Gluten-Free Oatmeal Scotchies (Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies)

Start With Simple Ingredients

Another thing to love about these delicious cookies? They use SIMPLE ingredients! Let’s take a look:

• Softened Butter. You want it soft, but not warm or shiny. It should still be cool to the touch with just a *little* give when you press down with your finger. (See what it should look like here)
• Brown Sugar & Sugar. A blend of brown sugar & white sugar adds sweetness & keeps these yummy cookies soft and chewy.
• Eggs. Just enough to bind everything together and give the cookies some puff.
• Vanilla. I like a generous amount of vanilla extract in my gluten-free oatmeal scotchies to plays up the butterscotch and cinnamon notes!
• Gluten-Free Flour. To keep things simple, I use a good-quality measure-for-measure flour (we like this one from King Arthur Baking best!) If you use another blend, be sure that it contains xanthan gum.
• Gluten-Free Rolled Oats. I’ve made gluten-free oatmeal butterscotch cookies with rolled oats and quick oats and honestly, either will work just great in this recipe.
• Cornstarch. A secret trick to give these gluten-free oatmeal scotchies a little extra chewiness & softness.
• Baking Soda. To help the cookies rise and spread. Make sure you’re using fresh baking soda for the best results!
• Cinnamon, If You Want. Not everyone adds cinnamon to their oatmeal scotchies, but I’m adding a bit here. It’s lovely with the butterscotch and vanilla!
• Salt. Using enough salt is pretty important in this gluten-free cookie recipe. It’ll help balance the signature sweetness of the butterscotch chips.
• Butterscotch Chips. And, last but not least, they wouldn’t be gluten-free oatmeal scotchies without plenty of sweet butterscotch chips! Tollhouse brand is the most widely available where I live, but you can certainly experiment with other brands (I also like Guittard!). (If you’re dairy-free, you can use these King David vegan butterscotch chips!)

WE ♥

FAQ + Tips And Tricks For The Best Gluten-Free Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies

Do NOT Skip The Chill Time! There are some cookie recipes you can make without chilling the dough, but this isn’t one of them. Chilling the dough allows the flour and oats to hydrate and soften, which means the cookies spread *just* the right amount, and they won’t end up dry or gritty. If you don’t chill the dough, the oats can be tough, the dough can feel a bit gritty, and the cookies will spread too much.

Cut The Sweetness By Using Half Chocolate Chips! Butterscotch chips are quite sweet, so if you want to cut that flavor a bit (or are just looking to mix things up!), try using half chocolate chips (semi-sweet or dark work best) and half butterscotch chips. This is actually my favorite way to make these!

Finish With Flaky Sea Salt. Another way to balance the sweetness even more is by adding a tiny sprinkle of flaky sea salt on top of the freshly baked cookies. It won’t make them salty, it’ll just balance the flavor. So yummy!

Can You Use Quick Oats Instead Of Rolled Oats In Oatmeal Cookies? Yes! In my tests, I made batches using quick cooking oats and batches using rolled/old-fashioned oats. Both worked out great. Quick oats have a finer texture which can be easier for some kids, while the thicker, larger rolled oats will make them look especially like an oatmeal cookie.

Gluten-Free? Be Sure To Use Gluten-Free Oats! Oats themselves don’t contain wheat gluten, but they’re often processed and grown in ways that cause cross-contamination. Be sure you’re buying certified gluten-free oats to avoid getting glutened! We like Trader Joe’s, Bob’s Red Mill, One Degree & more.