Chewy Peanut Butter Blondies

These blondies are like biting into a super decadent peanut butter cookie! These buttery, rich and chewy bars are a fun treat that are incredibly easy to make, (you probably have everything you need already in your pantry!)

Blondies, on their own, have a distinct caramel flavor from the brown sugar and butter. Peanut butter is a perfect addition because it brings a savory nuttiness to balance out the sweet.

Here’s what you need:

I cannot stress how easy these are to make! These are a great dessert to make in a pinch! I like throwing everything into my stand mixer but you could easily do this in a large bowl with just a wooden spoon.

Start by creaming together the butter and sugar.

Add the still-warm butter to the mix.

Warm butter will begin to melt the sugar and give the blondies a fudgy center.

Next, add the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla.

Whisk together the flour and salt before adding them in.

Keep mixing the batter until it comes together.

Finally, spray a 9 x 9 inch pan with cooking spray and line the bottom with a square of parchment. Pour the batter in and press it out evenly to the edges with your hands or a rubber spatula. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, then allow to cool completely before handling.

If I have peanut butter in a dessert, then I have to have chocolate with it. The blondies are lovely on their own and you certainly don’t have to do this next step. I love it though and I think the aesthetic is really nice.

Make a chocolate ganache. (optional)

Ganache is just equal parts fat and chocolate. I’m just making a small amount of ganache to drizzle on my bars so I only need 3 tablespoons of both cream and chopped chocolate. You could use whatever type of chocolate you prefer. I’m using a dark chocolate baking bar, but you could use milk chocolate, semisweet chocolate, what ever you want.

Just heat the cream in the microwave for 20 to 30 seconds, then immediately pour it over the chocolate.

Stir until the chocolate completely melts and you have ganache!

Once the blondie bar is totally cool, take the whole thing out and place it on a cutting board. Cut into equal sized bars or squares. These are pretty darn rich so I prefer cutting them into smaller-sized squares. Plus you have more to enjoy that way!

The edges should be slightly darker, the tops should be crisp and the centers should be soft and gooey!

Pour the ganache into squeeze bottle or you could use a piping bag or even a spoon and drizzle zig zags all over the brownies. I like to add a sprinkle of chopped peanuts for crunch!

Other recipes to try:

• Perfect Crisp and Fudgy Nutella Brownies
• Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting