Coconut Butterscotch Chip Brownies

Coconut Butterscotch Chip Brownies are made with your favorite brownie mix and topped with a mixture similar to Magic Cookie Bars, with coconut, butterscotch chips, and semisweet chocolate chips. This recipe transforms an ordinary brownie mix into an extraordinary dessert!

This post was originally published on June 24, 2009. In July 2020 it was updated with new photos and additional commentary.

When I lived in the sorority house my sophomore year of college, our house mom made the most amazing brownies EVER! They were topped with coconut, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips….sooooo good. I never got the recipe because I didn’t really bake back then, but I have since searched high and low for something similar.

About the closest I could come was the recipes for Magic Cookie Bars – which are apparently pretty popular . . . popular enough that Eagle Brand even sells a boxed kit for them.

I decided to try making my own version of the brownies using the Magic Cookie Bar recipe as a template. I also found this recipe for Easy Southern Style Brownies that called for a butter, brown sugar, and coconut mixture, so I decided to try both and see which was closest to what I remember.

When my mom and sister came to visit, I served both brownies and labeled them A and B, then we voted. I referred to them as Magic Brownies for the taste test, but the obvious connotation of that title caused me to rename them as Coconut Butterscotch Chip Brownies (A) and Easy Southern Style Brownies (B).

Original photos from 2009:

Results of the Coconut Butterscotch Chip Brownies Bake Off

My mom and I voted for Magic Brownies A, while Bob and my sister voted for Magic Brownies B. However, after taste testing more extensively, my sister changed her vote to A. Although Bob still maintains his vote for B, but has moved more to the middle. I’m convinced he voted for B because it’s his first initial.  🙂

In my opinion, the topping of B is too sweet. The sweetness of A is perfect, and the brownies were more fudgey because everything cooks together. Although a bit too sweet, the topping of B was nice because it had a crispness from broiling. You really can’t go wrong with either one, but I think I will stick to recipe A from now on.  

Because I preferred option A, I’ll take you through in photos how to make those.

Coconut Butterscotch Chip Brownies Recipe

Prepare the Brownie Mix

You can use your favorite brand store bought brownie mix for this recipe. Alternatively, you could make from scratch brownies. I love the King Arthur Brand Gluten Free Fudge Brownie Mix. No one can tell it’s gluten free! You’ll want to gather the ingredients needed for your particular brownie mix. For me those were eggs, water, and oil.

Prepare the Topping

The topping is simply sweetened condensed milk mixed with sweetened coconut, butterscotch chips, and semisweet chocolate chips.

Assemble the Brownies

I wanted my brownies to be thicker, so I baked them in a 9 x 9-inch square baking dish. First I sprayed it with non-stick Canola cooking spray so the brownie would be easier to remove from the pan after baking. I then transferred the brownie batter to the dish.

Next, I gently scooped the filling mixture on top and then smoothed it out evenly.

Bake the Brownies

The brownies are baked according to the package instructions, but they may need extra time because of the topping. If you notice that the topping is getting too brown before the brownies are finished, cover the dish with aluminum foil to protect the topping from burning.

After the brownies cooled, I cut them into 16 squares.

Host Your Own Bake Off

If you’d like to have a bake off of your own, you can simply prepare 1 brownie mix and use half for A and half for B using 1 9-inch round pan for each, which is what I did for this contest. In that case, reduce the amount of ‘topping’ listed in the recipe cards by half for each recipe.

Gluten Free Coconut Butterscotch Chip Brownies

Use a gluten free brownie mix for an entirely gluten free dessert. My favorite gluten free brownie mix is King Arthur Flour Fudge Brownie Mix. It tastes just like traditional brownies!

Looking for more Brownies?

Check out these Brownie recipes:
Best Gooey Brownies
Rainbow Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Roasted Cherry Brownie Sundaes with Cherry Port Sauce
Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies
Chewy Fudgy Brownies
Dark Chocolate Mascarpone Brownies with Blueberry Ganache
Ina’s Outrageous Brownies
Coconut Butterscotch Chip Brownies {Magic Cookie Bar Brownies}