Rarely do I prepare several different recipes from the same cookbook and deem them all to be great recipes. I mean surely at least one of them will be a disappointment simply because the combination of flavors wasn't a favorite or the recipe itself is just a flop because of a typo or incorrect information. Not so with Dorie Greenspan's book, Baking From My Home to Yours. Today's post is the fourth recipe from this book that I've tried and Dorie does not disappoint! These chunky blondies were so rich and delicious that when I cut them into squares, I immediately put most of them in the freezer just so that I wouldn't scarf all of them down at one sitting. That little trick came in handy during the recent bad weather we've had when a friend came over one evening to help cut and remove some trees. I offered to prepare dinner as a thank you to him and I pulled together a simple dinner, finished it off with these jewels and like magic, they disappeared! I sent one tired lumberjack-wannabe home fat and happy!
I did use almonds in place of the walnuts simply because that's what I had on hand and I did not put my 9x13 pan on a baking sheet because I've heard that doing this can cause problems with undercooking.
Chewy, Chunky Blondies
(Source: Dorie Greenspan “Baking: From My Home to Yours” p.109)
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups (packed) light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chips, or 1 cup store-bought chocolate chips
1 cup butterscotch chips or Heath Toffee Bits
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
Getting Ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a 9×13-inch baking pan and put it on a baking sheet.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add both sugars and beat for another 3 minutes, or until well incorporated. Add the eggs one by one, beating for 1 minute after each addition, then beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing just until they disappear into the batter. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the chips, nuts and coconut. Scrape the batter into the buttered pan and use the spatula to even the top as best you can.
Bake for about 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the blondies comes out clean. The blondies should pull away from the sides of the pan a little and the top should be a nice honey brown. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for about 15 minutes before turning the blondies out onto another rack. Invert onto a rack and cool the blondies to room temperature right side up.
Cut into 32 bars, each roughly 2-1/4 x 1-1/2 inches.
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