Why are my peanut butter balls too soft?

If your butter was too soft or if the peanut butter you're using is too thin , the filling can get a little soft and sticky as you're rolling. The refrigerator can fix that—stop what you're doing and chill the bowl of filling for 15 minutes in the refrigerator before trying again to roll into balls.

Where are Scotcheroos from?

Scotcheroos are dessert bars with chocolate, butterscotch, peanut butter, and Rice Krispies. The recipe was originally printed on Rice Krispies box in the mid-1960s. They are popular in the Midwestern United States, especially Minnesota, Iowa and North Dakota .

How do you make peanut butter more solid?

Some obvious ways: add a little starch — use a cooked or pure starch (Wondra, potato starch, etc.) add a little gelatin and beat like heck. drain the peanut butter — set it in cheesecloth or something similar, in a colander, a... Dec 13, 2022

How do you keep peanut butter firm?

It's quite simple actually. All you have to do is store the peanut butter jar upside-down in the fridge . Once you're ready to spread or scoop just flip the jar over, open it, and scoop—no stirring required!

Why are Scotcheroos called Scotcheroos?

Originally printed on a box of Rice Krispies back in the 1960's, Scotcheroo gets it's name from a key ingredient: butterscotch !

What's the difference between Special K and Scotcheroos?

This is all up to you! To some, a Scotcharoo is made with Rice Krispie treats — to others, it's the exact same as the Special K Bar. There really is not much of a difference here!

Why are they called Scotcheroos?

Scotcheroos is a crispy dessert treat with origins in the United States of America. It consists of cereals based on rice or corn, peanut butter, and a decadent butterscotch-chocolate coating. Scotcheroos got their name after one of the key ingredients used in the preparation process – butterscotch .

Why are my buckeyes soft?

Skipping the final chill . While the chocolate shell will mostly solidify at room temp, without one last quick stint in the fridge, it won't totally firm up into that irresistible hard, snappy coating you expect. Follow this tip: Pop your tray of buckeyes back in the fridge for one last chill.

Why are my peanut butter balls not forming?

The mixture should be easy to roll into balls that stay together while not being sticky. If it is sticky, add just a little more powdered sugar. If it won't form into a ball, add just a little more peanut butter .

How do you harden soft peanut brittle?

I have experimented heating the candy between 285-300 degrees . I like heating to 300 if it is immediately taken off the heat and cooled. It hardens quickly if you go over 300 even a little bit. Most people have had success with the brittle at any temp in between 285-300, but like I said, I prefer closer to 300 degrees.

How do you make peanut butter less stiff?

When using peanut butter only, the key is heat. Peanut butter is naturally high in fat, but that fat is nearly solid at room temperature. In order to soften it up, you need some heat. In my case, I heated two tablespoons in a heat-proof bowl and then stirred like crazy .

Scotcheroos Recipe - Sally's Baking Addiction (2024)

Made from just 8 ingredients, these no-bake scotcheroos cereal bars are chewy, crispy, and downright irresistible. Combining butterscotch, real chocolate, creamy peanut butter, sea salt, and rice krispies cereal, these are as easy as they are flavorful. Most traditional recipes call for corn syrup, but I use honey instead.

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This recipe is part of my annual holiday cookie countdown called Sally’s Cookie Palooza. Scotcheroos definitely count as holiday cookies. In fact, I can’t think of any holiday where these bars aren’t welcome. 😉

What are Scotcheroos Bars?

Scotcheroos are a no-bake cereal bar similar to rice krispie treats. Replace the marshmallows and butter with sugar and peanut butter, then add a chocolate butterscotch topping. They’re chewy, soft, and crispy all in one. Obviously this is a dessert you need to make today and every other day of the year. They smell like a dream and literally FLY OFF THE COOKIE TRAY whenever I bring them anywhere. They cause an absolute frenzy.

And they’re wildly easy to make.

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Homemade Scotcheroos Without Corn Syrup

The original scotcheroos recipe comes from Kelloggs. It’s divine, as you can imagine, but I’ve been switching a few things based on what I have on hand. The original recipe calls for 1 cup of corn syrup and 1 cup of sugar, but I actually use 1 cup of honey and 1/2 cup of sugar. The bars are still plenty sweet and I appreciate *a little* unrefined sugar where I can get it. (Obviously these are not health food, but you get the idea.)

These scotcheroos are made without corn syrup, have a little less sugar, and are topped with sea salt to offset some sweetness. I also increase the ingredients in the topping so we have a thicker layer of chocolate butterscotch. YES.

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Just 8 Ingredients

Honey: I use honey instead of corn syrup. Honey adds flavor too!
Sugar: You need 1/2 cup of regular granulated sugar to mix with the honey.
Peanut Butter: Natural-style would be totally fine, but for best texture, I recommend a creamy peanut butter like Jif or Skippy. You need 1 cup.
Vanilla Extract: A splash of vanilla extract is totally welcome with these flavors! I don’t make rice krispie treats without it either.
Crispy Rice Cereal: This cereal is the base of the scotcheroo filling.
Butterscotch Morsels: We’ll use butterscotch morsels (like chocolate chips, but butterscotch flavor) in the topping. See below for more info!
Chocolate: You need 6 ounces of chocolate for the topping, which is 1.5 four ounce baking bars. I really like Ghirardelli or Bakers brand, found in the baking aisle.
Coconut Oil: Coconut oil thins out the chocolate butterscotch topping. Without it, the topping would be stiff and clumpy. Butter works too.

And sea salt for a little garnish!

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How to Make Scotcheroos

Simmer the sugar and honey together on the stove. Make sure it doesn’t come to a boil. The purpose of this step is to melt down the sugar, so it’s a little less granular.
Add peanut butter and vanilla extract.
Stir in the crispy rice cereal. Taste it. Fall in love.
Spread into a 9×13-inch pan. Use a spatula to softly spread the mixture evenly into the pan, then lightly pat it down. Don’t compact it too much, though. Packing it down too much will lend you thin and hard bars. We want soft and chewy. 🙂 I recommend the same technique when making white chocolate Lucky Charms treats, too.
Melt chocolate, butterscotch, and coconut oil together. I recommend using the stove.
Spread on top. Sprinkle with sea salt, if desired.
Chill until set. This takes about 2 hours.

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Chocolate Butterscotch Topping Success

Scotcheroos are typically “frosted” with a chocolate butterscotch topping made from butterscotch morsels/chips and chocolate chips. If you’ve ever tried melting butterscotch morsels before you know that… they don’t really melt. And if you’re lucky enough to melt them down properly, the consistency is stiff, chalky, and thick. I’ve found that butterscotch morsels melt down much easier the fresher they are. Old bags are impossible to melt down, but I have better luck with newer bags.

Same goes with chocolate chips. They aren’t made to melt. That’s why we use them in chocolate chip cookies and such—so they hold their chocolate chip shape! Anyway, we can avoid all the melting headaches by combining butterscotch morsels with real chocolate and coconut oil. Real chocolate = the 4 ounce baking chocolate bars found in the baking aisle. That’s what I always recommend you use when you want to melt down chocolate.

And if you don’t have coconut oil, replace with a Tablespoon of butter. We need a fat that is solid at room temperature, so don’t try using another oil.

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The topping is thick, but spreads easily. Top with a little sea salt for extra flavor.

Trust me, you’re going to be VERY happy about all this:

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Sally’s Cookie Palooza

This recipe is part of my annual cookie countdown called Sally’s Cookie Palooza. It’s the biggest, most delicious event of the year! Browse dozens of cookie recipes over on the Sally’s Cookie Palooza page including:

Chocolate Ginger Cookies
Peanut Butter Blossoms
Hot Cocoa Cookies
Oatmeal Scotchies

For more holiday dessert inspiration, see my full list of 75+ Christmas cookies.