I’ve finally achieved my idea of the perfect blondie. (A blondie is a cross between a chocolate chip cookie and a brownie.) While there may not be such a thing as a BAD Blondie, there are definitely sub-par ones.

I was looking for a moist, chewy, chocolatey blondie with a salty crunch. Is that asking too much? NO!!! Tinkering around with a pretty good recipe, I decided to brown the butter rather than simply melt it, as directed. This added a deeper flavor.

I also found that removing them from the oven promptly at the 22-minute mark (cooking directions suggested 22-25 minutes) was key to a moist result. Even if you don’t think they are ready, fear not – they’ll continue to bake in the hot pan out of the oven.

A bonus feature of my Blondies is that they’re better the next day, once they firmed up a bit. I love recipes you can make ahead of time! (Don’t get me wrong – they’re DELICIOUS the same day! It’s just they’re still soft and gooey….not exactly a bad thing, but a little messy for guests.

Finally, I added 1/2 cup of 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate chips (Ghirardelli was best) AND white chocolate chips, then topped with toasted pretzel bits for a salty crunch.

NOTE: For the flour and brown sugar I put measurements in both weight and cups. Weight is a far more accurate measurement, which is important in baking. So if you have a scale, use it.

BONNIE’S BLONDIES

• 7 oz all-purpose flour (1 2/3 cups)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 12 T salted butter
• 10.5 oz dark brown sugar (1¾ cups)
• 2 eggs
• 1½ tsp vanilla
• 1 cup walnuts (or pecans, cashews) – chopped & lightly toasted
• 1/2 cup 60% bittersweet chocolate chips (I use Ghirardelli)
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips (I use Nestle’s)
• 1/3 cup pretzel sticks, broken by hand into small pieces & lightly toasted (unless the bag is fresh)

NOTE: Take care when breaking the pretzels that you don’t knock off the salt.

Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat, swirling often. Keep cooking until butter darkens and becomes aromatic, but doesn’t burn. Remove from heat and pour into a large mixing bowl. Let cool a few minutes.

Mix the sugar into the melted butter. Stir well, smashing out any lumps.

Beat the eggs and vanilla together in a small bowl. Pour approximately half the eggs into sugar mixture and blend. When smooth, stir in the rest of the eggs.

Preheat oven to 350º Fahrenheit.

Pour in the flour mixture, folding gently until most of the flour is incorporated.

Add in the chips and nuts, blending just until flour disappears – over mixing toughens the Blondie.

Pour into a greased and floured 9″ x 13″ baking dish. Spread batter to cover entire pan, smoothing top. The batter is very thick, so take care when spreading that you don’t scrap off the greased/floured coating – just gently push the top toward the edges. Sprinkle the pretzels on top, lightly pressing into the batter so they stick.

Bake at 350º Fahrenheit for 22 minutes exactly.  Don’t worry if they don’t look quite done – they’ll continue to cook in the hot dish. Place on a wire rack to cool for, at least, 3 hours before slicing.

Be sure to check out my blog for lots of yummy vegetarian recipes:  VEGETARIAN COOKING FOR CARNIVORES BLOG.