I love whipping up a pan of Scothcheroos when I need an easy dessert that’s quick but not short on flavor. These decadent squares are made with six simple ingredients and packed with notes of luscious caramel, silky chocolate, and creamy butterscotch. They also don’t require any baking, so there’s no need to turn on your oven!
This is the best scotcheroos recipe for serving as dessert bars at a casual gathering, potluck, or special occasion. You can also dress up a scotcheroo by serving it with a scoop of vanilla or chocolate ice cream for a fancier dinner party dessert. Or keep them all to yourself and enjoy with coffee or tea for a tasty afternoon treat. For more peanut butter desserts, try my buckey recipe, peanut butter pie recipe, or peanut butter cookie recipe.
What You Need to Make This Recipe
Corn syrup – use light corn syrup to make the iconic chewy and gooey scotcheroos texture. It is also best for a not-too-sweet taste.
Peanut butter – creamy peanut butter is best for a uniform texture and is easier to mix than chunky peanut butter. For the best texture and flavor, use conventional no-stir peanut butter not natural.
Rice Krispies – this puffed rice cereal adds a crunchy texture and a sturdy base for the chocolate spread on top. Use name-brand or generic puffed rice, just make sure that the cereal is fresh and has a good date for superior crunch.
Chocolate chips – I recommend using semi-sweet chocolate chips for the best rich, slightly sweet flavor. Alternatively, you can use milk chocolate chips or dark chocolate if you prefer.
Butterscotch chips – these tasty morsels add the signature rich, buttery flavor to this scotcheroos recipe.
How to Make Scotcheroos
1. Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with butter or cooking spray, or line it fully with parchment paper. Combine the corn syrup and sugar in a large saucepan and place it over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the sugar mixture is completely dissolved. Bring the mixture to a boil, then remove the saucepan from heat.
2. Stir in the peanut butter, mixing well until fully incorporated.
3. In a large bowl, add the rice cereal and pour in the peanut butter mixture, gently folding it until the mixture is thoroughly coated.
4. Transfer the peanut butter cereal mixture to the prepared pan and use the back of a spoon or rubber spatula to spread it out into an even layer.
5. Combine the chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in a large heatproof bowl. Melt the mixture either over a pot of simmering water, stirring frequently, or in 30-second increments in the microwave, stirring between each interval until melted.
6. Spread the chocolate mixture over the cereal base and smooth it out. Cool at room temperature and allow the topping to set before cutting it into squares, about 1 hour.
Pro Tips For Making This Recipe
- Carefully melt the sugars. You don’t want to overheat the sugar and corn syrup when mixing them on the stovetop, or the texture of the scotcheroo bars will be dry and rock-hard instead of gooey. Prevent this by removing the pot from the heat immediately after it comes to a boil.
- Avoid burning the chocolate and butterscotch. The chocolate and butterscotch chips melt fast, so it’s important to keep a watchful eye on the mixture so it doesn’t scorch and ruin the taste. I recommend using a double boiler on the stove or heating it in short increments in the microwave so you can track the melting and stir frequently throughout the heating time – it’s done when it’s in liquid form.
- Allow the ingredients to set completely. The cereal bars won’t hold their shape if you don’t wait for the ingredients to become a firmer texture before cutting into them. If you’re low on time, you can stick the pan of Rice Krispie scotcheroos in the refrigerator or freezer to speed up the setting process. Just be sure to bring the scotcheroos slab to room temperature before cutting and enjoying.
- Use your favorite variety of chocolate in the topping. Use semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips if you prefer darker, richer chocolate. If you like sweeter chocolate, use milk chocolate or white chocolate chips.
Frequently Asked Questions
Cut this no-bake dessert into individual servings before storing them in an airtight container. Scotcheroos will keep for up to 1 week at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. You can also freeze scotcheroos by wrapping each piece tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and then storing them in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before enjoying.
There are a couple of ingredient substitutions you can make in this recipe per your preference. If you can’t do peanut butter, you can swap it 1:1 with another nut butter like almond, cashew, or sunflower seed butter, but keep in mind it will slightly alter the taste. You can also substitute the Rice Krispies for a flavored version like cocoa Krispies cereal or cinnamon Rice Krispies. Alternatively, you can use a similar cereal like cornflakes, puffed rice, or crushed pretzels in a pinch. If you can’t find butterscotch chips, you can replace them with peanut cutter chips or caramel chips.
Over heating the sugar and corn syrup mixture will cause the sugar to crystalize or reach too high of a temperature, both of which will create a harder sugar mixture than a chewy one. Make sure to stir the mixture and remove it from the heat right when it comes to a boil.
Scotcheroos can be made gluten-free with certified gluten-free rice cereal and ensuring the other ingredients are also made in a gluten free environment.
Feel free to include any additional ingredients to this recipe for scotcheroos to add flavor and texture. Try adding chopped nuts or candied pecans, dried fruit, shredded coconut, mini marshmallows, toffee bits, whole chocolate chips, or pretzel pieces to the rice cereal and peanut butter mixture. Additionally, you can sprinkle the melted chocolate layer with toppings such as flaky sea salt, crushed candy, or sprinkles before it sets.
If you love this recipe try these out!
If you’ve tried this Scotcheroos recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Scotcheroos
Equipment
- 9×13 inch baking dish
Ingredients
- 1 cup light corn syrup (240mL)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter (250g)
- 6 cups Rice Krispies
- 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips (375g)
- 12 ounces butterscotch chips (375g)
Instructions
- Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with butter or cooking spray, or line it fully with parchment paper.
- Combine the corn syrup and sugar in a large saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the sugar is dissolved. Let the mixture come to a boil, then remove the saucepan from heat
- Stir in peanut butter, mixing well until fully incorporated.
- Stir in the rice cereal, carefully folding it in until thoroughly coated in the peanut butter mixture. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and use a spoon or spatula to spread out into an even layer.
- Combine the chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in a large heatproof bowl. Melt the mixture either over a pot of simmering water, stirring frequently, or in 30-second increments in a microwave, stirring between each.
- Spread the chocolate mixture over the cereal base and smooth out. Cool at room temperature and allow the topping to set before cutting, about 1 hour.
Notes
- Carefully melt the sugars. You don’t want to overheat the sugar and corn syrup when mixing them on the stovetop, or the texture of the scotcheroo bars will be dry and rock-hard instead of gooey. Prevent this by removing the pot from the heat immediately after it comes to a boil.
- Avoid burning the chocolate and butterscotch. The chocolate and butterscotch chips melt fast, so it’s important to keep a watchful eye on the mixture so it doesn’t scorch and ruin the taste. I recommend using a double boiler on the stove or heating it in short increments in the microwave so you can track the melting and stir frequently throughout the heating time – it’s done when it’s in liquid form.
- Allow the ingredients to set completely. The cereal bars won’t hold their shape if you don’t wait for the ingredients to become a firmer texture before cutting into them. If you’re low on time, you can stick the pan of Rice Krispie scotcheroos in the refrigerator or freezer to speed up the setting process. Just be sure to bring the scotcheroos slab to room temperature before cutting and enjoying.
- Use your favorite variety of chocolate in the topping. Use semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips if you prefer darker, richer chocolate. If you like sweeter chocolate, use milk chocolate or white chocolate chips.
