These Salted Peanut Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies are studded with roasted peanuts, and butterscotch chips and sprinkled with flaky sea salt! They are a decadent twist on your traditional oatmeal cookie. Ready in 30 minutes!
This cookie has brought together many of my favorite flavors and textures. It’s seriously so good. Let’s go over why: 1) Salted because I’m a firm believer that a sprinkle of high-quality flaky sea salt makes any dessert exponentially better. 2) Peanuts…because I love some good crunch in my cookie. 3) Butterscotch, oh my sweet yumminess, because they’re delicious and add the perfect touch of sweetness.
These things add up to one delicious cookie (or a few dozen). The inspiration for the recipe came from my kitchen organization. I keep my flour, sugars, oats, and some baking chips in little clear containers stacked on one of our countertops. I was doing some rearranging…I put my butterscotch chips on top of peanuts and thought, “Hmm…those would taste delicious together.” Next to them was the oatmeal container, and voila: Salted Peanut Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies were born.
These oatmeal cookies are not thin and wimpy. The dough bakes up thick, holding together all the mix-ins that make this cookie taste so darn good. I like to use rolled oats in my oatmeal cookies because I prefer the hearty texture. Quick oats, on the other hand, tend to act more like flour and will absorb more liquid.
I used dry-roasted, unsalted peanuts in this recipe, and I adore the crunch and flavor of the peanuts. They work so well with the sweet, caramel flavor of the butterscotch chips. Butterscotch chips are one of my favorite things, but I’m not going to lie. I sometimes forget about them in favor of gooey dark chocolate. Today, though, the butterscotch chips are shining in the sun.
Yes, they’re sweet, but the bits of flaky sea salt offset that sweetness perfectly. Let’s be honest: it’s a cookie, so the sweetness of delicious butterscotch chips is always welcome. These cookies would be a fun addition to any cookie platter this holiday season, but they work anytime. They’re just good – so if you’re a peanut and/or butterscotch fan, give ’em a go. They’ll be devoured before you know it.

Salted Peanut Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, slightly softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 4.25 oz cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon table salt
- 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 cup butterscotch chips
- 1 cup roasted peanuts, chopped
- Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling on top, like Maldon or fleur de sel
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Beat butter and sugars until fully combined and fluffy. Scrape down bowl with rubber spatula, then add egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated.
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and table salt in a separate medium bowl. Add flour mixture gradually and mix until barely incorporated. Add oats, butterscotch chips, and peanuts and mix until just incorporated (don’t over-mix!).
- Using an cookie scoop (or your hands!) form 1.5-tablespoon sized balls and place on a lined baking sheet. Gently press down each ball to about 3/4-inch thickness.
- Sprinkle a pinch of salt on top of each cookie.
- Bake until cookies are light golden brown, about 12 to 14 minutes. Cool on a wire cooling rack.



So many good things stuffed in those babies!! Yum!
I cannot resist a good salty/sweet treat! Unfortunately butterscotch chips are impossible to find in the UK! I always have to get my friends and family from Canada to send them to me. :(
Thanks, Aisling. What a bummer!! I wish I could send you bags of them :) These cookies would be awesome with white or dark or milk chocolate too!
love thick oatmeal cookies! The cookies look fantastic Rachel, such an awesome combination of flavors. Pinned.
Those are such thick cookies! The peanuts and oatmeal sound like a great combination to me, they look so good!
Butterscotch is so underused in my kitchen! These cookies look absolutely fantastic! So nice and thick!
LOVE oatmeal cookies. And sweet and salty. And butterscotch. They look amazing!
so much goodness packed in one little cookie — it should be illegal!!
I love it when you can combine all of your favorite ingredients into one awesome cookie! They also happen to be some of my favorite ingredients too! I’m seriously loving these cookies :)
What an awesome flavor combination! Definitely have to try these cookies soon! Pinned!
Oh my GAWD Rachel – these cookies look amazing!! I *LOVE* how thick and loaded up they are. I know what to use my butterscotch chips for. Talk about a serious cookie. :)