cherry blondies

April 7, 2010


Could anything sound more cute to begin with than a cherry blondie? Didn’t think so. These are technically cherry + chocolate chip blondies but I didn’t want to mess with such a cute-as-a-button name.

As ever, this is my first experiment with blondies and can I get a whoop-whoop for how ridiculously short the ingredient list is for these and how easy they are to make? How about a what-what for how dee-bloomin’-licious they are?

I’ve seen these all over the food blog world, from Joy the Baker to eat make read; smitten kitchen to Carrots ‘N’ Cake; these puppies are universally lauded. And rightly so. For this recipe I turned to my cherished friend Mark Bittman, since he never fails to disappoint.


Cherry Blondies

adapted from How to Cook Everything

Ingredients

  • 8 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup dried cherries
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips (other options below!)

Directions

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8×8 pan
  2. Mix your melted butter with the brown sugar and beat until smooth. Beat in the egg and then vanilla.
  3. Add a pinch of salt and stir in flour. Mix in any additions (below). I went with 1/2 cup dried cherries and 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips.
  4. Pour the mixture into your buttered pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until set in the middle. This part also depends on your desired level of goo. I am a goo girl so less time wins for me. Cool on a rack before cutting them.

Further additions, use one or a combination of:

  • 1/4 cup peanut butter
  • 1/2 to 1 cup chopped nuts, toasting them first for even better flavour
  • 1/2 to 1 cup chocolate chips
  • 1/2 teaspoon mint extract in addition to or in place of the vanilla
  • 1/2 cup mashed bananas
  • 1/4 cup bourbon, scotch or other whiskey; increase the flour by one tablespoon
  • 2 tablespoons of espresso powder with the vanilla
  • Stir 1/2 cup dried fruit, especially dried cherries, into the prepared batter
  • Top with a vanilla butter cream or chocolate peanut butter cream frosting


Now, I’ve never even made brownies before so why blondies? Because I have blonde hair? Nah. I like the idea of something not quite as chocolate-dense and with more room for playing around with additions and the like. The dominant flavour in these is not chocolate but brown sugar, and there is something beautiful about that fact. Make of that statement what you will, but blondies are here to stay.

What additions would you choose from the suggestions above?
I am pretty excited to make walnut + banana blondies as well as peanut butter blondies. Yum.

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