut butter).
Recipe
Peanut Butter Butterscotch Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ⅓ cup all purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (1 ¼ sticks)
- ⅔ cup creamy peanut butter, at room temp
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ⅔ cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup butterscotch chips, divided
- sea salt (I like flaky Maldon sea salt), for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and set side.
- In a large bowl, using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat butter and peanut butter until smooth and combined. Add both sugars and beat to combine. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture all at once and beat until just combined. Stir in about ⅔ cup of butterscotch chips (reserving the rest for topping the cookies).
- Scoop the dough into balls (I use a 1 ½ tablespoon scoop), and place a couple inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Press a few of remaining butterscotch chips on top of the dough balls. Bake for 8-11 minutes, until the edges are light golden brown, but the center is still slightly underdone. Immediately sprinkle with sea salt, and place the sheets on wire racks to cool. Repeat with remaining dough, allowing the cookie sheets to cool COMPLETELY before placing dough on them.
Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and rating below!
Mary Goss says
We mixed 1/3 cup semi sweet chips and 2/3 cup of butterscotch chips. They were delicious!
Judy says
I can’t wait to bake these cookies. I wonder if I could use part butterscotch and part chocolate chips?
Allison says
Sure! That should be fine.
Verna says
Me and my grand daughter made these today and they are absolutely awesome..Thank you for sharing this recipe with us..It is a keeper for sure..
Allison says
You’re welcome! I’m glad you enjoyed them. 🙂
Greg W says
This is the only cookie my kids will let me make, now. They are delicious and really easy.
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them. 🙂
Sandy Madden says
I made the peanut butter and butterscotch cookies and they are delicious 😋. Thank you for sharing
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for stopping by.
Dani says
These cookies were the favorite at our family gathering today!
I substituted Bob’s Red Mill Paleo Flour for the all purpose flour, so they were grain (therefore, gluten) free.
I didn’t have baking soda, so I tripled the baking powder with no problem.
Fabulous recipe, thank you!!!
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Anne says
I’m addicted to these cookies!! Texture is a lot like shortbread
Allison says
I’m glad you enjoyed them!
Christine says
I made these with my son for a get together with his teenage friends and they were phenomenal. So yummy! Everyone loved them! Thank you 😊
Allison says
I’m so glad! Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Mary says
Can you make these ahead of time and refrigerate overnight?
Allison says
Sure! You might need to add a minute or two to the bake time. Enjoy!
Sheryl Dysthe says
This recipe says it makes 20 servings. Is each serving one cookie? I want to make a large batch for a cookie exchange and I want to be able to adjust the recipe. Thanks.
Allison says
Yes, it makes about 20 cookies if using 1.5T of dough. Enjoy!