Salted Brown Butter Blondies are rich and gooey with notes of salted caramel, butter, and vanilla. They’re easy to make with just 6 ingredients in 1 bowl in less than 1 hour!
This recipe is a little dangerous.
Only because once you realize how ridiculously easy it is to make and how crazy good it is, you might just not be able to stop yourself from making it a little too often!
Consider yourself warned, friends.
I also love how many different ways you can make these! Basically any flavor profile you can dream up, you can create here.
How about a post-Halloween special using leftover candy? Maybe something along the lines of Peanut Butter Cup Blondies with chopped peanut butter cups and a swirl of peanut butter.
Or perhaps a festive white chocolate, pecan, and dried cranberry rendition for the holidays.
And another one of my favorite classic combinations is butterscotch chips and walnuts, with a few oats sprinkled on top before baking.
You can really let your imagination run wild here!
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The Best Brown Butter Blondies Recipe
Ingredients
- Unsalted butter
- Light brown sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- All-purpose flour
- Salt
- Flaky sea salt
How to Brown Butter
- Add the butter to a small saucepan.
- Melt the butter over medium heat. Once melted, turn the heat down to medium-low and continue cooking until the butter is slightly browned and smells nutty. This takes less than 5 minutes.
- It's done! Don't forget the nice brown bits in the bottom of the pan, that's where the flavor is!
- Your brown butter is ready to use.
How to Make Brown Butter Blondies
- Whisk together the warm brown butter and brown sugar in a large bowl.
- Add the egg and vanilla extract.
- And give it a good whisk.
- Add the flour and salt.
- Stir to combine.
- Pour the batter into an 8 by 8-inch baking pan lined with 2 pieces of parchment paper.
- Bake!
How to Store Blondies
Store blondies in an airtight food storage container at room temperature for up to 3 days. After that, transfer the container to the fridge for up to 4 days more. Let the blondies sit for 15 minutes at room temperature before serving.
Variations on This Recipe
- Extracts. Instead of (or in addition to) vanilla extract, you can use whatever extract you like. There’s a ton of different flavors available, such as lemon, cinnamon, peanut butter, raspberry, coffee, etc. Start with a small amount and work your way up because some flavors are very potent!
- Mix-ins. Mix in up to 1 1/4 cups of chocolate chips, chopped nuts, or dried fruit before baking.
- Swirl-ons. Swirl in 1/2 cup of jam, peanut butter, marshmallow fluff, hot fudge, Nutella, caramel, etc. before baking. Don’t fully mix it in, you want to be able to see the swirls.
- Stuff it. Or add a layer of fun in the middle! Spoon in half of the batter, add a layer of pre-baked cookies (like Oreos, chocolate chip cookies, etc.), spread the other half of the batter on top, and bake.
Tips for Making Brown Butter Blondies
- The butter should be melted and only slightly cooled when you mix in the sugar. This is how you get a gorgeous crackly top.
- Make sure you take the blondies out of the oven when they’re golden along the outside, but still look a touch doughy in the center.
- If you want to get nice clean slices, let the blondies cool completely before cutting.
Blondies FAQs
What’s the Difference Between a Brownie and a Blondie?
Blondies are not just blonde brownies or brownies without chocolate added. Blondies are definitely their own thing!
For starters, all brownies have some form of chocolate. Blondies may or may not have chocolate, usually in the form of chocolate chips.
While predominant flavor of brownies is chocolate, the base flavor of blondies is buttered caramel.
Additionally, blondies are typically chewier than brownies.
What Does Brown Butter Taste Like?
Brown butter tastes like a combination of butter and toasted nuts (especially hazelnuts), with notes of caramel.
What Does Brown Butter do to Cookies?
Brown butter adds complexity to cookies. In this Brown Butter Blondies recipe, brown butter adds a subtle nutty caramel flavor.
With a little bit of flaky sea salt on top, I think these taste like salted caramel blondies!
Are Blondies Supposed to be Gooey in the Middle?
Yes! Blondies will continue cooking in their pan even after they’re out of the oven. They’re ready to come out when they’re golden along the outside, but still look a touch doughy in the center.
If you cook blondies until the middle isn’t gooey, they will be over-baked.
Note that as blondies cool, they will stiffen up. Once they’re completely cooled, you can easily cut them.
More Blondies Recipes to Try
Salted Brown Butter Blondies
Ingredients
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup light brown sugar lightly packed
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon flaky sea salt for topping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line an 8 by 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper so that it hangs over all 4 sides.
- Add the butter to a small saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, turn the heat down to medium-low to low. Cook until the butter smells nutty and is slightly browned. This will take about 3 to 5 minutes from the time it’s melted. Cool for 2 minutes.
- Add the warm brown butter to a large bowl. Whisk in the brown sugar. Whisk in the egg and vanilla. Stir in the flour and salt.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan and spread it out evenly.
- Bake until the blondies are golden along the outside and puffed, but still look a touch gooey in the center, about 20 to 23 minutes. Be careful not to overbake.
- Sprinkle the flaky sea salt on top immediately when you take the blondies out of the oven.
- Cool before cutting and serving.
Faith's Tips
- If desired, mix in up to 1 1/4 cups of chocolate chips, chopped nuts, or dried fruit before baking.
Nutrition
Betsy
These blondies make me want to sit down with them, a butter beer, and a Harry Potter movie! Yum, yum! 👍❤️