Blondies With Variations

Submitted by Chilicat

"This recipe has been making the rounds on the internet and I thought I would post it here so I don't forget about it. There are 8 different additions/variations that are guaranteed to make these blondies something special!"

 

• Ready In: 30mins
• Ingredients: 6
• Yields: 16 bars
• Serves: 16

ingredients

• 1⁄2 cup butter, melted (1 block)
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour

directions

1. Butter an 8×8 pan
2. Mix melted butter with brown sugar and beat until smooth. Beat in egg, then stir in vanilla or almond extract.
3. Whisk flour and salt together, then stir into sugar mixture. Mix in any additions (below) just until combined.
4. Pour into prepared pan. Bake at 350°F 20-25 minutes, or until set in the middle.

5. Further additions, use one or a combination of:

6. 1/2 to 1 cup chopped nuts, toasting them first for even better flavor
7. 1/2 to 1 cup chocolate chips
8. 1/2 teaspoon mint extract in addition to or in place of the vanilla
9. 1/2 cup mashed bananas
10. 1/4 cup bourbon, scotch or other whiskey; increase the flour by one tablespoon
11. 2 tablespoons of espresso powder with the vanilla
12. 1/2 cup dried fruit, especially dried cherries
13. Top with a vanilla butter cream or chocolate peanut butter cream frosting.

Reviews

[Muffin Goddess]

I used vanilla extract, and I opted for the dried cherry and whiskey options (very good combo, if you don't mind slightly boozy blondies). My blondies took an extra 10 minutes to be fully baked (they were so wet-looking at 25 minutes that I was chalking it up to the whiskey I added, but seeing other reviews tells me that it's just the way this recipe is. They were still pretty gooey-looking at 35 minutes, but the edges appeared baked. Once they fully cooled, they were perfect (crisp outside and chewy inside). If you're prefer cakey over fudgy in brownies/blondies, then you might want to pass this one by, but if fudgy texture is your nirvana, these are right up your alley! I'll definitely be trying some of the other variations. Thanks for posting! Made for the Variety is the Spice of Life 2013 event

 

[Susie D]

I made this as part of the Variety Event~2013. I elected to add bananas & 1 cup of vanilla chips. The blondies were sweet and the banana flavor strong. However the blondies had a slightly gummy texture even though the edges were crisp and the toothpick tested clean. I enjoyed making them and like that the recipe is pantry friendly and can utilize what's on hand. I will use the recipe again with a different varation.

 

[sofie-a-toast]

Wow these were sweet and rich! I used butterscotch chips and chocolate chips. Very very intense - I recommend topping with ice cream to cut the richness.

 

[LucyS-D]

Taste-wise and texturally, these just didn't do it for us. They also took twice as long to cook as the recipe stated. They were just okay. I made them with chocolate chips and used half almond and half vanilla extract. Made for "Variety is the Spice of Life" Event.

 

[Tinkerbell]

These are our new favorites! In fact, DH says they are his all-time favorite brownies or blondies. :) I used half homemade vanilla, half almond extract, cherry-flavored Craisins, and Ghirardelli white chocolate chips. I made this recipe twice. The first time as written in the Perfect Brownie Pan. There wasn't enough batter, so they were too thin for good photos. The second time I made a double batch, but then decided to use a 13x9 to get more blondies out of it. They were thinner than they would have been in the Perfect Brownie Pan, but tall enough to make nice squares and take a good photo. I sent most of the second batch to work with DH for his co-worker who has come to my rescue twice now when my car needed repairs. :) Thanks for sharing this recipe Chilicat. I'll be making it again, I'm sure! Made and enjoyed for the Variety is the Spice of Life tag game.