Thick and Chewy Double Butterscotch Chip Cookies

It feels like I've been filling the blog with unhealthy recipes lately, which is totally not intentional. I guess that's just vacation eating for you. When I visit my parents I feel like I have an excuse to do a lot more baking than I do at home because my Dad has the BIGGEST SWEET TOOTH EVER! Then there was the birthday cake...but I always told myself I wasn't going to be one of those dietitian moms that hides Bran Buds and flaxseed in her kid's birthday cakes. Regular everyday food yes, but not birthday cake. Today I'm adding one more unhealthy (but delicious) recipe, for Thick and Chewy Double Butterscotch Chip Cookies.

These cookies came to me (just like the Smores Cake) in the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep (yes, I was thinking about food AGAIN). I had made pudding cookies, which are all the rage right now, a couple of times and had really good luck with them. I thought, why not use flavored pudding to give the cookies extra taste? Then I thought why not use butterscotch chips instead of chocolate, since hubby loves butterscotch? I thought my idea was so clever, and since I had never seen the cookies of my sleepless night make their way into my Pinterest feed, I must be the only person to have ever had such a wonderful idea. WRONG. Since I first made the cookies, they have come up on Pinterest at least 3 different times. Oh well. Such is blog life.

I've made a few different variations of pudding mix cookies now, and I've had success with pretty much all of them. The first ones I made, I forgot to flatten before baking. Since they spread so little when you cook them, they baked up like round little balls. I haven't made that mistake again. If you haven't made pudding cookies yet, give it a try, especially if you're a thick and chewy cookie person. I am, and I've been searching for a go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe for a few years now. I'm not sure if this is it yet, but it's sure good. Adding pudding mix to cookies, coupled with chilling the dough for several hours before baking ensures the cookies stay soft and chewy when you cook them. They do need time to chill though, so they won't satisfy your "I need cookies right now" craving. 

Don't feel like you need to cook all the dough at once. I like to cook as many as I know my family will eat within a couple of days (usually 6-8 depending on whether I'm serving guests or not). I keep the rest of the dough balls either in the fridge (they will keep for up to 5 days) or the freezer. That way, if I do get an "I need cookies right now" craving, I can pull a couple out of the freezer and bake them up. I can even do it in my toaster oven if I'm doing a small batch. So convenient, especially if you need a last minute dessert for something.

One last word of advice: if you use your baking sheets for both sweet and savory purposes, either make sure you clean it really well, or make sure it's lined with a baking mat or parchment. When I made this batch, some of the cookies tasted very strongly of roasted onions. NOT a flavor you want in your cookies. Unfortunately, I had to throw one out it was so bad. Trust me, that was a waste of a good cookie!

5 from 2 votes

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Thick and Chewy Double Butterscotch Cookies

Carissa Serink

These thick and chewy cookies are flavored with butterscotch pudding mix and also stuffed with lots of butterscotch chips.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Total Time25 mins

Servings: 24

Calories: 171kcal

Cook ModeKeep your screen on

Ingredients

• ¾ cup unsalted butter softened, 1.5 sticks
• ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• One 3.5oz package instant butterscotch pudding mix 100g, see note
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• 9-10 oz butterscotch chips about ¾ of a small bag

Instructions

• Combine butter, sugars, egg and vanilla together in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Cream mixture together on medium high speed for about 4 minutes.
• Stop mixer and add flour, pudding mix, baking soda and salt. Mix together on low speed until combined.
• Add butterscotch chips and mix on low speed until just incorporated.
• Scoop out roughly 2 tablespoon sized amounts of dough and roll into balls about 1"-1.5" in diameter. That will give you roughly 24-30 balls. Flatten balls slightly with the palm of your hand.
• Place flattened dough balls on a plate and cover with plastic. Chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours (up to 5 days) so they don't spread when baking. You could also freeze the dough in an airtight container.
• Heat oven to 350°F. After chilling, transfer dough patties to a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake for 11 minutes. Cookies will still look underdone but the edges will be set. Cool on baking sheet for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

Don't try to use "cooked" or sugar free pudding mix. They won't work.

Nutrition

Calories: 171kcal

Nutrition Disclaimer: I try my best to make sure the nutrition information I provide is accurate to provide you with the best information possible. However, due to ingredient discrepancies and other factors, the above nutrition information should be considered an estimation only.

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