Nutella Swirl Blondies

Even without the Nutella I think these were the best blondies that I have ever made. Bold, I know. They have great flavor and such perfect gooey and chewy texture. And then you add the Nutella....oh my.

Nutella Swirl Blondies
How I Did It:

3/4 cup unsalted butter
1 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
Nutella

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 8x8 pan and set aside.

2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Once melted stir in sugars until combined and sugars are somewhat melted. Remove from heat, but do not let cool completely or it will harden.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.

4. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and vanilla. Slowly pour in the butter/sugar mixture and whisk until combined.

5. Add in flour and whisk until just incorporated.

6. Pour into prepared baking pan. Using a teaspoon, drop Nutella around the top (about 10 - 12 spoonfuls) and then using the back of a spoon swirl the Nutella to spread around and make an repeated "S" shape.

7. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the edges start to crack and bit and the center is firm to the touch. Let cool fully before cutting into squares.

Snickerdoodle Blondies

For my grandfather's big (90th!) birthday party I was tasked with making the cake (chocolate) and an extra dessert. I decided that maybe I should make something non-chocolate since my Mom planned on making chocolate chip cookies. I was thinking sugar cookies or sugar cookie bars, but I knew I would be tempted to frost them, and people probably didn't need more frosting after the cake. Then cinnamon came into my head. Desserts with cinnamon, while not coming close to chocolate, are almost always pretty darn good. These bars could be called cinnamon blondies and are similar in texture to fudgy brownies. And just like my brownies, I added some chips in there (cinnamon in this case, of course). What I am telling you is, despite their appearance, they are not boring. With all of the cinnamon flavor they would make a great (and easy) dessert to bring to a holiday party!

Snickerdoodle Blondies
How I Did It:

(Makes 24 bars)

2 2/3 cup AP flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 1/4 tsp cinnamon
8 oz (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups cinnamon chips

For the topping:
2 tbsps sugar
3 tsps cinnamon


1. Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a 9x13" baking pan and set aside.

2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Set aside.

3. In a larger bowl, beat together butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy (will take almost 5 minutes). Beat in eggs, one at a time until fully incorporated. Beat in vanilla.

4. On low speed, gradually beat in the flour mixture (in 3-4 parts) until just combined. With a wooden spoon, mix in the cinnamon chips.

5. Spread dough evenly into the pan. You will need a spoon/spatula as the dough is the consistency of cookie dough. Mix the cinnamon and sugar together and using a teaspoon, sprinkle evenly on top of the dough.

6. Bake for 20 - 30 minutes until the top looks slightly crisp and it springs back slighly when gently pressed.

7. Cool completely before cutting. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Funfetti Blondies

Okay, so maybe I have gotten a tiny bit obsessed with blondies. In the last couple months I have made Cookie Butter Blondies, Coconut Blondies (after trying these my friend said, very seriously..."this is the best thing I have ever put in my mouth..." True story.), and the low in guilt Chocolate Chip Blondies With a Secret. They are just so good and so simple and there are endless variations waiting for me to test them out (read: there will be more to come)!

After seeing how pretty my Funfetti rice crispy treats turned out, I was excited to try Funfetti blondies (aka cake batter blondies). I ran out of sprinkles so sadly I couldn't top them with extra color, but no sadness when it came to the taste. I prepared them like you would a brownie mix (note: I did use milk instead of water) and they are exactly what I was going for...delicious fudgy brownies, but with cake batter instead! So good. Wow. I brought them to a party where their number much outweighed the number of guests and they were all easily gobbled up.

Funfetti Blondies
How I did it:

1 box Funfetti cake mix
1/4 cup canola oil
1 large egg
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup sprinkles
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x9" baking pan and set aside.

2. Beat cake mix, oil, and egg in a large bowl just until combined. Slowly add in milk.

3. Stir in sprinkles and white chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread out until even.

4. Bake for about 25 minutes or until the edges are lightly brown and the center is still light in color and appears to be just barely set on top (don't touch it though b/c it is not actually set).

5. Let cool completely (as they will be gooey) before cutting into bars and serving. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Chocolate Chip Blondies with a Secret

These are so gooey and delicious you would never know they are not only vegan, but gluten-free as well! They have a secret ingredient that if you didn't know about you'd never guess! Garbanzo beans! No, don't walk away - they are really good, trust me! I can't take credit for them though...I found the recipe over at Chocolate Covered Katie. If you are at all into alternative healthier desserts you should really check out her blog, if you haven't already. 

I made these last minute to bring to share with the girls in the apartment upstairs. I told them they were vegan (my roommate is vegan) and they both seemed to really like them. I mentioned that there was no flour in them and of course they wanted to know what the base was. I waited until they had each had one and I told them. The response? "Well, in that case..." reaching for another one! I personally think that you can taste the beans if you know they are there, but honestly not in a bad way. I added more peanut butter, sugar, chocolate and vanilla to try to help mask it a bit more. Oh, and did I mention how easy they are? Definitely going to make this one again!

Chocolate Chip Blondies with a Secret
How I did it:

1 can (15 oz) Garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup brown sugar (can use less if you are used to non-traditional desserts)
3 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup flaxseed meal
1/3 cup peanut butter
1 cup chocolate chips (use diary-free if you are making this vegan)

1.  Preheat oven to 350°F and grease and 8" square pan (9" works as well). Set aside.

2. Place all ingredients (except the chocolate chips) into a food processor and blend until well combined and smooth. If your food processor is not large enough, split ingredients roughly in half and blend twice. You can then combine the two well-blended mixtures together by hand in a bowl.

3. Mix in chocolate chips (setting a couple handfuls aside) and pour mixture into prepared pan. Sprinkle remaining chips on top and lightly press down. 

4. Cook for about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely before cutting. If you are in a rush put them in the fridge for a bit to harden up - if you try to cut them when they are still warm you will make mess! Store any not eaten that day in the fridge. 

Coconut Blondies

Don't worry, this isn't turning into a "Blonde Brownie" blog. After making the cookie butter blondies someone was asking me what a "bondie" is exactly. I went into a long explanation of a blonde brownie before he stopped me and said, "So, basically a brownie without the chocolate?" Right. Yes. I guess I could have just said that. I also like to think of it as a great (chewy and delightful) vehicle to test out flavors.

After coming back from a weekend of camping I needed a quick dessert to bring to a BBQ (like, very quick). So I whipped up these bad boys while my hair was drying. No, seriously. So simple...and absolutely delicious! Butterscotch, milk chocolate and coconut...such a great (and very tempting) combination.

Coconut Blondies
How I did it:

(makes 16 bars)

1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1 3/4 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup shredded coconut
3/4 cup of milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup butterscotch chips

1. Place butter in a small bowl and microwave for 1 minute. If the butter isn't completely melted, give it a little stir. Set aside to cool-down a bit.

2. Preheat oven to 350°F. Using canola oil, grease a 8 inch square baking pan and set aside.

3. In a small bowl whisk together the flour and salt. Set aside.

4. Pour melted butter into a larger bowl and mix with the brown sugar until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla and mix well.

5. Stir in flour mixture 1/3 at a time. Add in coconut and milk and butterscotch chips.

6. Bake for about 25 minutes or until the top starts to look golden brown. The top should be set, but the inside should be still very moist (not completely cooked). If you over-bake them they will be dry and more cake-like and not nearly as addicting.

7. Let cool completely before cutting into bars.

Cookie Butter Blondies

I think I must have been one of the last people to hear about this cookie butter stuff. At first I dismissed it as a special type of butter for making cookies. Silly me. After reading more about it I ran into Trader Joe's during my lunch break to pick up a jar to see for myself what the talk was all about. I had to try it right away of course (I waited until I got back to my desk) and it was even more flavorful than I expected. As advertised, it was like gingerbread and biscuit cookies, but in the texture of peanut butter. I was distracted for the rest of the day thinking of all of the ways I could use it in baking. In place of peanut butter? Stuffed inside baked goods? Layered with other flavors?

Working it into blondies wasn't my most exciting idea, but it is the first one I was able to try out since I needed something not too gooey and elaborate that I could use to contribute to a camping potluck (along with my pasta salad). The night of the potluck I heard people I had never met recommending them to others and by the time my friends who were late getting back to the campsite arrived they were long gone (as it turned out I still had a few in another container somewhere that I had forgotten about. Sadly, they were a bit stale by the time they were found...oh, don't worry, they still got eaten).

Cookie Butter Blondies
How I did it:

(makes 24 bars)

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 cups light brown sugar
1/2 heaping cup cookie butter
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
1/3 cup white chocolate chips


1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking pan and set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan melt the butter and then add the brown sugar. Stir mixture constantly until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in cookie butter. Set aside to let cool.

3. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

4. Add one egg at a time to the saucepan mixture followed by the vanilla, making sure to mix well after each addition. Pour this mixture into the dry mixture and stir until smooth (will be very thick). Mix in white and dark chocolate chips, reserving some for the top, if desired.

5. Pour into baking pan, making sure it is evenly spread out. Sprinkle remaining chips on top and press down lightly.

6. Bake for about 20 minutes or until it start to lightly brown. Remove from oven and let fully cool before cutting into bars.