My butterscotch delight is straight from my grandma’s kitchen. It’s a delicious nostalgic dessert with a pecan sandies crust and layers of sweet cream cheese and butterscotch pudding. This easy dessert is perfect for potlucks, holidays, and family gatherings.

There is something about a creamy layered dessert that I can’t resist. Two of my absolute favorites are my mom’s Robert Redford dessert and my grandma’s butterscotch delight.

This is an old fashioned recipe that we would have for holidays and Sunday dinner growing up. This dessert always impresses with it’s pretty creamy layers but it’s surprisingly easy to make. Rich, creamy, and full of butterscotch flavor, it’s a cool dessert perfect for the warm months, or any time of year.

Through the years of making butterscotch lush, I have experimented with different crusts. I really love using Pecan Sandies cookies to make the crust because they are perfectly buttery and crunchy. Be sure to scroll down for a few other variations if you want to switch things up.

Want more butterscotch, be sure to try these butterscotch brownies.

Why you’ll love this recipe

• Classic dessert. This is a nostalgic dessert that is always family favorite.
• Creamy, delicious texture. Light, creamy, and delicious butterscotch flavor.
• Can be made ahead of time. You can make this the night before to serve the next day.
• Great for many occasions. Serve this for potlucks, cookouts, holidays, or even a Sunday dessert.

Ingredients

This old fashioned butterscotch delight dessert can be made with simple ingredients.

• Pecan Sandies cookies: Buttery cookies that are crumbled to form the dessert crust.
• All purpose flour: This is mixed with the cookie crumbs to help form the crust.
• Butter: Unsalted, melted butter is combined with the flour and crumbled cookies to make the crust.
• Cream cheese: Softened cream cheese is the base of the creamy layer.
• Powdered sugar: Gives sweetness to the cream cheese layer.
• Frozen whipped topping: Thawed frozen whipped topping is used for the cream cheese layer and the topping of the butterscotch delight.
• Butterscotch pudding: Make sure to get instant butterscotch pudding mix to make this recipe.
• Milk: Cold milk is used to make the butterscotch pudding layer.

How to make butterscotch delight

Step one: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the cookies in a food processor and pulse until the cookies become crumbs.

Step two: In a bowl, stir together the cookie crumbs, flour, and melted butter. Press the mixture into a 9 x 13 baking dish to form a crust. Bake for 10 minutes. Let the crust completely cool.

Step three: In a large bowl, mix together the cream cheese and powdered sugar until creamy. Stir in one tub of whipped topping.

Step four: Spread the cream cheese mixture over the cooled crust.

Step five: In a separate bowl, whisk together the butterscotch pudding and cold milk until it thickens. Spread over the cream cheese mixture.

Step five: Spread the other tub of whipped topping over the butterscotch pudding.

Step six: Top with toffee bits. Cover and let the chill in the refrigerator for about an hour before serving.

How to get clean layers

If you want to get those pretty, clean layers, I recommend refrigerating each layer for about 15 minutes before adding the next layer. This makes it easier to spread without combining with the layer below.

Heather’s recipe tips

• Top tip, soften the cream cheese. This is important so that the cream cheese layer is nice and creamy.
• Press the crust firmly into the baking dish. Pressing it firmly helps the crust hold together.
• Make sure the crust cools completely. This will help prevent the layers from melting on top of the crust.
• Be sure to use cold milk for the butterscotch pudding layer.
• Use a spatula or offset spatula to smooth out the layers.
• Chill the butterscotch lush before serving.

Variations and substitutions

There are a few different ways to make this butterscotch delight dessert.

• Toppings: You can substitute toffee bits with Heath Bar bits, butterscotch chips, chopped pecans, or caramel sauce drizzle.
• Crust: Substitute the pecan sandies cookies with Golden Oreos, graham crackers, or Nilla Wafer cookies.

Storage instructions

Store: Keep any leftover butterscotch delight covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Freeze: This lush can be frozen for up to 2 months. The texture will be a little different once thawed.

More nostalgic dessert recipes

• Apricot nectar cake
• Strawberry angel food cake
• Dandy do cookies
• Pink lady cake
• Punch bowl cake