I love the idea of “blondies,” but whenever I bake them they’re never that great. I just can’t find a decent recipe. When I was a kid, I remember my mom and her sisters finding a recipe for macadamia white chocolate blondies that were buttery, rich and delicious. I suppose the trouble with my quest for a good blondie recipe is that no bar can live up to the memory of that particular blondie from years ago, a memory which may or may not be accurate, I know!
I found this post on Sweet and Savory Tooth recently and knew I had to try the recipe for Chunky Blonde Brownies that she shares. Nate was skeptical of yet another blondie endeavor, but in the end he gave his seal of approval. Success! They were very good…especially right out of the oven! And I thought the proportion of batter to the size of the pan was perfect, so they cooked nice and evenly.
The big question: does this recipe live up to the ideal in my head? As Larry David might say, it’s pretty pretty pretty pretty close.
Chunky Blonde Blondies
From Taste of Home Baking Book, via Heather
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup white chips
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 3/4 cup macadamia nuts, chopped, dividedHeat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in the white chips, chocolate chips and 1/2 cup nuts. (Jane note: for the 1/2 cup that I mixed into the batter, I pulsed the nuts in my Cuisinart processor, so they got chopped up pretty good. I liked how the small bits spread throughout the batter. For the 1/4 cup of nuts I sprinkled on top, I hand chopped for a little bit bigger pieces.)
Spoon into a greased 9 x 13 baking pan; spread to evenly cover bottom of pan. Sprinkle with remaining nuts. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until top begins to crack and is golden brown. Cool completely on wire rack, then cut into bars. Makes about 2 dozen bars
Hello! My name is Jane Maynard and you've landed yourself on my blog, This Week for Dinner™. Every Sunday I share a weekly menu...and then count on you to share your own! You'll also find other deliciousness that I hope you'll enjoy!
Mmmmm! I love blondies. These are my favorite:
http://twopeasandtheirpod.com/dories-chewy-chunky-blondies/
They have Heath chunks, coconut, and lots of chocolate chip. They are rich but soooo good! Great with ice cream too:) I will have to try these!
Comment by Maria — February 2, 2010 @ 12:07 pm
those sound just plain wonderful, maria!!!
Comment by Jane Maynard — February 2, 2010 @ 12:08 pm
I second the Dorie Greespan recipe. I’ve got some commentary on my blog about it too. It’s a great base for blondies and the mix-in possibilities are practically endless.
http://doublebatch.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/chewy-chunky-blondies/
I love your idea of macadamia nuts with the chocolate!
Comment by Dianna — February 2, 2010 @ 1:31 pm
It’s like you knew my husband had asked me for blondies just last week!
Glad I found your blog!
Comment by Alison @ Hospitality Haven — February 2, 2010 @ 1:50 pm
Humm, I’m going to bake those this weekend and leave my house filled with that delightful yummy goodness smell so hopefully someone who comes to look at our house in not only enticed with their eyes by tummy! Hahaha!
If I leave my house smelling like fresh baked goodness, do I have to leave some out for the visitors to sample? Or can I hoard them all for myself and my kids?
Comment by Nevadamtnbear — February 2, 2010 @ 1:59 pm
hoard away!
Comment by Jane Maynard — February 2, 2010 @ 2:55 pm
Whew, for a second there I thought this post was about ME! I happen to be a chunky blondie myself
. And from how yummy these look, I just may be a little more chunky after I eat a few!
Comment by Katie — February 2, 2010 @ 2:56 pm
I’m always looking for the perfect blondie as well! This does look wonderful, I will have to give it a try. Delicioius!!
Comment by Cristie — February 2, 2010 @ 4:31 pm
omg, I think I’m stuffed just looking at the pic and reading the ingredients. wow;-) my kidz will love em too
Comment by annemarie — February 2, 2010 @ 4:42 pm
These look SO good!!!
Comment by Jennifer — February 2, 2010 @ 7:07 pm
I love blondies and anything that tastes remotely like them. I recently made chocolate chip cookies without the chocolate chips (my husband thought it was so weird, but he also gobbled them up), but mmmmm, they were good — I called them “blondie cookies.” IMHO, way better than sugar cookies. This recipe looks fantastic!
Comment by Hillary @ Team O — February 3, 2010 @ 8:29 am
Would you believe it if I said I’ve never made blondies? I’m thinking that needs to change. These look really really good and I love macadamia nuts. Thank you, Jane!
Comment by Katie @ goodLife {eats} — February 3, 2010 @ 11:11 am
any reason this uses chocolate chips instead of white chocolate, which is normally paired with macadamia nuts? i’m wondering how different it would taste.
Comment by cara — February 3, 2010 @ 11:53 am
the recipe calls for both semisweet and white chocolate…I personally love having both types of chocolate in there. it’s delish!
Comment by jane maynard — February 3, 2010 @ 12:35 pm
cool Jane! But I think Larry would say, “pretty, pretty, pretty good” NOT pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, good.
nate? Dave?
Comment by lizbeth — February 3, 2010 @ 1:39 pm
This sounds delicious-and they LOOK amazing!
Comment by Jennifer — February 3, 2010 @ 1:50 pm
Oh no, don’t TEMPT me so! Those look amazing.
Comment by Briana — February 3, 2010 @ 3:27 pm
I love tempting people with unhealthy treats. it’s one of my favorite pasttimes.
Comment by Jane Maynard — February 3, 2010 @ 3:33 pm
YUMMMMY Made these for my FIL’s bday yesterday…he requested the leftovers for home;) Making another pan today w/out white chocolate and double the cdark chocolate for out family weekend at MI Techs Ice Sculptures….will be yum at the hotel!
Comment by Heidi Ho — February 4, 2010 @ 11:48 am
my favorite ‘blondie’ was the toffee almond bar from Starbucks…haven’t seen it there for awhile
Comment by Sara — February 7, 2010 @ 9:36 pm
[...] day last week, Jane from This Week for Dinner tweeted about a blondie recipe. I was immediately intrigued and raced to her site to see what the [...]
Pingback by Sweet (Pink) Heart — February 9, 2010 @ 4:09 am
Gonna make these for my valentine cookie exchange this week! maybe use heart shaped cookie cutters….
I’ll let you know how they turn out!
Comment by brooke — February 9, 2010 @ 3:25 pm
molly another reader just made them with heart shaped cutters and they turned out super cute – here’s the link. good luck! definitely let us know how they are!
http://www.duchessoffork.com/2010/02/09/sweet-pink-heart/
Comment by jane maynard — February 9, 2010 @ 4:01 pm
I’m glad you liked them! Blondies are now one of my favorites
Comment by Heather I. — February 12, 2010 @ 9:48 pm
These turned out fantastic…rave reviews from the mom’s club and hubby’s. this recipe is a keeper!
Comment by brooke — February 15, 2010 @ 3:10 pm
[...] White Chocolate Coconut Blondiesadapted from Chunky Blonde Blondies [...]
Pingback by Good Life Eats » White Chocolate Coconut Blondies — August 22, 2010 @ 10:10 am