To me, nothing tastes more like Christmas than these sweet, salty and crunchy butterscotch candies. They aren’t much to look at, but they are super simple to make, and I guarantee that your friends and family will rave about them.
For as far back as I can remember, my Nana always had a plate of these butterscotch corn flakes on the Christmas snack table. One year, my mom got the recipe and started adding them to her plates of Christmas cookies, and so the butterscotch corn flakes got spread around to even more friends and family. After I moved away from home, I started making them for my own friends and, after I got married, my husband’s family. I’ve made them in Oregon, Florida, Sicily, and now southern Callifornia, and the recipe has been passed from friend to friend all across the country. I have yet to meet a person who doesn’t love them, and if you make these for your friends, be prepared to share the recipe!
With only three ingredients, and no baking required, these are probably the simplest holiday treat you will ever make. Enjoy!
Butterscotch Corn Flake Candy
1 package butterscotch chips (11 oz.)
3/4 cup dry-roasted salted peanuts
4 cups corn flakes cereal
1. Pour butterscotch chips into a large microwave-safe bowl and heat in the microwave, checking and stirring every 30 seconds, until chips are melted. It took about a minute and a half in my microwave. Be sure not to cook them for too long, or the butterscotch candy will seize up. If you prefer, you can melt the chips in a double boiler, then scrape the melted butterscotch into a large bowl.
2. Add corn flakes and peanuts to the melted butterscotch and stir until everything is thoroughly coated. Line a counter top with waxed paper and drop spoonfuls of the warm corn flake mixture onto the waxed paper. Allow to cool for 15 minutes. Candy may be stored in an airtight container or large zippered plastic bags for two weeks.
Yield: 2 to 3 dozen pieces
Nom nom nom. We used to make these with golden syrup and chocolate, I think and called them cornflake cakes.
3:07 pm Dec 15th, 2009wow, memories come right back after seeing this. haven’t made these in decades.
3:15 pm Dec 15th, 2009My daughter and I make these every year. She loves them. We def add more candy to the mix though.
3:43 pm Dec 15th, 2009Thanks Nicole, I’m proud to say because of you and your Mom they are now a part of my family holiday tradition. Once I forgot to make it and I had to make a midnight visit to a freaking market to get the stuff to make them! I’m so glad you decided to share this with the world!
4:26 pm Dec 15th, 2009Wow, what a great looking, simple recipe! I plan on trying it tomorrow night with some friends. Also, what beautiful photos you always post! Thank you for sharing the recipe with the world.
4:38 pm Dec 15th, 2009Those look great!! I dont think I have ever had one!!!
Blessings-
4:57 pm Dec 15th, 2009Amanda
Ooh, I love butterscotch!! I have a feeling these are going to be a favourite Christmas treat!!
5:13 pm Dec 15th, 2009Made cornflake cupcakes once, and they were so good. This is a nice variation to the haystack tradition too.
5:17 pm Dec 15th, 2009I don’t believe that I’ve ever had this. How can that be? I feel deprived.
5:40 pm Dec 15th, 2009wow…saw these with marshmellow, but the butterscotch sound MUCH better
5:49 pm Dec 15th, 2009Oooh I love butterscotch chips. I recall eating an entire bag over a period of a few days as a teenager. This seems like something that would also be a good way to use the crazy amount of crumbs at the bottom of a bag of Mini Wheats.
5:51 pm Dec 15th, 2009Mmm I think these look great! I am liking the 3 ingredient list too
7:27 pm Dec 15th, 2009I have forgotten about these. They are good and so easy. So glad that you are back posting. I have missed reading them. Thanks.
8:11 am Dec 16th, 2009You are a life saver. I have to make 13 dozen cookies for a cookie party and I am the world’s WORST cookie baker. I am totally doing these instead! They sound super duper YUMMY!
Thanks.
9:18 am Dec 16th, 2009A version of this featured at every hoilday event in grade school – with green food coloring, shaped into wreaths with red vine or gel frosting bows. Different moms made them, but they always showed up, along with white chocolate covered oreos and peanut butter buckeyes. So silly, but a big part of my childhood. Thanks for the memory.
4:38 pm Dec 16th, 2009I think my mom made something similar and I LOVED them as a kid. I don’t have butterscotch chips on hand, but I do have peanut butter chips and I think that would make a worthy sub. And they are easy, love it.
11:21 pm Dec 16th, 2009I’m going to try this on the weekend and if it’s amazing (and I trust that it is), I’ll be pulling these out for the random last minute ‘hey can you bring something tonight’ requests. Great pics too!
11:47 pm Dec 16th, 2009Yippy! Easy AND yummy. I am going to add them to my Christmas plate… in Florence!
12:08 am Dec 17th, 2009Reminds me of my childhood, especially at primary school. This was our Friday treat.
8:34 am Dec 17th, 2009Oh wow, what a memory. My great-great aunt used to make these each year but with those fried noodles sticks. She has long since passed away but I fondly remember her holiday confections.
7:59 am Dec 18th, 2009Celebrity chefs cooking heart healthy, low-fat, high protein recipes with pistachio nuts are really putting some interesting things together for people who want to eat well, and for people dealing with weight management, chronic disease prevention, and heart disease: http://thegreennut.org/recipes/index.html
4:20 pm Dec 19th, 2009They look delicious! Can you freeze them you think?
5:45 pm Dec 19th, 2009I make something very similar, expect that it has marshmallows in it also.
9:09 am Dec 20th, 2009just made my first batch of the season. Thanks Nicole.
2:16 pm Dec 20th, 2009I am so excited about this quick and easy recipe! This website is fabulous! And the photographs are amazing! I’m also excited to wow the crowd on Christmas with your red velvet cake! Thanks for the ideas : )
11:31 am Dec 23rd, 2009those look so yummy. i wish i had cornflakes! if i had cornflakes, i’d be making them right now!!
12:07 pm Dec 26th, 2009I haven’t had these in a long time, almost forgot how godd they are. Although we add some mini chocolate chips. Have to make these sweet and salty bites today.
5:40 am Mar 30th, 2010Nice post!
1:20 am Aug 13th, 2010Very informative blog. I learn a lot of knowledge and I look forward to future post.
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