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BLONDIES
If you’re anything like me you’re probably wondering what is a blondie? It’s basically a brownie but without the cocoa powder. Instead, it’s a vanilla based bar that only uses brown sugar.
Only using brown sugar in blondie bars makes them chewy, gives them that crispy crust (crispy in a good way), and makes them soft and dense.
It’s like a chocolate chip cookie but 1,000x better 🙂 If that’s even possible to get better than a chocolate chip cookie…
I’ll be totally honest and say that these were gone in 1 day at my house. My kids (and myself) were crazy for these blondies.
They bake up in a 9×13 baking pan and they are thick, chewy, and buttery cookie bars. The edge pieces are a bit crispy and the middle pieces are so soft and chewy.
I normally don’t like edge pieces of bars but these were an exception. They were my favorite!
I love using the mini semi-sweet chocolate chips in these bars because then there is more chocolate spread through out the bar.
You can use regular semi-sweet chocolate chips if that’s what you have. But try the mini ones, I love them and always have to buy a couple bags of them when I go grocery shopping.
MY TIPS FOR MAKING THIS RECIPE
- I always use parchment paper to line the pan with. It makes cutting and taking the bars out of the pan so easy. Once they’re cooled you just lift them out with the overhang of the parchment paper and cut.
- To help parchment paper stay in place when I use it. I lightly spray the pan with cooking spray and then lay the parchment paper down on it. I also buy the box of precut parchment squares which fit perfectly in a 9×13 baking dish.
- DO NOT use the piping hot melted butter. Instead let it cool slightly. A tip for this : place the butter in a microwave-safe dish and microwave for about 35-40 seconds. Part of the butter will be melted while the other part will be in a soft butter stick form. Take a fork and mix the butter until it’s all nice and smooth. This way you’re not melting it all the way and getting the butter piping hot. If you do it this way you can add it into the dough right away.
Be sure and try out these other chocolate chip treats :
- giant chocolate stuffed chocolate chip cookies
- {no egg} cream cheese chocolate chip cookies
- oreo stuffed chocolate chip cookies
- {seriously amazing!} perfect chocolate chip cookies
- chocolate chip cookie layered pudding dessert
Chocolate Chip Cookie Blondie Bars
Ingredients
- 2 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, melted & cooled slightly
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking pan with cooking spray and then line with parchment paper. The cooking spray will help the parchment paper stay in place. Or, just use cooking spray.
- In a mixing bowl combine flour, salt, and baking soda. Stir with a whisk to break up clumps
- In a bowl, or bowl of a stand mixer, combine melted and slightly cooled butter and brown sugar. Blend together until combined.
- Add in 1 egg and then blend. Add the other egg and vanilla extract and blend together until combined.
- Slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until combined and no flour pockets remain in the batter. Add the miniature chocolate chips, reserving some for sprinkling on top if wanted. Stir to combine.
- Dump batter into the prepared pan and spread out evenly. Sprinkle the reserved mini chocolate chips over top and gently press down.
- Bake for 24-26 minutes. The edges will be a light golden brown and be "wrinkly" and the middle will look pale. Let cool completely.
- These blondies need about an hour to cool completely. Don't try to rush it or else they will not cut well at all.
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
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These look so yummy! Thanks for making them in honor of my birthday ?We will have to make them!
Yes! Make them. My kids are already requesting another batch….. 🙂
It is absolutely a must-try for everyone. It is so good, chewy and soft. My entire family loved it and kept on bugging me to make another batch. Thank you for sharing this recipe. It just made family time more fun while enjoying these blondie bars.
These were incredible!!!!
Thanks Angela 🙂 Happy to hear you loved these!
Not sure why, but mine came out cakey and dry 🙁
The only thing I changed was substituting margarine instead of butter so that it would be dairy-free.
Definitely didn’t come out like any of the other reviews!
Using margarine instead of butter is a huge change! The reason they did not come out well is because you used Margarine. Margarine does not work in this recipe which is why the recipe calls for butter. Sorry your version did not work out. Thanks for visiting.
I didnt used margarine and mine came out cakey and dry as well 😢
Sorry to hear that! Sounds like they might have been over baked. If you make them again always pull them out just before they look done because they will continue to bake as they sit.
I used butter, baked for 25 min
Came out cakey and dry
My fam love it though with ice cream
If they came out cakey and dry then it sounds like they were overbaked. My trick with bars is that you should never pull out a pan of bars from the oven that looks like they’re done. As they cool, they always cook more and come together. Sounds yummy with ice cream!
Quick question, do you use salted butter or unsalted butter? I know that can make a difference in baking. They look delicious and I’m wanting to try them this week! Thank you!
I always use salted butter for everything. I find that using unsalted butter does not provide a lot of flavor to baked goods. If you do use unsalted you usually need to add a bit more salt. Enjoy!
I saw a couple people had issue making these dairy free. I made these gluten and dairy free and wanted to share! I substituted the flour with Pillsbury gluten free flour and used a banana and 2 tbsp of earth balance dairy free butter in place of the butter. I also used the Enjoy Life chocolate chips. They do have a small hint of banana flavor but they turned out delicious! Thank you for the recipe!!
Made these tonight and they are awesome. Crispy outside with a soft buttery inside. Followed the recipe exactly and they are so easy to make. My new favorite cookie recipe. Thanks for sharing!
You described them perfectly! These are a favorite at my house too.
OMGosh these are by far the best cookie bar. This recipe has more butter than the others I’ve seen but it’s what makes them so good. I didn’t add the extra 2 tbsp of flour, added nuts and maybe because of the elevation of 5000′ I needed to cook them an extra 10 minutes. I love the crispy end pieces and soft centers. Thanks for sharing!
Can these be made with milk chocolate chips instead?
Yes, of course!
If I wanted to make these in a 13x18x1 pan would I have to double? Or how would I change the baking time? Thank you
Doubling it should work just fine. I would just use a cookie sheet (roughly 12″ x 18″). You could also just make the double recipe and then use 2 9×13 pans, and divide the dough between the two pans. If you use the larger cookie sheet, I would maybe set the timer for the recommended time and then check from there.
This was by far the easiest and best tasting recipe for blondies that I’ve ever made! Yummy! Thank you for sharing?
You’re so welcome! Thank you for making them and coming back to leave a comment.
Love this recipe! And if you keep them sealed they last quite a long time.
When you give the temperature you put your oven on it is a fanassisted one or not
I currently have a fan convection oven but for years prior I had a the conventional oven with the heat coils. Recipes will work in either one and the same temperature applies to both ovens. I’ve noticed that convection ovens (with the fan) heat at a higher temperature so things cook quicker. I just adjust it for whatever recipe I am making. Meaning, I set the cook time for the lowest time suggested and go from there. I have not noticed a big different between the two ovens.
My friend made these for an event and used a mixture of chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and white chocolate chips which was delicious! QUESTION: Do you prefer using dark or light brown sugar in this recipe?
All those chips sound amazing! I always use light brown sugar for all recipes. I honestly don’t think I have ever even bought dark brown sugar.
Thank you! I’m typically a dark brown sugar girl which is why I usually check.
Will these freeze well? We are retired and we like to freeze some for later use.
Thank you.
Yes, I think these would freeze great!
I made these tonight following the recipe exactly and they turned out perfect! Will be making these more often!
Awesome! We love these 🙂
What type of salt did you use? Kosher or table salt or etc… thanks!
I always use the fine kosher salt not the larger flakes of kosher salt. Table salt will work just as well, I just prefer the taste of kosher salt in baked goods.
These had no taste what so ever.
Worst blondie recipe I have ever made.
Sorry to hear that. Blondies typically don’t have a taste to them! They are a brown sugar bar base type recipe. But still, I’ve never heard anyone say these had no taste. Thanks for leaving your feedback.
These are the best cookies/bars I have EVER made or eaten. Thank you so much!
These are the absolute best. They taste the closest to my actual chocolate chip cookie recipe than anything I’ve found on pinterest. Our house is gluten free, so I used gluten free all purpose flour and they turned out amazing!
Hi =)
Can I do this recipe in 2 cake pans, yo use it as a birthday cake?
Yes, I think that would work. I would use the smaller cake pans. I think they’re 7″ or so?
I made this with King Arthur measure for measure Gluten Free Flour and it came out great. Next I’m going to make it allergy free for my son and hope it goes the same way using neat egg egg replacer and country crock dairy free butter.
Perfect recipe! I made them tonight! These are so delicious! I couldn’t eat just one. Thank you for sharing this wonderful cookie bar recipe.
I don’t know how anyone can give this recipe below 5 star if you followed the directions. These came out PERFECT , moist and gooey.
These are pretty good, but it was too vanilla flavored. I’m not sure if the vanilla measurement was a typo, because it’s written as 1 tablespoon. I wish I used a teaspoon instead.
Great texture and taste amazing warm!
These were so easy to make and so delicious…thanks for the recipe!
So easy! I’ve made 3 batches in 2 weekends! My hubs even made a batch to take to work he loved them so much!
These tasted really good, but mine turned out pretty dark! I started with 20 min just to make sure I didn’t overcook them and they were already pretty dark by that point. I would recommend checking on them pretty often as they cook so you can get them out in the right amount of time. Thanks for the recipe!
I made these based on my preferences and what I had on hand. I mostly follow the recipe except I used dark brown sugar because I prefer it to light brown sugar, mexican vanilla instead of regular vanilla and I used two whole eggs and one egg yolk because I had medium eggs, not large eggs. I sprinkled with a little fleur-de-sel right when it came out of the oven too. They turned out absolutely delicious! Not sure exactly how long I cooked them for, I just started checking them at 18 minutes, they weren’t quite done so I just checked every couple minutes after that and I’m not sure what my total was in the end.
I love the photos you posted of the finished product but it would be super helpful to have some photos of the recipe in progress too, I really wasn’t sure what consistency the batter should be and seeing as how different methods for measuring flour can result in very different volumes, the pictures would help here! I ended up weighing out my flour instead of using measuring cups, I used 260 grams.
Is the brown sugar packed or not packed? Thank you
Hello! Make sure to pack your brown sugar whenever measuring, it ensures those pesky little air pockets get pushed out.
How do blondies differ from cookie bars? Is it only that blondies only use brown sugar while cookie bars are more likely to use both brown and white?
You’re correct. Bloodies have more of a butterscotch flavor because they only call for brown sugar.