What do you do when you can't decide between cookies and brownies? Make blondies! These blondies are soft, chewy and delicious. Think brownies but without the chocolate. It's almost like brown sugar fudge. I don't know about you, but I like my brownies and blondies to be dense and chewy. No cake-like brownies for me thank you very much! The key is to slightly under-bake the blondies so they maintain a wonderfully soft texture and avoid the dreaded overbaked crumble.
They are incredibly easy and quick to make with minimal dishes to wash. My kind of baking!
In this version I used Hershey's Eggies (confession, I'm not a fan of Cadbury mini eggs. I know, I know. But give me a box of Cadbury creme eggs and I will devour them.) You can easily replace them with other mix-in's like various nuts (peanuts, walnuts, pistachios, etc) sprinkles or chocolate chips. If you do add chocolate chips, make sure the batter has cooled down for a good 20 minutes or so because otherwise the chocolate chips will just melt into the batter, which you do not want. You can also bake them plain and add toppings afterward like caramel drizzle, chocolate ganache, a side of ice cream...or amazing just on their own! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
Chewy Blondie Bars
Yields 16 squares (2"x2") or more if cut smaller
Ingredients
1 cup plus 2 tbsp (155g) all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick/125g) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups (330g) packed brown sugar
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup chopped Hershey's Eggies or Cadbury Mini Eggs + about 1/4 cup reserved to sprinkle on top (a 200g bag should be about enough, but you can add more if you prefer)
Procedure
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line an 8 x 8 inch square baking pan with parchment paper and leave overhangs for easy removal. Mix the flour and salt together in a medium bowl and set aside. Roughly chop the Eggies (or nuts) and set aside. In a large sauce pan, melt the butter and brown sugar over medium heat stirring until the sugar has dissolved and feels less grainy. Stir with a whisk until the surface begins to look shiny and just slightly bubbles (do not boil). Careful not to overheat and burn the bottom. This may take about 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat and leave to cool 10-20 minutes.
Add the whole egg and yolk and vanilla and stir rapidly with a whisk. Fold in the flour and salt until just blended. Stir in the Eggies or other mix-in's and pour mixture into pan. Smooth the top with a small offset spatula and add some more chopped Eggies on top of the batter. Bake for 25-35 minutes until the top develops a crust and a toothpick comes out slightly moist with batter in the center but clean around the edges. Leave to cool completely and refrigerate before cutting into squares. Eat some and give away most of them otherwise they will all end up in your tummy within a few minutes.
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