Oatmeal Butterscotch Bars
By America's Test KitchenPublished on July 29, 2011
Time
55 minutes, plus 2 hours cooling
Yield
Makes 36 Bars
Ingredients
Bars
1 ¼ cups (6¼ ounces/177 grams) all-purpose flour 2 cups (6 ounces/170 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon salt ¾ cup (4½ ounces/128 grams) butterscotch chips 16 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 cup packed (7 ounces/198 grams) packed dark brown sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1 large eggGlaze
¼ cup (1½ ounces/43 grams) butterscotch chips 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar 1 tablespoon water ⅛ teaspoon saltBefore You Begin
Quick oats will work in this recipe, but the bars will be less chewy and flavorful; do not use instant oats.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Make foil sling for 13 by 9-inch baking pan by folding 2 long sheets of aluminum foil; first sheet should be 13 inches wide and second sheet should be 9 inches wide. Lay sheets of foil in pan perpendicular to each other, with extra foil hanging over edges of pan. Push foil into corners and up sides of pan, smoothing foil flush to pan. Grease foil.
- Whisk flour, oats, baking soda, and salt together in bowl. Place butterscotch chips in large bowl. Melt butter in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Continue to cook, swirling skillet constantly, until butter is dark golden brown and has nutty aroma, 1 to 5 minutes. Add browned butter to butterscotch chips and whisk until smooth. Whisk in sugar until dissolved, then whisk in vanilla and egg until combined. Stir in flour mixture in 2 additions until combined.
- Transfer mixture to prepared pan and spread into even layer. Bake until edges are golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out with few crumbs attached, 17 to 19 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Transfer pan to wire rack.
- Place butterscotch chips in small bowl. Bring sugar, water, and salt to simmer in small saucepan. Pour hot sugar mixture over butterscotch chips and whisk until smooth. Drizzle glaze over warm bars and let cool until warm to touch, about 1½ hours.
- Using foil overhang, lift bars from pan and transfer to wire rack; let cool completely. Cut into 36 pieces before serving.
for the bars
for the glaze
Time
55 minutes, plus 2 hours coolingYield
Makes 36 BarsIngredients
Bars
1 ¼ cups (6¼ ounces/177 grams) all-purpose flour
2 cups (6 ounces/170 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup (4½ ounces/128 grams) butterscotch chips
16 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup packed (7 ounces/198 grams) packed dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
Glaze
¼ cup (1½ ounces/43 grams) butterscotch chips
2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon water
⅛ teaspoon salt
Ingredients
Bars
1 ¼ cups (6¼ ounces/177 grams) all-purpose flour
2 cups (6 ounces/170 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup (4½ ounces/128 grams) butterscotch chips
16 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup packed (7 ounces/198 grams) packed dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
Glaze
¼ cup (1½ ounces/43 grams) butterscotch chips
2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon water
⅛ teaspoon salt
Ingredients
Bars
1 ¼ cups (6¼ ounces/177 grams) all-purpose flour
2 cups (6 ounces/170 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup (4½ ounces/128 grams) butterscotch chips
16 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup packed (7 ounces/198 grams) packed dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
Glaze
¼ cup (1½ ounces/43 grams) butterscotch chips
2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon water
⅛ teaspoon salt
Why This Recipe Works
“Oatmeal scotchies”—oatmeal cookies studded with butterscotch chips—appeal more to our sense of nostalgia than to our taste buds. In reality, they're usually overloaded with chips and overwhelmingly sweet. We wanted moist, chewy oatmeal bars with just enough butterscotch flavor and dialed-back sweetness. The obvious first step was to cut back on sugar. In addition, using dark brown sugar instead of granulated or even light brown was a simple way to give the bars butterscotch flavor and a more nuanced sweetness. These bars feature a generous amount of butter for richness, and we browned the butter to add a nutty depth of flavor. While we didn't like the texture of butterscotch chips in these bars, their flavor is hard to beat. Instead of stirring them in, we melted them so they blended smoothly into the batter.
Before You Begin
Quick oats will work in this recipe, but the bars will be less chewy and flavorful; do not use instant oats.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Make foil sling for 13 by 9-inch baking pan by folding 2 long sheets of aluminum foil; first sheet should be 13 inches wide and second sheet should be 9 inches wide. Lay sheets of foil in pan perpendicular to each other, with extra foil hanging over edges of pan. Push foil into corners and up sides of pan, smoothing foil flush to pan. Grease foil.
- Whisk flour, oats, baking soda, and salt together in bowl. Place butterscotch chips in large bowl. Melt butter in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Continue to cook, swirling skillet constantly, until butter is dark golden brown and has nutty aroma, 1 to 5 minutes. Add browned butter to butterscotch chips and whisk until smooth. Whisk in sugar until dissolved, then whisk in vanilla and egg until combined. Stir in flour mixture in 2 additions until combined.
- Transfer mixture to prepared pan and spread into even layer. Bake until edges are golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out with few crumbs attached, 17 to 19 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. Transfer pan to wire rack.
- Place butterscotch chips in small bowl. Bring sugar, water, and salt to simmer in small saucepan. Pour hot sugar mixture over butterscotch chips and whisk until smooth. Drizzle glaze over warm bars and let cool until warm to touch, about 1½ hours.
- Using foil overhang, lift bars from pan and transfer to wire rack; let cool completely. Cut into 36 pieces before serving.
for the bars
for the glaze
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