This Easy Keto Butterscotch Layered Dessert is a silky, creamy pudding recipe that is super easy with only 8 ingredients! Each bite is a combination of a sweet and crunchy crust with alternating layers of smooth cream cheese, and delicious sugar-free butterscotch pudding topped with whipped cream. So easy yet completely unforgettable!
Keto Butterscotch - A first for this blog!
I can not believe that I have never posted a sugar-free butterscotch recipe on this blog! Having made Keto Sweetened Condensed Milk as well as other pudding-style desserts like these Easy Mini Keto Banana Pudding Cookie Cups, this Keto Lemon Pudding as well as these Easy Keto Key Lime Pie Cups, my blog is no stranger to creamy desserts!
But, until recently, butterscotch pudding was not readily available in a sugar-free and keto-friendly format. That's where Simply Delish came to the rescue!
This recipe is uber simple thanks to using 2 packages of Simply Delish Butterscotch Pudding mix. This is my favourite pre-mixed pudding – it is Keto certified, contains no artificial colours or flavours and is also plant-based and vegan. If you are in a pinch, you could use Kraft Sugar-Free Butterscotch Pudding but just know that it contains cornstarch and maltodextrin which can cause blood sugar spikes.
This easy keto dessert comes together quickly and is the perfect combination of a crispy crust with luxuriously creamy, velvet-rich, and totally unforgettable with cream cheese, sugar-free butterscotch pudding and whipped cream layers.
What Does Butterscotch Taste Like?
Although I am a certified peanut butter freak, I still really enjoy a good butterscotch flavour!
So, what's the difference between Butterscotch, Toffee and Caramel in terms of flavours? When it comes to butterscotch and toffee you've got a lot of the same ingredients. They also use butter, vanilla, and heavy whipping cream, but it's the sugar that differentiates these two from caramel. While caramel uses white sugar, both butterscotch and toffee use brown sugar.
Butterscotch has a richer and deeper flavour when compared to caramel (PS - you could always drizzle a little homemade keto caramel sauce over these bars for a nice added touch!)
Keto Dessert Recipe Ingredients
Almond flour - To make the crust, we are going to use super-fine almond flour. You can most likely replace the super-fine almond flour with almond meal if you wish.
Butter - I used unsalted butter. The butter will be "cut" into the almond flour. Cutting in butter means incorporating cold butter into the dry ingredients so that the butter stays in little clumps throughout the mixture.
Pecans - Chopped pecans are added from a little added crunchy texture. If you do not like pecans, you can use any nut or seed. You can also elimate the pecans altogether if you wish. The pecans can be either toasted or left raw. You could even use these Keto 5-Minute Caramelized Candied Pecans for a sweeter and crunchier twist.
Sweetener - I used a combination of powdered allulose (or confectioner Swerve) and Lakanto Golden (erythritol-based). The powdered sweetener is added to the heavy cream and cream cheese as it dissolves much better than erythritol sweeteners and does not crystallize as it cools. However, since I wanted a slight crunch in my crust, I chose to use erythritol for its crystalizing tendencies. If you want to learn more about Keto sweeteners and when to use them, check out my Guide to Keto Sweeteners
Cream Cheese - The cream cheese is going to first be whipped into a delicious sweet creamy filling. You will stir some of the cream cheese into the pudding to help the pudding hold its shape and the rest will be spread on the bottom crust layer.
Heavy Whipping Cream - Heavy whipping cream is combined with powdered allulose until stiff peaks form. Then some of the heavy cream will be mixed into the cream cheese to lighten it ever-so-slightly and the rest will be added as the final top layer of this easy keto layered dessert.
Simply Delish Butterscotch Pudding - You will need 2 packages of pudding mix as the packages are small.
Almond Milk - Almond milk is whisked for about 3 minutes into the powdered pudding. Make sure that you whisk for the full 3-5 minutes or your pudding may end up lumpy (that's what happened to me but I think I kind of liked the added texture!)
Instructions
This recipe is actually quite easy even though it made look like a lot of steps!
Step 1 - Prepare the Crust
Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl and cut the cold butter into 8 pieces
Cut the butter into the dry ingredients using either a fork or your fingers
Press the crust ingredients into a parchment-lined pan that has some parchment overhang (this helps when you need to remove the bars from the pan)
Bake at 350 degrees F. for about 15 minutes or until the crust begins to brown. Remove the pan from the oven and allow the crust to fully cool.
Step 2 - Prepare the Layers
Whipped the cream cheese and ¼ cup of the powdered sweetener until light and fluffy. Reserve about 2-3 tablespoon to be stirred into the pudding mix.
Whisk the pudding mix into the almond milk
Take the reserved (2-3 tbsp) of cream cheese and stir it into the pudding - this will help to solidify the pudding for clean layers.
Whisk ¼ cup of powdered sweetener into the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Take about ½ cup of the whipped heavy cream and stir it into the cream cheese mixture.
Step 3 - Layer the dessert
Begin layering your easy keto dessert once the crust has cooled
Spread the cream cheese over the cooled crust followed by the pudding mixture. Spread each layer evenly
Top with whipped cream and sprinkle with chopped pecans (or other nuts or seeds) if desired
Place the keto butterscotch layered dessert in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight to firm. Slice into 16 servings.
Hint - Dollop the pudding all over the cream cheese layer and be gentle when spreading to layers as the cream cheese layer will not be firm yet.
Substitutions
This recipe has a couple of easy substitutions to suit your dietary restrictions or taste.
- Butterscotch - instead of butterscotch pudding, you can use any flavoured pudding
- Chopped Pecans - use chopped almonds, walnuts, candied pecans or leftover 5-Minute keto granola instead.
- Pudding - if you can't find sugar-free pudding mix, simply take some sugar-free English Toffee stevia drops and stir them into 2 tablespoons of peanut butter and whip it into 1 cup of heavy cream.
Want to make your own butterscotch pudding? Check out these sugar-free homemade butterscotch pudding recipes by Low Carb Yum, Kali Eats Keto or by Glow Life Foodie.
Pro Tips for Making Keto butterscotch Layered Dessert
- You can easily make the crust the day before, cover it and leave it at room temperature until you are ready to layer the dessert
- I like to use my fingers to incorporate the crust ingredients but a food processor works as well
- Leave a parchment overhang to allow for easy removal of the bars
- For clean-cut lines, place the bars in the freezer for about 30 minutes (just like I did for my Keto Oreo Icebox Cake)
- Whisk the pudding well or you may have some clumps. If you end up with clumps and this bothers you, simply press the pudding through a fine mesh strainer to remove the clumps
- Make sure that your heavy cream is very cold before whipping it; otherwise, it will not whip well (I like to place my bowl and beaters in the freezer for 15 minutes to make sure that everything is nice and cold.
Storage
These bars must be stored in the fridge and will keep for 3-5 days. You can also freeze these bars for up to 3 months. Simply thaw the bars in the fridge until ready to serve.
Recipe adapted from Taste of Home
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Easy Keto Butterscotch Layer Bars
This Easy Keto Butterscotch Layered Dessert is a silky, creamy pudding recipe that is super easy with only 8 ingredients! Each bite is a combination of a sweet and crunchy crust with alternating layers of smooth cream cheese, and delicious sugar-free butterscotch pudding topped with whipped cream. So easy yet completely unforgettable!
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 16 bars 1x
Ingredients
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 cup almond flour
- ½ cup chopped pecans (or sliced almonds), divided
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup powdered sweetener, divided
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 cups almond milk
- 2 packages (1.7 ounces each) Simply Delish Keto Instant butterscotch pudding
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a small bowl, cut the butter into the almond flour until crumbly; stir in ¼ cup pecans. Press into a greased 9x9-in. baking dish. Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Cool.
- In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and ¼ cup powdered sweetener until smooth. Remove approximately 2-3 tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture (this will be added to the pudding). Set the bowl to the side.
- In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream with ¼ cup powdered sweetener until stiff peaks form. Fold approximately ½ cup of whipped topping into the remaining cream cheese mixture. Spread over the cooled crust.
- In a small bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix for 3-5 minutes. Stir in the reserved 2-3 tablespoon of cream cheese mixture. Dollop the butterscotch pudding over the cream cheese layer and carefully smooth it using an offset spatula.
- Top the butterscotch layer with remaining whipped topping. Sprinkle with remaining chopped pecans. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Notes
- A square of this keto butterscotch dessert contains 71% fat and is therefore considered to be a keto recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Baking, No-Bake
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bar
- Calories: 174
- Sugar: 1
- Fat: 14
- Carbohydrates: 4
- Fiber: 1
- Protein: 4
Sarah says
This is a fabulous summer dessert.