1-Preheat oven and prepare baking sheets: Baking salted butterscotch cookies is a straightforward process that brings out their rich, sweet flavors with minimal effort. Start by preheating your oven to 350°F and lining two baking sheets with parchment paper to set the stage for even baking. This initial step ensures your cookies bake uniformly and avoid sticking, making the whole process more enjoyable.

2-Gathering and Mixing the Ingredients: In a small bowl, whisk together 1⅔ cups (210g) all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, and ¼ teaspoon kosher salt; set this aside for later use. Next, in a large bowl, beat ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, ½ cup (107g) packed light brown sugar, and ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar for about 2 minutes until the mixture is smooth, remembering to scrap the bowl as needed to combine everything well. This creaming step is key to achieving that perfect texture in your salted butterscotch cookies.

Once the butter and sugars are mixed, add 1 large egg and 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, beating until fully combined to create a smooth base. Now, gradually add the flour mixture you set aside earlier and beat until just combined, being careful not to overmix. To finish the dough, stir in 1 cup (170g) butterscotch chips by hand for even distribution without breaking them down.

3-Shaping and Baking the Cookies: Scoop out 2-tablespoon portions of dough and place them 2 inches apart on your prepared baking sheets for proper spreading during baking. Before popping them in the oven, sprinkle some flaky finishing salt on top of some each dough portion to enhance that salty-sweet contrast. Bake the cookies for 9-11 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through to ensure even cooking until the edges turn golden brown while the centers stay slightly underdone.

After baking, remove the cookies while they’re still very soft and let them cool completely on the baking sheets to set their shape. If you like, gently press a few additional butterscotch chips onto the tops of the warm cookies for extra flavor and visual appeal. This recipe takes just 12 minutes to prep and 10 minutes to cook, yielding about 12-14 cookies in a total time of 22 minutes, making it ideal for quick treats as outlined in our cookie baking tips section.