Butterscotch Blondies With Caramel Frosting

This is my new favorite dessert! The recipe is from Pastry Queen Parties cookbook, which I recently bought at my cheap book source, Mike’s Merchandise Mart in Huntsville. I love blondies and knew that the caramel frosting would really set these apart. You bake them in a half-sheet pan, so there is a enough for a crowd. The taste is so buttery, with just the right combination of sweet and salty. Definitely make these—enjoy!

Butterscotch Blondies With Caramel Frosting
1 cup butter, softened
5 cups brown sugar, divided
4 eggs
1 Tbsp. vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 cups chopped pecans
1 cup butter
1 (16-oz.) box powdered sugar
1/3 cup whipping cream
1 Tbsp. vanilla

1. Beat 1 cup softened butter and 3 cups brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until blended after each addition. Add in vanilla. Combine flour and next 2 ingredients. Gradually add to butter mixture. Add in pecans. Spread mixture in a lightly greased half-sheet pan.
2. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until done. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.
3. Place 1 cup butter and remaining 2 cups brown sugar in a saucepan, and cook over medium heat until mixture begins to boil. Turn heat down to medium-low, and cook, stirring often, for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat, and cool slightly.
4. Beat powdered sugar, cream, and vanilla with an electric mixer until creamy. Pour in the caramel mixture, and beat until smooth. Spread frosting over top of cooled blondies. Let stand 30 minutes before cutting into squares.

Blondies

My favorite blondies use both butter and peanut butter. Because it’s getting close to the end of the month and there is no peanut butter in the pantry, I decided to experiment with the recipe a bit. I replaced the 1/2 cup of pb with an equal amount of butter. These blondies are super-rich, as you can imagine, but my friend Jamie says they aren’t greasy.  Almond flavoring is a nice addition with the absence of the peanut butter. I used milk and semisweet chocolate chips because I had partial bags of both. Feel free to use whatever combination you prefer.

Blondies
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 Tbsp. milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. salt
2/3 cup toffee chips
1 cup milk chocolate chips

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Beat butter and next 2 ingredients until light and fluffy. Add in eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add in milk, vanilla, and almond extract. Combine flour and salt; gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture. Add in toffee chips and chocolate chips. Pour batter into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch pan.
2. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes or until done.

Blueberry-White Chocolate Chip Blondies

These cookies are some of the most popular that I make, probably because of the unusual combination of flavors. I decided that those same tastes would make tasty blondies—the inspiration for this recipe. The addition of lemon zest adds depth of flavor and freshness. Enjoy!

Blueberry-White Chocolate Chip Blondies
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Zest from 1 lemon
1 bag white chocolate chips

1 cup dried blueberries

1. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until blended after each addition. Add in vanilla. Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; gradually add to butter mixture. Add in white chocolate chips and blueberries.
2. Line a 13- x 9-inch baking dish with parchment paper, and pread the batter into the prepared pan.

3. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Cool completely in the pan, and cut into bars.

Chocolate-Cherry Blondies

I needed a quick and easy dessert for tonight for a gathering of girlfriends. Naturally my mind went to cookies. However, I decided that was too predictable. Bar cookies are yummy and I don't make them very often because I haven't found a good recipe. Well, the search is over. I decided to start with my basic cookie recipe. Then I used all brown sugar (instead of a combo with granulated), added an extra egg, and increased the baking powder a bit. Once baked in a 13- x 9-inch pan, the results were delicious and even easier than the super-easy cookie recipe. (Like all those superlatives?) Blondies take longer to bake than the cookies, but the prep time is reduced because you don't have to scoop the batter. Any chocolate/fruit/toffee combination would work well. At the last minute, I threw in some chocolate-covered cranberries that have been taunting me from the pantry and was pleased with the results. Enjoy!

Chocolate-Cherry Blondies
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups brown sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
4 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 (11.5-oz.) bag semisweet chocolate chips
1 (6-oz.) bag dried cherries

1. Beat butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Add in eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add in vanilla.
2. Combine flour and next 3 ingredients in a bowl. Gradually add to butter mixture, beating until blended. Add in chocolate chips and cherries.
3. Line a 13- x 9-inch baking pan with aluminum foil, and coat with cooking spray. Spread batter into pan.
4. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until done.

Peanut Butter-Toffee Blondies

I have been under the weather this week. Because of that and our wintry precipitation, the Food Network has been on quite a bit. This recipe is from Down Home With the Neelys. Blondies are one of my favorite cookies because they are so easy (just spread the batter in a pan; no scooping required). The peanut butter flavor is subtle, but it pairs nicely with the toffee chips. Next time, I will add chocolate chips to the batter—they need a little more chocolate to balance the other flavors. Enjoy!


Peanut Butter-Toffee Blondies
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 Tbsp. milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. salt
1 package chocolate-covered toffee chips
1 package semisweet chocolate chips

1. Beat butter and next 3 ingredients until light and fluffy. Add in eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add in milk and vanilla. Combine flour and salt; gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture. Add in toffee chips and chocolate chips. Pour batter into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch pan.
2. Bake at 350° for 40 or until done.

Halloween Blondies

This recipe was inspired by one of Andy's and my coworker Katie's favorite candies—Reese's Pieces. I love blondies because they're so easy to make and go well with a variety of flavors. For these, I used a combination of Reese's Pieces, peanut butter morsels, and chocolate morsels (there were several partial packages in the pantry). The colors are reminiscent of Halloween, hence the name. These are a snap to make. The batter is very thick, so I think clean hands are the best tools for spreading it in the pan. Enjoy!

Halloween Blondies
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 package Reese's Pieces
1/2 package peanut butter morsels
1/2 package chocolate morsels
Vegetable cooking spray

1. Beat butter and sugars at medium speed with an electric mixer. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until blended after each addition. Stir in vanilla.
2. Combine flour and salt. Gradually add to butter mixture, beating until thoroughly blended. Stir in Reese's Pieces and next 2 ingredients.
3. Line a 13- x 9-inch baking pan with aluminum foil. Coat with cooking spray. Spread batter into pan.
4. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until done. Cool in pan, and cut into squares.

Best-Ever Blondies

I love blondies and am always trying to improve my recipe. This variation is unusual because you melt the butter before stirring it into the brown sugar. It’s very simple (no mixer required) and absolutely delicious! These have butterscotch morsels, but you can use whatever chocolate-fruit-candy combination you like.
1 cup butter, melted
2 cups brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract or 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract and 1/2 tsp. almond extract
Pinch of salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 bag butterscotch morsels

1. Combine melted butter and brown sugar; stir until smooth. Stir in eggs and vanilla. Stir in salt and flour. Stir in flavor options. Pour into a lightly greased baking pan.
2. Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes or until set in the middle. Cool completely on rack before cutting into squares.

Toffee Blondies

This is a twist on my original recipe.
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 Tbsp. milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. salt

1 bag semisweet or milk chocolate chips

4 Heath bars, coarsely chopped

1. Beat butter and next 2 ingredients until light and fluffy. Add in eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add in milk, vanilla, and almond extract. Combine flour and salt; gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture. Add in chocolate chips. Pour batter into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch pan. Sprinkle chopped Heath bars over top of batter.
2. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes or until done.

Chocolate Chunk Blondies

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 bag semisweet chocolate chunks

1. Beat butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until blended after each addition. Add in vanilla and almond extracts. Combine flour and next 2 ingredients; gradually add to butter mixture. Add in the chocolate chunks.
2. Line a 13- x 9-inch baking dish with parchment paper, and pread the batter into the prepared pan.

3. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Cool completely in the pan, and cut into bars.