Moist, chewy, buttery blondies. Enhanced by the flavor of brown butter and little extra brown sugar 😉
Browning butter is a simple technique that really brings recipes to a whole new level. Combining brown butter and a little extra brown sugar (both light and dark) gives these blondies a rich, intense, caramel flavor.
Browning butter is simple. It’s a quick extra step that really make these bars stand out!
*Browning Butter*
Browning butter is a quick, easy way to deliver big, flavorful results to your baking. All you need is your stove top, a small saucepan, some butter, and about 5 minutes…that’s it! First you want to put your saucepan on medium heat. Allow butter to completely melt. Once butter is melted, stir it around using a spoon or whisk. The butter will start to foam and crackle. Butter will crackle and bubble for about 3 minutes or so and then the crackling will start to subside. Keep in mind you never turn the heat below medium or above medium, all of this is done at the same temperate. Once bubbling and crackling subsides keep stirring and watch! You’ll start to smell a strong, nutty aroma and small brown bits will start to form at the bottom of the sauce pan. Stir the brown bits around and within another minute your butter will turn from a yellow tint to a shade of amber. Give the melted butter another quick stir and then remove from heat because it can burn as quickly as it browns. Pour butter through a fine mesh strainer over a small container. Be careful, your butter will be hot!
And that’s it! Pretty simple, right?
You’ll also notice that this recipe calls for both light and dark brown sugar. I love this combination! My boyfriend calls it my signature sugar combination (thanks babe 😉 ) I use a light and dark brown sugar combination pretty much anytime a recipe calls for brown sugar. Try it! I bet you won’t be disappointed. In this particular recipe I use a heaping 1/2 cup of both. A lot of times you see recipes requiring brown sugar to be packed, but in this case, I just pretty much made a pile of brown sugar in a 1/2 cup. Nothing precise, just as much brown sugar as your 1/2 cup will hold.
For these blondies I felt like chocolate chunks and M&Ms would be fitting. Since I used chocolate chunks I figured M&Ms would add some color without bulking up the batter. Remember mix-ins are great but don’t over do it. Always consider them a great accessory to your dough or batter, but their not the whole recipe.
Brown Butter Blondies
Moist, chewy, buttery blondies. Enhanced by the flavor of brown butter and little extra brown sugar
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 60
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/4 cup All Purpose Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1 stick Unsalted Butter
- 1/2 cup Light Brown Sugar
- 1/2 cup Dark Brown Sugar
- 1 Large Egg
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup Chocolate Chunks
- 1/2 cup milk chocolate M&Ms
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Melt butter in a small saucepan on medium heat. Allow butter to come to a mild boil, just slightly bubbling. The butter will foam and start to crackle. After about 5 to 6 minutes the butter will start to settle and you’ll smell a strong, nutty aroma. Watch closely because the butter will turn from yellow to an amber shade. Take the saucepan off the heat and pour the butter through a fine mesh strainer into a small container. Place butter in the refrigerator for 5 minutes to cool.
- In a separate bowl combine light and dark brown sugars and cooled brown butter. Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugars together. Mixture will be dark,moist and clumpy. Add in egg and vanilla extract and continue mixing, texture will become smooth.
- Slowly add in flour, baking powder and salt. Mix everything together until thoroughly combined. Fold in chocolate chunks and M&Ms.
- Line a 8×8 inch baking dish with parchment paper. Allow paper to come up the sides of the baking dish for easy transfer once blondies are cooled. Scoop batter into the baking dish and smooth it out with the back of a spoon.Bake blondies for 20-25 minutes. Blondies will seem under done when they first come out but will firm up once they’ve cooled.
- Once blondies are out of the oven allow to cool for 30 minutes before transferring them from the baking dish to a cooling rack. If you transfer them too soon they will crack. Cut into small squares and serve or store in an airtight container.
Notes
- *Feel free to use different kinds of mix ins; butterscotch morsels, nuts, different types of candy – experiment and have fun with different types of flavors.
