Tropical Blondies

Ingredients:

2 cups light brown sugar
1 1/4 cup flour
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup shredded coconut
2 eggs, at room temperature
6 tablespoons butter, melted
2 teaspoons rum
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt


Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour or spray with cooking spray with flour one 8 inch square baking pan. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix throughly, about 2-3 minutes. The batter will be rather thick. Scrape batter in pan. Bake 40-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle of the pan comes out almost clean. The blondie will set up as it cools. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes then remove from pan to continue to cool. Serve at room temperature or slightly above.

My thoughts:

Back on January 22nd, I found out that it was National Blonde Brownie Day and I haven't been able to get blondies out of my head since. It is really only in the last year or so that I have even had a blondie but I already think I like them better than brownies. My favorite kind of brownies are more than just straight brownie, like the cheesecake brownies I made a while back. Blondies are a lot easier to make, are easily doctored and generally require a lot less butter* than brownies which is odd considering that blondies derive most of their flavor from butter. Not that blondies are health food, but I like to keep that level of butter consumption to a time that is a bit more celebratory, not just a sweets craving.

*These blondies only use 6 tablespoons (less than 1/2 a cup) to make a 8x8 inch pan worth while a recipe for the same amount of brownies generally calls for a full cup of butter.

Cranberry & Chocolate Chip Blondies

Ingredients:
2 cups dark brown sugar
1 1/4 cup flour
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup dried cranberries
2 eggs, at room temperature
6 tablespoons butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt




Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour or spray with cooking spray with flour one 8 inch square baking pan. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix throughly, about 2-3 minutes. The batter will be rather thick. Scrape batter in pan. Bake 40-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle of the pan comes out almost clean. The blondie will set up as it cools. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes then remove from pan to continue to cool. Serve at room temperature or slightly above.

My thoughts:

Last night I had a sudden craving for something chewy. All I had was dark brown sugar (instead of the usual light brown) but they came out fine, a little darker but just as chewy. The cranberries add a tart note that breaks up the sweetness of the blondie. I also put some chocolate chips in because I couldn't resist but make no mistake, this is a true blondie: chewy and caramel flavored.

Cobblestone Blondies

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 cup mini* semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup mini marshmallows
1/2 cup toffee chips
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
6 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Grease an 8x8 inch baking dish. In a large bowl, cream together the brown sugar, sugar and butter. Add the eggs and vanilla, beat until fluffy. Add the flour, 2/3 of the chocolate chips**, 1/2 of the marshmallows, all of the toffee bits and the baking powder until thoroughly combined. Pour into a prepared pan and bake 20 minutes or until just set. Sprinkle evenly with remaining marshmallows and chips, return to oven for an additional 5-10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted (not through a marshmallow!) comes out clean.



*Mini chips melt faster, but regular chips would work too.
**If you are using regular sized chips, you might want to add the chips after the flour so they don't get broken up.

My thoughts:

Following in the great tradition of sweets on Gilmore night, I made these blondies. I called them "cobblestone" blondies because if they were chocolate and had nuts, they'd be "rocky road" brownies. Get it? Cobblestones, rocky road? Okay, maybe it isn't that great of a name but I couldn't think of a better, more descriptive name and I wanted to get them done before the show. They came out really yummy and don't taste as over the top sweet as you might think from the ingredients list. They also have a really unique fluffy yet chewy texture.

Dark Chocolate Chip Blondies

Ingredients:
2 cups light brown sugar
1 1/4 cup flour
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 eggs, at room temperature
6 tablespoons butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt




Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour or spray with cooking spray with flour one 8 inch square baking pan. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix throughly, about 2-3 minutes. The batter will be rather thick. Scrape batter in pan. Bake 40-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle of the pan comes out almost clean. The blondie will set up as it cools. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes then remove from pan to continue to cool. Serve at room temperature or slightly above.

My thoughts:

A hint of dark chocolate really sets off the caramel-y flavor of these chewy blondies. I like how easy this recipe is to mix together, it makes it a perfect weeknight treat when you want some thing sweet but don't want a lot of hassle.

Butterscotch Blondies

Ingredients:
2 cups light brown sugar
1 1/4 cup flour
2 eggs, at room temperature
6 tablespoons butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt




Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour or spray with cooking spray with flour one 8 inch square baking pan. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, throughly combine the sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture until just blended. Pour batter in pan. Bake 40-50 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle of the pan comes out almost clean. It may seema little gooey in the middle but it will set up as it cools. Cool in pan on wire rack then cut and serve.

My thoughts:

A great dessert for those crazy people who prefer their sweets devoid of chocolate. These blondies are butterscotch-y and slightly chewy.