These butterscotch blondies have a rich butterscotch taste and are filled with butterscotch chips. They’re dense, chewy, fudgy and made in one bowl with no mixer. You can think of them as butterscotch brownies with deliciously gooey centers. 
**This recipe was first published in July 2015 and updated January 2021 with new photos & recipe tips**
I decided to tinker with my favorite blondie recipe to get the ultimate butterscotch flavor in blondie form. They’re chewy and a little gooey with a sweet, buttery flavor. They’re big on butterscotch taste and filled with butterscotch chips. If you want to take it up a notch, adding a scoop of ice cream and a drizzle of butterscotch sauce really makes them next level.
These blondies are very sweet and very addictive – be warned!
The Best Butterscotch Blondies – Baking Science Ahead!
The rich butterscotch flavor in these blondies comes from:
- butter
- brown sugar
- vanilla
- and salt.
Brown sugar gives you a deep color and flavor. Brown sugar is actually what differentiates butterscotch from caramel – so make sure not to substitute it. Then the vanilla and salt balance off the sweetness to give that perfect butterscotchiness that doesn’t taste artificial.
What’s even better about these butterscotch blondies is that they’re so easy to make. Simply melt the butter, then whisk in the sugar. Stir in the egg and vanilla, and fold in your dry ingredients and butterscotch chips. Your blondies will be baking in no time and filling your kitchen with delicious smells.
Baking Tips & Things to Note
- Make sure you really whisk together the melted butter and brown sugar so they’re fully combined. You don’t want it to look like the butter is separate/seeping out.
- You might notice that the amount of flour is a little odd – 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons. I found 1 cup wasn’t quite enough, but 1 and ¼ cup was too much. 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons was just right.
- Now how do you get chewy, gooey blondies that aren’t the least bit cakey? Simple
- No leaveners and forget the mixer. Using leaveners (such as baking soda or baking powder) and a mixer create air bubbles that cause your batter to rise and lose its dense and fudgy texture.
- Then, bake your blondies until the top is just set and the edges are slightly pulling away. If you prefer blondies a little less gooey, then bake for a minute or 2 extra.
- This recipe is for an 8×8 inch (20×20 cm) pan. Do not use a 9×9 inch (23×23 cm) pan because there’s not quite enough batter. The recipe can be doubled and made in a 9×13 inch pan. The bars will a little thicker and the bake time will be closer to 25 minutes.
The hardest part of the recipe will BY FAR be waiting for your blondies to cool before cutting in. So I suggest starting ASAP. Chewy, fudgy, butterscotch blondies are so close! And don’t forget a scoop of ice cream and butterscotch sauce for an extra decadent dessert.
If you love butterscotch – make sure to try these butterscotch chip cookies too!
Butterscotch Blondies
Equipment
- 8x8 inch (20x20 cm) pan
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 cup brown sugar* packed
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract*
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
- ¼ teaspoon coarse salt
- ¾ cup butterscotch chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.
- Line an 8 x 8 inch (20x20 cm)* pan with aluminum foil leaving an overhang around the edges and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Or line with parchment paper, leaving an overhang.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the melted butter and brown sugar until combined. Ensure that the butter doesn't look separate.
- Make sure that the mixture isn't hot, then whisk in the egg and vanilla extract.
- Fold in the flour and salt, and then stir in the butterscotch chips.
- Pour the batter into your lined pan, and bake for 20-25 minutes until the top is just set and edges are beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan.
- Let cool in the pan until completely set - at least 1 hour.
- When ready to slice, lift the bars out of the pan using the overhang from the parchment paper/aluminum foil. Place on a cutting board and slice with a sharp knife.
Notes
- This recipe is designed for an 8x8 inch (20x20 cm) pan. Do not use a 9x9 inch (23x23 cm) pan as there is not enough batter. This recipe can be doubled and made in a 9x13 inch (23x33 cm) pan. The bake time will be around 25-27 minutes.
- I prefer to use dark brown sugar, but feel free to use light brown sugar too. These bars are very sweet. If you prefer something less sweet, you can reduce the sugar to ¾ cup.
- Yes, 1 full tablespoon of vanilla extract.
- Blondies can be kept in an air-tight container at room temperature or in the fridge for up to 5 days. Blondies that are fully cooled can be frozen for up to 2 months.
- Nutrition information is an estimate only and based on 1 bar, assuming that the pan is sliced into 9 equal pieces.
Nutrition
Wonderful!
Came across this recipe when going thru a butterscotch phase, and it is now my go to for Butterscotch Blondies! So incredibly easy & Namescrumptious all at the same time!
I made an 8×8 pan of these and they’re amazing!! We’re having company over and I’d like to make a 9×13 pan of these- would I double the recipe? Debating if I should try that (not sure on baking time though), or if I should just make 2 8×8 pans since I know they’ll turn out..thoughts? Thanks so much!
Doubled the recipe without any problems for a 9″ × 13″ baking pan. Baked it for same amount of time as in the 8″ × 8″ recipe and it was perfect.
So glad they turned out for you! And thanks for reporting back with your tips on doubling the recipe!
I’ve made these a couple times and they are really easy to make and absolutely delicious! I’m making them a third time and this time I am going to let the butter brown first before I add the brown sugar for some extra nuttiness.
Very good. Easy to put together. Doubled the recipe and used 9×13 pan. Will for sure be making these again.
i love this recipe! i made it the other day with chopped walnuts bc we didn’t have any baking chips, and it was so good! thx for posting.
The recipe did not list baking powder! These “bars” are total liquid!
VERY DISAPPOINTED😡
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy the recipe – it is definitely frustrating when things don’t turn out. If the bars are very liquidy – it would likely be either too much butter was added or not enough flour or the bars were not cooked quite long enough (different ovens can often be a little different). If you melted the butter and then measured it – this could have caused too much butter. It’s actually intentional that baking powder is not an ingredient in the recipe. As explained in the write up of the recipe, there’s no leaveners so that the bars have a fudgy, gooey consistency.
This recipe is amazing!! Just a note, when I made the recipe in an 8×8 pan mine took about 30 minutes to cook and when I doubled the recipe in a 9×13, they took roughly 42 minutes to bake. Still worth it! I used a glass dish both times. I will use this as my go to recipe for butterscotch blond brownies!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! Thanks so much for reporting back on your results and bake times 🙂