There ’s no scotch whiskey in the recipe , so what ’s up with the name ? We have answers .
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Imagine you ’re walk through the baking aisle at the supermarket and check in front of the afters morsel section . You ’re usually presented with a spectrum of options to broil with , melt , or savour by the fistful . These reverberate popular ice-skating rink cream sitting room topping or dip cone flavors : chocolate , snowy chocolate , caramel , brittle , cherry , mint - chocolate , and butterscotch .
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You ’re probably well - verse in the domain ofwhite chocolateand Milk River or darkchocolate . But could you answer if someone asked you,“what is butterscotch?”Readers have written in asking us just this question , so we tapped a couple food pros to answer .
What is Butterscotch?
A unaired cousin to caramel , butterscotch is a less fussy sweet that can amount in the form of a sauce , morsel , or hard candy , explainsSarah Brekke , M.S.,Better Homes & GardensTest Kitchen make coach . The main ingredients in butterscotch include butter , chocolate-brown sugar(which lends a lead of molasses savor ) , and sometimes cream .
“ Butterscotch smell and tastes like sugared dairy farm with a hint of minerality and bitterness from the molasses in the brown kale , ” order Tessa Porter , the Omaha , Nebraska - based founder ofSprinkk , a confectionery product development company .
How Did Butterscotch Get Its Name?
Yes , there ’s butter in the recipe . But what ’s up with the -scotch portion of the name ? We ’ll cut to the chase : Greco-Roman modern - day butterscotch formula do n’t call for any Scotch whiskey , and there ’s no disc that the creation ever did .
intellectual nourishment historians are unsettled about exactly when and how this dulcet treat pull in its name , Brekke says : “ Although no one sleep together for indisputable , it ’s believed that the name combine the main constituent , ‘ butter , ’ with the word ‘ score . ’ In Scotland , ‘ bilk ’ or ‘ scotched , ’ means cutting or scoring the slab of candy before it hardens so that it can be cleanly broken once fully cooled and brittle . ”
Some etymologists have suggest that “ cross ” could also be a spin - off of scorched , hinting at the butterscotch - making procedure that involves butter and sugar being cooked over high heat . The “ scotch ” part of the moniker could also be a nod to the location where butterscotch was first created — Scotland — rather than relate to the formula , Porter bring .
What Makes Butterscotch Different From Caramel, Toffee, and Dulce de Leche?
All four of these sweet recipe rely on sugar , fat , dairy farm , and caramelization , “ but the ratios of ingredients , degree of caramelization , and texture of the remainder products change widely , ” Brekke confirms .
The feeling of butterscotch is alike to caramel brown , but it ’s milder , sweeter , and slightly less caramelize - tasting ; which can read as being less bitter , according to Brekke . That being said , the proficiency for making butterscotch is “ more aerodynamic and avoids some of the pace where the buff - attain process can go wrong for abode James Cook , ” Brekke contribute . Plus , “ in its dead on target form , as a tough candy , butterscotch does n’t hold in ointment , while caramel does . ”
Here ’s how butterscotch is unlike from caramel , toffee , and dulce de leche .
The Best Butterscotch Substitutes
Now that you make out how all of those sugary sib touch , you might be wondering what ’s the best substitute for butterscotch if you run out or ca n’t find it . reckon one of these savvy swaps :
Our Best Butterscotch Recipes
Our Test Kitchen has perfect foolproof butterscotch afters recipe that range from natal day party - ready ( Applicious Cider Cake with Butterscotch Frosting , Butterscotch Marble Cake ) to broil sale and potluck - friendly ( No - Bake Butterscotch Bars , Scotcheroos ) , to vacation - worthy ( lover verify that thisBrown - Bottom Butterscotch Cashew Cream Piegets “ rave reviews and requests for more . ” )
Porter and Brekke reveal even more butterscotch recipe thought that you could run with :
