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Blondies:
1/2 cup (50 grams) pecan or walnuts
1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter
1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) baking soda
1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) salt
1 large egg (50 grams), at room temperature
3/4 cup packed (150 grams) light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon (4 grams) pure vanilla extract
1 cup (170 grams) chocolate chips (semi sweet, bittersweet, milk, and/or white chocolate chips)
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Blondies: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place the oven rack in the center of the oven. Line an 8 inch (20 cm) square baking pan with foil or parchment paper and then butter the foil (or spray with a non stick cooking spray).
Place the pecans on a baking sheet and bake for about 8 minutes or until brown and fragrant. Remove from oven, let cool, then chop coarsely.
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt the butter. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
In the bowl of your electric stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment (or with a hand mixer), beat the egg, brown sugar, and vanilla extract until light and frothy (about 2 to 3 minutes). Beat in the melted butter. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Then, on low speed, beat in the flour mixture until incorporated. Fold in the chopped pecans and chocolate chips.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and smooth the top with an offset spatula or the back of a spoon. Bake for about 25 minutes, or until the top is dry, golden brown, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack. Cool completely before cutting into bars.
Can be covered and stored at room temperature for two to three days, or they can be frozen.
Makes about 15 Blondies.
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Blondies, also known as Butterscotch or Blond Brownies, are a dense and chewy bar cookie that has a wonderfully sweet butterscotch flavor. Blondies are said to be related to the Chocolate Brownie, although they do not look or taste like one. It is a little confusing as Blondies are not made with dark chocolate so the only real connection to the Brownie seems to come from the fact they are baked in a square pan. If you think about it, the batter is more like a chocolate chip cookie batter; full of butter and brown sugar, with the added touch of toasted pecans and chocolate chips.
I really like how the toasted pecans and chocolate chips complement the Blondies' butterscotch flavor. You can use walnuts, or even hazelnuts or almonds, instead of pecans. I like to toast the nuts before adding them to the batter as this really brings out their flavor. For the chocolate chips you can use semi sweet, bittersweet, milk, and/or white chocolate chips.
This recipe is loosely based on a recipe in Richard Sax's wonderful book "Classic Home Desserts". It is not often that you find a baking book that does such a good job of covering the whole gamut of baking, from 'Cobblers and Crisps' to 'Dessert Sauces'. Two delightful features of this book are the quotes from old cookbooks that are scattered throughout and the "Historical Sources" list at the back of the book.