Name: Butterscotch Cookies
Total time: 3 h 20 min
Ingredients: 1/2 cup (3 ounces/85 grams) butterscotch chips; 3 tablespoons unsalted butter , plus 9 tablespoons cut into 9 pieces, chilled; 2 teaspoons vanilla extract; 3/4 cup packed (5 1/4 ounces/149 grams) dark brown sugar; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1 large egg yolk; 1 3/4 cups (8 3/4 ounces/248 grams) all-purpose flour; 1 teaspoon baking powder

Why This Recipe Works

Butterscotch is made by cooking brown sugar and butter together, but simply adding those ingredients to our icebox cookie dough wasn’t enough to make a convincingly butterscotch-y cookie. Exchanging dark brown sugar for light helped but not enough. Butterscotch chips are a potent source of butterscotch flavor—just 1/2 cup was plenty—but left whole, the chips made the cookies impossible to slice neatly. Melting the chips down and creaming them with the butter was the trick to bold butterscotch flavor and a smooth, sliceable dough.

Before You Begin

Use chilled butter so it won’t melt when you add the melted chips in step 2. If the chilled dough begins to split as you slice it, soften it on the counter for 10 minutes.

Instructions

Microwave butterscotch chips and 3 tablespoons butter in bowl until melted, about 1 minute, stirring halfway through. Whisk in vanilla until mixture is smooth; let cool for 10 minutes.

Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, 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 9-inch log. Wrap tightly with parchment paper and roll to form even cylinder. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or up to 3 days. (Dough can be wrapped in aluminum foil and frozen for up to 1 month.)

Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Slice chilled dough with sharp knife into ¼-inch-thick rounds and place 1 inch apart on prepared baking sheets (16 cookies per sheet). 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. (Cookies can be stored in airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.)