Easy Scotcheroos
Published Date: January 17, 2023
Scotcheroos are a chewy, no bake treat made with only 6 ingredients that are filled with tasty chocolate, peanut butter, and butterscotch flavor! Prep a pan of these bars in just 15 minutes!
Sink your teeth into these chewy, sweet Scotcheroos! They’ve got all the best flavors thanks to creamy peanut butter, chocolate, and butterscotch chips, making them an irresistible dessert bar!
If you’ve never had a scotcheroo, they’re similar to a rice Krispie treat. Except they have a peanut butter binding and a chocolate butterscotch layer on top!
All About These No-Bake Scotcheroos
Taste: Sweet, peanut buttery rice Krispies are finished with a chocolaty butterscotch topping! Making it so that every rich bite leaves you looking forward to the next!
Texture: These chewy scotcheroos have a crunchy texture that’s complimented with a smooth, soft topping!
Easy Ingredients But Big On Flavor!
Though this rice Krispie Scotcheroos recipe has easy ingredients, it’s still BIG in flavor! The crunchy cereal gets coated in a melty mixture of peanut butter, sugar, and corn syrup.
This helps keep the cereal bars together while giving them a sweet, salty flavor! If you’d rather not make this recipe with corn syrup, you can easily make these with mini marshmallows instead!
Once the cereal mixture is in the pan, they get coated with a smooth melted mixture. This time made with semi-sweet chocolate chips and butterscotch!
A mouthwatering combination that’s a tasty matchup with peanut butter-coated cereal!
Helpful Kitchen Tips To Make The Best No Bake Scotcheroos
- Preparing The Pan – Coat your baking dish with cooking spray to ensure that you can easily remove these bars. For added security, you could line the pan with parchment paper and then lightly spray that with the cooking spray. This will allow you to easily remove the bars as one big sheet to then cut and serve!
- Dissolving The Sugar – It’s really important only to heat the corn syrup and sugar on the stovetop until the sugar has just dissolved. If the mixture’s temperature gets too high, you risk your scotcheroos losing their deliciously chewy texture!
- Melting The Chocolate – When melting the chocolate chips and butterscotch chips, you can use the microwave or double boiler. Melt the two together until they’re completely smooth with no lumps!
- Cutting – Before cutting into these bars, first, allow them to chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes so the chocolate layer can harden. Afterward, I like to run a knife under hot water, wipe it dry, and cut it into the bars. This gives me clean, simple cuts with minimal effort.
Substitutions & Variations
- Butterscotch – The butterscotch chips can be replaced with an extra cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips. Or, for more peanut butter flavor, peanut butter chips can be added!
- Sugar & Corn Syrup – Instead of using a melted mixture of sugar and corn syrup, a 10-ounce bag of mini marshmallows can be used. Marshmallow scotcheroos will be just as good!
- Cereal – These bars can be made with rice Krispies, Chex cereal, cornflakes, or even special K cereal.
- Holidays And Special Occasions – Dress these bars up with seasonal sprinkles to match the holiday or occasion! An easy way to make a quick dessert that’s still festive!
How To Store
You can store this no-bake treat in an airtight container at room temperature to enjoy for up to 4 days. Any longer than 4 days, they start to lose their chewy texture.
They can also be stored in the refrigerator if you prefer. But I would suggest allowing them to come up to room temperature before serving and enjoying.
How Freeze Scotcheroos
Yes, they can be frozen! When storing them in the freezer, you want to be sure to protect them from getting freezer burnt.
To do this, first, wrap the bars in plastic wrap. Afterward, wrap them a second time using aluminum foil. Then store them in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Scotcheroos FAQs
Why Are My Scotcheroos So Hard?
The most common cause of scotcheroos coming out hard is because the corn syrup and sugar mixture were overcooked. The goal is to only cook the mixture just until the sugar has dissolved.
When I make these, I find the sugar dissolves right about when it starts to come to a simmer. Therefore, I turn off the heat and remove it from the stove.
It’s important you don’t allow it to come up to boil because then you’re getting into candy-making temperatures. And candy-making temperatures will harden this treat!
Are Scotcheroos Gluten Free?
All of the ingredients in this recipe are gluten-free except for the rice Krispie cereal. Therefore, you’ll want to replace the rice Krispies with a cereal that’s clearly labeled as gluten-free. They do make a gluten-free version of Rice Krispies, and Rice Chex is also gluten-free and would make a good substitution for the rice Krispies – just crush them up a bit!
Can Dark Corn Syrup Be Used In Place Of Regular Corn Syrup?
If you only have dark corn syrup on hand, then yes, that can be used instead. However, it will change the flavor profile of these no-bake bars.
To maintain a similar flavor to the recipe, I’d instead suggest leaving the corn syrup and sugar out completely. Then replace it with a 10-ounce bag of mini marshmallows.
Scotcheroos
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- 6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
- 1½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup butterscotch chips
INSTRUCTIONS
- Coat a 9×13-inch baking pan with pan spray.
- In a large pot, add the granulated sugar and corn syrup and cook over medium-high heat and until the sugar has completely dissolved, stirring constantly.1 cup granulated sugar, 1 cup light corn syrup
- Remove from the heat and mix in peanut butter.1 cup creamy peanut butter
- Then mix in the cereal and transfer the mixture to the prepared baking pan and gently press into an even layer.6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
- In a medium microwave-safe bowl, microwave the chocolate and butterscotch chips at 30 seconds intervals, stirring between each one, until fully melted. Spread the mixture over the rice krispie mixture in the pan1½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1 cup butterscotch chips
- Place them into the refrigerator for thirty minutes for the chocolate to set up. Then cut the scotcheroos into individual squares.
NOTES
- How To Store: You can store this no-bake treat in an airtight container at room temperature to enjoy for up to 4 days. Any longer than 4 days, and they start to lose their chewy texture. They can also be stored in the refrigerator if you prefer. But I would suggest allowing them to come up to room temperature before serving and enjoying.
- How Freeze Scotcheroos: Yes, they can be frozen! When storing them in the freezer, you want to be sure to protect them from getting freezer burnt. To do this, first, wrap the bars in plastic wrap. Afterward, wrap them a second time using aluminum foil. Then store them in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Why Are My Scotcheroos So Hard? The most common cause of scotcheroos coming out hard is because the corn syrup and sugar mixture were overcooked. The goal is to only cook the mixture just until the sugar has dissolved. When I make these, I find the sugar dissolves right about when it starts to come to a simmer. Therefore, I turn off the heat and remove it from the stove. It’s important you don’t allow it to come up to boil because then you’re getting into candy-making temperatures. And candy-making temperatures will harden this treat!
- Are Scotcheroos Gluten Free? All of the ingredients in this recipe are gluten-free except for the rice Krispie cereal. Therefore, you’ll want to replace the rice Krispies with a cereal that’s clearly labeled as gluten-free. They do make a gluten-free version of Rice Krispies, and Rice Chex is also gluten-free and would make a good substitution for the rice Krispies – just crush them up a bit!
- Can Dark Corn Syrup Be Used In Place Of Regular Corn Syrup? If you only have dark corn syrup on hand, then yes, that can be used instead. However, it will change the flavor profile of these no-bake bars. To maintain a similar flavor to the recipe, I’d instead suggest leaving the corn syrup and sugar out completely. Then replace it with a 10-ounce bag of mini marshmallows.
- Substitutions & Variations
- Butterscotch – The butterscotch chips can be replaced with an extra cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips. Or, for more peanut butter flavor, peanut butter chips can be added!
- Sugar & Corn Syrup – Instead of using a melted mixture of sugar and corn syrup, a 10-ounce bag of mini marshmallows can be used. Marshmallow scotcheroos will be just as good!
- Cereal – These bars can be made with rice Krispies, Chex cereal, cornflakes, or even special K cereal.
- Holidays And Special Occasions – Dress these bars up with seasonal sprinkles to match the holiday or occasion! An easy way to make a quick dessert that’s still festive!
NUTRITION
-
Marc Hyde 
