• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

The Toasty Kitchen

  • Home
  • Recipe Index
  • Subscribe
  • About
  • FAQ
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • Subscribe
  • About
  • FAQ
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • Recipes
    • Subscribe
    • About
    • FAQ
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Brownies & Bars

    Scotcheroos Recipe

    Published: Nov 7, 2019 · Modified: Aug 9, 2021 by Heather · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. · 732 words. · About 4 minutes to read this article.

    Jump to Recipe
    Scotcheroos by The Toasty Kitchen
    Scotcheroos by The Toasty Kitchen
    Scotcheroos by The Toasty Kitchen

    Scotcheroos are a sweet dessert bar made with rice krispies cereal and peanut butter.

    These easy, six-ingredient bars are topped with a rich butterscotch and chocolate topping.

    A white plate filled with scotcheroos bars.

    Scotcheroos are a crowd pleasing, easy to make dessert. These bars include favorite flavors like peanut butter, butterscotch, and chocolate.

    Not only are they easy to make, but you'll only need six ingredients to make these scotcheroos. Plus, they're ready in less than 30 minutes.

    The base of these bars is cooked on the stove top, then pressed into a 9x13 pan. Then, they're coated in a melted chocolate and butterscotch topping. That's it - no baking required!

    Original scotcheroos recipe

    Scotcheroos originated as a recipe on the side of a Rice Krispies box in the 1960s. While I grew up making and enjoying this recipe, I have since made some adjustments.

    First, the original recipe is extremely sweet and rich. I have since cut the amount of granulated sugar in half. I've also reduced the amount of rice krispies by one cup to balance the coating to cereal ratio.

    Last, instead of 6 ounces each of chocolate and butterscotch chips, I reduced each to 5 ounces. While not a large change, I found that the thinner chocolate coating made these bars less rich and overwhelming.

    Ingredients and substitutions

    Ingredients for scotcheroos on a counter top. Creamy peanut butter can be substituted with crunchy peanut butter, or almond butter in case of a peanut allergy.

    Corn syrup can be substituted with honey.

    Rice krispies cereal can be substituted with Special K cereal (to make Special K bars), cornflakes, or chex cereal (I recommend rice chex).

    Spreading rice krispies mixture into a pan and topping with chocolate. How to store scotcheroos

    While you do need to refrigerate them initially to harden the chocolate topping, your scotcheroos do not need to be stored in the refrigerator.

    In fact, they are best stored at room temperature. Stored in a sealed container, your scotcheroos will stay fresh up to 3 days. After that, your bars will begin to harden and lose their chewy texture.

    If you need to store your scotcheroos in the refrigerator due to the summer heat, I recommend letting the sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving. Otherwise, your bars will be hard and difficult to chew.

    Three scotcheroos stacked on top of each other.

    How to prevent hard scotcheroos

    Have you ever made a batch of scotcheroos and your bars turned out hard? It's likely because your sugar mixture was boiled for too long.

    Keep a close eye on your sugar mixture while it's on the stovetop. As soon as it comes to a boil, remove it from the heat and add your rice krispies cereal.

    This ensures your bars will be chewy and soft - not hard!

    And if you've just removed your scotcheroos bars from the refrigerator or freezer - give them up to 30 minutes to rest at room temperature. A cold scotcheroo will be hard and difficult to eat.

    Freezing

    Did you know that scotcheroos can be frozen? Yep! Allow your bars to cool completely. Cut into squares, place into a freezer safe container (or freezer bag), and freeze for up to 3 months.

    Allow your bars to come completely to room temperature before enjoying.

    A white plate filled with scotcheroos bars.
    Print Recipe
    4.34 from 3 reviews

    Scotcheroos

    Scotcheroos are a sweet dessert bar made with rice krispies cereal and peanut butter. These easy, six-ingredient bars are topped with a rich butterscotch and chocolate topping.
    Adapted from Kellogg's Scotcheroos recipe.
    Prep Time15 minutes
    Resting Time15 minutes
    Total Time30 minutes
    Servings: 36 bars
    Calories: 132.71kcal
    Author: Heather

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup (312 g) light corn syrup
    • ½ cup (99 g) granulated sugar
    • 1 cup (270 g) peanut butter
    • 5 cups (140 g) rice krispies cereal
    • 5 ounces (142 g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
    • 5 ounces (142 g) butterscotch chips

    Instructions

    • Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper or grease bottom and sides and set aside.
    • In a saucepan over medium heat, add corn syrup and granulated sugar. Stir until sugar has dissolved. Once mixture comes to a boil, remove from heat immediately and stir in peanut butter. Then add rice krispies cereal and stir until evenly coated.
    • Press mixture evenly into prepared 9x13 pan.
    • In a microwave safe dish, warm chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in 30 second increments, stirring until melted.
    • Pour chocolate mixture over bars and spread with a knife to the edges. Refrigerate bars for 15 minutes, or until chocolate coating has solidified.
    • Remove from refrigerator, slice into bars, and serve.

    Equipment Recommendations

    • 9x13 Nonstick Pan
    • Pyrex Liquid Measuring Cups
    • Dry Measuring Cups
    • SS 3-Quart Saucepan

    Notes

    • Scotcheroos will keep for 3 days stored in a sealed container at room temperature.
    • Optionally, melt chocolate chips in a double boiler over low heat on the stove top instead of the microwave.

    Nutrition Estimate

    Calories: 132.71kcal | Carbohydrates: 20.38g | Protein: 2.3g | Fat: 5.35g | Saturated Fat: 1.72g | Cholesterol: 0.59mg | Sodium: 75.08mg | Potassium: 73.7mg | Fiber: 0.76g | Sugar: 15.7g | Vitamin A: 264.6IU | Vitamin C: 2.46mg | Calcium: 6.75mg | Iron: 1.57mg
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American

    More recipes

    • A stack of rice krispies treats on a white plate.
      Strawberry Rice Krispies Treats
    • A stack of rice krispies treats with marshmallows and cinnamon sticks.
      Brown Butter Spiced Rice Krispies Treats
    • Chocolate rice krispies treats decorated with chocolate spider webs.
      Halloween Rice Krispies Treats
    • A collage of different flavors of rice krispies treats.
      40 Easy Rice Krispies Treats Variations

    More Brownies & Bars Recipes

    • Cast iron skillet filled with sliced brownie wedges.
      Cast Iron Walnut Brownies
    • Stack of tahini brownies on a white plate.
      Tahini Brownies
    • Dark chocolate walnut brownies recipe.
      Dark Chocolate Walnut Brownies
    • Lemon sugar cookie bars recipe.
      Lemon Sugar Cookie Bars

    Share this post:

    Subscribe

    Get our newest recipes delivered to your inbox for free!

    Reader Interactions

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Heather of The Toasty Kitchen

    Hi, I'm Heather of The Toasty Kitchen. I love cooking with real, unfussy ingredients, and I want to help you make homemade meals with ease.

    More about me →

    Spring recipes

    • Close up of strawberries, walnuts, feta cheese, and onions on a bed of lettuce.
      Strawberry Walnut Salad
    • Roasted potatoes and asparagus on a metal sheet pan.
      Roasted Potatoes and Asparagus
    • White bowl filled with arugula, potatoes, tomato, and red onion.
      Roasted Potato Arugula Salad
    • White bowl filled with salad ingredients.
      Salmon Cobb Salad

    Reader Favorites

    • A spoon scooping raspberry sauce from a white bowl.
      Raspberry Sauce For Cheesecake
    • Cooked steak tips in a cast iron pan.
      Garlic Butter & Herb Sirloin Tips
    • Red spatula covered in white frosting.
      Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting
    • Graham crackers dipped in a bowl of strawberry cheesecake dip.
      Strawberry Cheesecake Dip

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • About
    • FAQ
    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclaimer
    • Contact

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    As seen in

    logos of publications The Toasty Kitchen has been published in.

    Copyright © 2023 The Toasty Kitchen®