These Butterscotch Browned Butter Oatmeal bars will be your new favorite snack or dessert. They're sweet, buttery, chewy, and perfect for a lunch box.
Do you cook with your kids? My 4 year old son hasn't shown much interest (yet), unless there's something in it for him (like perhaps a small dish of chocolate chips while baking).
My 7 year old daughter has shown significantly more interest, and I often have her help around the kitchen. While baking is her favorite (she also likes it when there's a small treat involved), she also enjoys tasks like cracking eggs, measuring, stirring, and even using a small paring knife to cut vegetables. You can thank my daughter for coming up with this week's recipe.
One day I was packing her a snack for school. While contemplating her options for granola bar flavors, she asked me if there was such a thing as butterscotch-flavored bars. I told her that I'd never seen any before, but that we could try to make something similar.
I didn't really want to make homemade granola bars, since I'd had mixed results trying to make them in the past. So I opted for an oat-based cookie bar, and ended up with these Butterscotch Browned Butter Oatmeal Bars.
These bars are great as a snack in a lunch box, or as a dessert. They'd be especially delicious served with a scoop of ice cream. What recipes can your kids help you come up with?
How to make Butterscotch Browned Butter Oatmeal Bars:
Making these sweet and oaty bars is similar to making cookies, but even easier because you don't have to portion out the dough and space it out on a baking sheet.
Start by browning the butter, which does take time, but is worth it for the deeper, nuttier flavor. While you're waiting for it to cool, stir together the dry ingredients. The cream together the butter and sugar, add the eggs and vanilla, then add the dry ingredients.
The dough doesn't need to be refrigerated, simply spread it into your prepared baking pan and put it in the oven. Let the pan cool completely before cutting.
Butterscotch Browned Butter Oatmeal Bars Ingredients:
- Unsalted butter
- Rolled oats
- All-purpose flour
- Whole wheat flour
- Salt
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Light brown sugar: or you could use dark brown sugar if that's what you happen to have
- Large eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Butterscotch chips
Want more oat-based desserts?
Butterscotch Browned Butter Oatmeal Bars Nutrition Notes:
Like most desserts, these bars are high in fat (including saturated fat from the butter and butterscotch chips) and sugar and should be eaten in moderation.
Butterscotch Browned Butter Oatmeal Bars
Equipment
- 1 Small skillet (don't use a non-stick skillet here)
- Stand Mixer or hand mixer and large bowl
Ingredients
- 1 cup (8 Tablespoons/1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup whole wheat flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups butterscotch chips
Instructions
- Melt 4 Tablespoons of the butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Continue cooking until it becomes golden brown and fragrant, stirring often. Transfer to a heatproof bowl and place in the fridge to cool.
- Move oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 350°F. Line a 9x13" baking pan with foil and grease lightly with oil.
- Mix 2 cups rolled oats, 1 cup all purpose flour, ½ cup whole wheat flour, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon baking soda together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- When the butter has cooled to room temperature, add to the bowl of a stand mixer with the remaining 4 Tablespoons butter and 1 cup light brown sugar. Cream together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add 2 large eggs, one at a time, beating in between each addition. Add 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract and beat until fluffy.
- Turn off the mixer and add the oat mixture. Turn the mixer on to low speed and mix until combined. Mix in 1 ½ cups butterscotch chips.
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan, ensuring to spread the batter into the corners of the pan. Bake until golden brown, 25-30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking time. Cool completely before cutting. Store at room temperature in an airtight container or freeze.
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