Square freshly baked Blondie cookies on white wooden background close-up with copy space for text top view. The concept of baking
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Blondies, or blonde brownies, are the lighter answer to brownies and are often filled with similar mix-ins like chopped nuts, but they are often flavored with vanilla, white chocolate or butterscotch morsels. Depending on the recipe, blondies can be made into bars or brownies as well as cookies, which resemble white chocolate macadamia nut cookies. Try using browned butter for a more intense and deeper caramelized blondie or experiment with added ingredients like peanut butter chips, mint chips or dark chocolate chips.

Browned Blondie Recipe

Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes | Prep Time: 10 minutes | Serves: 16 bars

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
  • 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup toasted pecans, chopped
  • 1 cup butterscotch chips

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

  2. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan before lining it with parchment paper and grease the paper. Leave some overhang of parchment paper for easy removal of the blondies after baking.

  3. In a medium saucepan over medium-to-high heat on the stovetop, melt the butter.

  4. Carefully watch it for five minutes and remove from heat as soon as the butter browns and bubbles.

  5. Once browned, transfer the melted, browned butter to a bowl and place in the fridge to cool.

  6. In a large mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, beaten eggs, vanilla and cooled browned butter and mix well.

  7. Add in the flour, baking powder and salt, stirring to combine evenly.

  8. Gently fold in the pecans and butterscotch chips, then pour into the prepared baking pan.

  9. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

  10. Once cooked through, remove from the oven and lift out of the pan.

  11. Place on a wire rack to cool and cut into uniform squares.

Adding browned butter and brown sugar to a blondie recipe adds depth of flavor and caramel notes to the baked goods. For less of a caramelized flavor, use white granulated sugar and creamed, unsalted butter for more of a vanilla-flavored blondie.

Blondies Cookies

Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes | Prep Time: 20 minutes | Serves: 16 blondie cookies

Ingredients:

  • 2 sticks softened, unsalted butter
  • 1 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup white chocolate chip morsels

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 350 F.

  2. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together.

  3. Continue to mix to thoroughly incorporate the eggs and vanilla extract.

  4. In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients: flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.

  5. Once the dry ingredients are combined, slowly mix into the wet mixture until combined evenly.

  6. Chill the dough in the fridge for at least an hour.

  7. Gently fold white chocolate chip morsels into the batter. Pour onto a greased and foil-lined baking sheet.

  8. Spoon 3 tablespoons of dough for each cookie onto baking sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

  9. Let cool for 10 minutes before transferring to wire cooling rack to cool completely.

For a deeper caramelized flavor, brown the butter and let it cool before incorporating into the batter. White chocolate chips can be substituted or combined with other add-ins like chopped nuts, peanut butter morsels or butterscotch morsels.