Cinnamon Butterscotch Bars

I had a bag of butterscotch chips kicking around for a while and baking that needed to be done for Christmas. The only problem - I wasn't feeling it. 'It' being the holiday spirit that pushes you to bake more cookies than can possibly be eaten in a day or two by your entire extended family. Or even in a week.

It was weird because I love to bake. And here I was without any motivation to roll, cut, fill, or even decorate cookies, the part I love the most. I joked that someone must have put a baking curse on me. But I wasn't laughing when the first three things I did make turned out to be total bombs. A dark cloud came over me. I was tempted to turn into Scrooge and fore go my holiday baking.

Instead, I got down to business. Time was running short and there was no way I could leave Santa's plate empty. I wanted to be on the 'nice' list. I turned to easy, one-bowl cookies without a lot of ingredients. Cookies that would still taste divine but didn't require a lot of time. These were the best of them. I prefer this soft, rich bar cookie-cake over a drop cookie any day. I was really happy with the way these turned out. I used lots of cinnamon and vanilla to bring out the buttery brown sugar-like flavors of the butterscotch chips.

They were better on the second day then the first, and even better than that on the third - the flavor developed over time. These quick, easy, and simple little treats were my favorite out of all the cookies brought to our table. The fact that their really sweet and rich doesn't make it any easier to stop with just one. Especially frosted with this irresistible cream cheese icing.


 

Cinnamon Butterscotch Bars

(by Reeni)

3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1 and 1/2 teaspoons Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
2 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon Sea salt
1 package butterscotch chips, 11 ounces
1 cup chopped nuts, optional

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 - 8 ounce package of cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

a dash of salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13x9x2 baking pan. Line with parchment if desired and lightly grease again.

2. In a large bowl beat the butter, both sugars, and cinnamon together until creamy. Add the vanilla and eggs; beat well.

3. In a medium bowl stir together the flour, baking soda and salt. Add to the wet mixture 1/3 at a time, beating well after each addition.

4. Stir in butterscotch chips and nuts. Spread in pan.

5. Bake for 30 minutes until center is set and top is golden brown. Let cool on a wire rack.

6. In a large bowl beat all the ingredients for the cream cheese frosting until light and fluffy about 6-7 minutes.

7. Frost bars and refrigerate an hour or two before slicing. Slice into 1 or 2-inch squares, wiping the knife after each cut if needed. Store in fridge or in a very cool place.

Print Recipe 

P.S. Santa LOVED them! He left me the best gifts!

Wishing you peace, love, health, wealth & happiness in the New Year! XOXO