INGREDIENTS
- 11 ounce package butterscotch chips about 1 3/4 cups
- 6 ounces chow mein noodles about 3 1/2 cups
- 1/2 cup chopped peanuts or other nuts such as cashews
INSTRUCTIONS
- Combine chow mein noodles and peanuts in a large bowl, mixing them together.
- Melt butterscotch chips in the microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring between bursts, until melted.
- Use a rubber spatula to scoop the melted butterscotch over the noodles and peanuts. Mix until noodles are coated.
- Use a tablespoon measure to scoop out noodles onto wax paper, forming a haystack. Repeat until the noodles are used up.
- Refrigerate until the haystacks are hardened, about 30 minutes.
Who’s ready for a super easy recipe? This one has only three ingredients and could not be easier or faster. There isn’t even any actual cooking involved. These butterscotch haystacks can be made by anyone (please invite all of the kids you know), and are a great way to have fun in the kitchen. No precision necessary here.
All that’s involved is taking some crispy chow mein noodles and mixing them with melted butterscotch chips; as for how to melt butterscotch chips, my infallible method is microwaving them in thirty second bursts and stirring between until melted.
Butterscotch haystacks were one of Mr. Savory Tooth’s favorites when he was a kid — he has lots of fond childhood memories of making them in the kitchen with his mom. We think that he originally got the recipe from a kid’s cookbook, and I’ve tried to recreate it as best as I can. I thought about including some mini marshmallows, but Mr. Savory Tooth doesn’t like them in his haystacks so I omitted them here. If you include marshmallows, be sure to add more melted butterscotch to accompany them.
Make sure that you get the right kind of chow mein noodles; I found them in the Asian aisle of my supermarket and bought a 12 ounce bag by La Choy. As photographed here, you can see that these chow mein noodles are cooked, short “noodles” that are light and crunchy. They’re more akin to a snack item or salad topping than the noodles used in the actual chow mein noodles dish.
Instead of Chow Mein noodles, I use French’s Potato Sticks. Love the combo.
Are the peanuts salted? As a kid we just mixed the butterscotch chips and chow mein noodles. They sound delicious with peanuts!
Can I freeze these?
Absolutely, they freeze very well. You can make these haystacks well in advance, and once they’ve hardened, store them in a freezer bag for about 1 month.
I am looking forward to trying this recipe. hope it turns out to be like the one I enjoyed in the 1950’s
How long do these last out at room temp?
Once the butterscotch haystacks are set (hardened), you can store them at room temperature in an airtight container, where they should keep for at least a couple of days. If you store them in the refrigerator, they will last much longer.
Do they freeze well?
I have lost my recipe but instead of nuts we used peanut butter but I can’t remember can’t remember how much peanut butter. Any one use peanut butter (rather crunchy or smooth).
Ok. I’ve a twist on this. Get a can of cream cheese ICING. 12 oz jar pnut butter. Dump both in bowl. Microwave 2 minutes. Stir. Mix in chow mein noodles. Spoon onto parchment paper
How many stacks does it make?? Sounds like a lot.
Woow this is the wonderful recipe. so delicious to taste
Oh we love all things butterscotch! Especially the color. -Laurel Bledsoe
❤?