Butterscotch pecan cookies

I was never a big chocolate fan growing up; these were my go-to cookies instead of classic chocolate chips, but it's probably been almost ten years since I've made them. I had been on an ongoing search for accidentally vegan butterscotch chips for a long time when I learned there are a few locations on the east coast that sell these dairy-free morsels (Price Chopper and Food Lion). Some gracious folks were willing to mail some over. It's probably for the best that I don't have regular access to butterscotch chips. They're filled with partially hydrogenated fats, artificial flavorings, and all sorts of things I would generally avoid, but as a rare treat, I don't mind indulging in these soft, chewy cookies.

This recipe is just the basic Toll House cookie with a couple modifications: soy yogurt for eggs and doubled-up brown sugar for an extra molasses chew that matches well with the butterscotch chips. Buttery pecans finish things off with a smooth crunch.




Butterscotch pecan cookies
2 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup margarine, softened
1 1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
3 tbs. plain soy yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 c. butterscotch chips
3/4 c. chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 375F. Line cookie sheets with parchment.

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt, and set aside.

Cream the margarine and sugar together until slightly fluffy, then add the yogurt and vanilla and beat until combined. Slowly stir in the flour mixture, then once combined, stir in the chips and nuts.

Drop rounded tablespoons onto your prepared cookie sheets and use a dampened finger to flatten slightly. Bake for 8-10 minutes until just barely turning golden. Remove from oven and let cookies cool on the sheet for about 2 minutes, then slide the entire parchment sheet to a wire rack to cool completely.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow, what a kick-ass combo! I have a whole lot of these butterscotch chips kicking around and can't figure out what to do with them, so this might be a perfect solution...

x said...

Your cookies look good, I think I will make them w/ white chocolate chips as I have never seen butterscotch chips in Aust.

Anonymous said...

These look fantastic!
I am really curious about those butterscotch chips and in this case I could do without the chocolate :D

Bex said...

these look so good and I've got some butterscotch chips just begging to be used in the cupboard.

Melisser; the Urban Housewife said...

Man, these sound good & I'm not even a pecan person!

tofufreak said...

these sound awesome! they look good too :D

Anonymous said...

butterscotch = childhood favorite... these look so delicious!

Anonymous said...

Hey, who'd have thunk it? Just when I'm lamenting about how I wish I had access to Teese I come across this article telling me I can get vegan butterscotch chips at the Food Lion (it's a pretty pathetic grocery store but it's the only one in my teeny tiny town so in a pinch it works). I am definitely going to sacrifice my "no partially hydrogenated oils" rule for these cookies. Yum!

Anonymous said...

This butterscotch chips looks so beautiful, I'm sure it'll be a big hit with the kids!Although I'm to a big fan of butterscotch chips, this sure looks yummy! I'm normally the one that will say no to butterscotch chips.

Deanna said...

I just made these tonight because I wanted to use up the butterscotch chips and pecans I still had left over from desserts I made for Thanksgiving, and I was looking for something to take for Memorial Day weekend. I had french vanilla yogurt that I wanted to finish soon, so I used that instead of the plain yogurt and just didn't use vanilla. I didn't have whole wheat pastry flour, so I used two cups of whole wheat flour and 1/4 cup AP flour.

These turned out delicious and smell so good! I tried one right out of the oven, and they're a little too rich for me, but I think that keeping them in the refrigerator and eating them cold might calm them down a little. However, if you love rich cookies and really love the taste of butterscotch, these are wonderful! Next time I might decrease the chips and increase the pecans.

Deanna said...

Also, I'd be curious to know if anyone tried to cut down on the butter and use something else instead.