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Brown Butter Blondies

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Chewy brown butter blondies pair the nutty flavor of brown butter with brown sugar and butterscotch chips for a simple blondie recipe that you’ll want to make over and over again.

3 brown butter blondies stacked on a white plate.

I am really on a big brown butter kick right now.

Even though it might not be a “traditional” fall ingredient like pumpkin or maple, it goes really well with both of those things. Just give my brown butter rice krispie treats or brown butter pumpkin bread a try and see what I mean.

But brown butter is so good, it really stands on its own, too, making it a great flavor base for cookies (such as brown butter chocolate chip cookies) and these brown butter blondies.

These blondies are chewy, a little bit nutty from the brown butter, have a rich sweetness from the brown sugar, and are easy to adapt using your favorite mix-ins!

Oh, and you can make them, start to finish, in under an hour. What a win.

Platter with several brown butter blondies arranged on it. A knife is perched on the side of the platter.

WHAT ARE BLONDIES?

Blondies are bar desserts, just like brownies. But instead of being flavored with chocolate, they are flavored with vanilla. They also contain brown sugar, which helps make them chewy.

And just like brownies, blondies can be flavored in all sorts of ways! Just like how I’ve made salted caramel brownies, pumpkin brownies, and Snickers brownies, I’ve also made chocolate chip blondies, salted caramel blondies, and maple walnut blondies

And now we can add brown butter blondies to that list!

Brown butter in a white mixing bowl.

HOW TO MAKE BROWN BUTTER BLONDIES

Just like brownies, blondies are pretty simple to make. And these brown butter blondies are no exception!

Key ingredients

There are a couple of key ingredients that really make these blondies super flavorful and give them their chewy texture:

Brown butter: Based on the name, you probably already figured out that brown butter is a pretty big part of this recipe. There is a lot of butter in these blondies, but I promise they don’t feel or taste too buttery when they’re baked. 

Brown butter has a lovely nutty flavor and makes these blondies taste incredible. If you’ve never browned butter before, I have a whole post that talks about what it is and teaches you how to brown butter.

Dry ingredients for brown butter blondies whisked together in a glass mixing bowl.

Brown sugar: Brown sugar is one of the most important blondie ingredients. Not only does it add sweetness, but the molasses in the brown sugar adds flavor, and brown sugar makes the bars super chewy.

If you start baking and realize you’re low on brown sugar, don’t stress! I have a brown sugar substitute that’s easy to make.

Butterscotch chips: I like tossing a cup of butterscotch chips into these blondies. The brown sugar and butter flavor of butterscotch chips goes super well with the brown butter and the brown sugar in these bars.

Brown butter and sugar mixed together in a white mixing bowl set next to a bowl of eggs.

If you don’t have or don’t like butterscotch chips, I have some more mix-in ideas under “Mix-in Options” below.

Other ingredients you will need include:

  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Butterscotch chips being added to brown butter blondie batter in a white mixing bowl.

Making this recipe

Start by browning the butter, then pour it into a mixing bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer and let it cool for a bit before proceeding with the recipe. You can let it cool to room temperature if you have time, but even letting it cool for 5-10 minutes is good!

Whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, and salt. Set this mixture aside.

Use the paddle attachment on your stand mixer or an electric mixer to mix the sugar with the cooled brown butter. 

Brown butter blondie batter spread into a parchment-lined baking pan, ready to go in the oven.

Add in the eggs and mix for about 3 minutes, or until the mixture is fluffy and has lightened in color. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed.

Add in the vanilla, then mix in the flour on low speed just until the batter comes together.

Use a spatula to fold in the butterscotch chips or other mix-ins and spread the batter into a parchment-lined 13×9-inch pan.

Overhead view of sliced brown butter blondies on a wire cooling rack.

These blondies will bake for 35-40 minutes. If you insert a toothpick into the center, it should have some moist crumbs clinging to it but should not have raw batter on it. 

You want to err on the side of underbaking these, not overbaking them!

Let the blondies cool completely, then remove them from the pan and cut into bars.

Three brown butter blondies stacked on a white plate with a bite taken out of the top blondie.

MIX-IN OPTIONS

Butterscotch chips are always my first choice of mix-in when making brown butter blondies, but there are so many other options you could use as well!

Try swapping the 1 cup of butterscotch chips for 1 cup of any of the following:

  • Chopped toasted pecans or walnuts
  • Toffee chips
  • Chocolate chips
  • White chocolate chips
  • Caramel baking chips
  • Chopped pretzels
Sliced brown butter blondies on a piece of parchment paper.

STORAGE

Store your brown butter blondies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

You can also freeze the blondies. I recommend wrapping the cut blondies in plastic wrap, then storing them in an airtight container or zip-top freezer bag. 

When you want a blondie, you can take out as many as you like and either let them thaw at room temperature or microwave them for 30-60 seconds.

Several brown butter blondies arranged on a white platter, with a knife set on the side of the platter.

Brown Butter Blondies

Yield: 20 blondies
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes

Chewy brown butter blondies pair the nutty flavor of brown butter with brown sugar and butterscotch chips for a simple blondie recipe that you’ll want to make over and over again.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 cups packed light-brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup butterscotch chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Line the pan with parchment paper; set aside.
  2. In a saucepan over medium heat, brown the butter. (Instructions for how to brown butter.) Remove from heat and pour into the bowl of a stand mixer. Let cool.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
  4. Attach the bowl with the brown butter to the mixer. Add the sugars. Using the paddle attachment, mix to combine.
  5. Add the eggs. Beat on medium-high speed for 3 minutes, until light and fluffy, using a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the vanilla; beat to combine. Turn the mixer to low and slowly add the flour mixture, mixing until just incorporated.
  6. Fold in the butterscotch chips and spread the batter into the prepared pan.
  7. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. A few moist crumbs are fine (and desired), but the toothpick should not have any raw batter on it. DO NOT OVERBAKE.
  8. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool completely before removing the blondies from the pan. Remove the parchment paper and cut into squares to serve.

Notes

Feel free to get creative with the mix-ins. For example, add some chopped pecans or walnuts, or swap the butterscotch chips for toffee chips, chocolate chips, or white chocolate chips.

Blondies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.

Helpful resources:

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

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Nutrition Information
Yield 20 Serving Size 1 blondie bar
Amount Per Serving Calories 205Total Fat 4gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 1gCholesterol 30mgSodium 225mgCarbohydrates 40gFiber 0gSugar 29gProtein 3g

Did you make this recipe?

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Lish Grigsby

Tuesday 9th of October 2012

I made these last weekend and they were a big hit!! One of my son's friends wanted something with butterscotch and I stumbled upon this recipe in my search. So good and yummy-great dunked in hot tea or coffee. This was my first "brown butter" recipe and I'm guessing that's what made them so delicious. Thanks for sharing!!

Jamie

Sunday 14th of October 2012

Lish- I am so happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe - thanks so much for leaving your feedback! Have a great day! -Jamie

Madison

Tuesday 15th of May 2012

I just made these and they're absolutely delicious! Mine turned out a lot like a cake-y brownie. Just try not to eat all of the batter or you'll be buzzing on a serious sugar high. Do you have any recommendations to keep the butterscotch chips from sinking to the bottom of the crust? I'll definitely be making these again.

Sahar

Wednesday 6th of April 2011

These look awesome! I never tried browned butter in anything before. A question, would semi sweet chocolate chips work in this?

James

Monday 21st of March 2011

I've just got into baking cakes etc (not bad at bread though), I made cookies last week and following my easy recipe, they were a doddle. Going to try these next.

Brown Butter Blondies «

Saturday 1st of January 2011

[...] for them again and again so this recipe is definitely a keeper.  I found it on the website, My Baking Addiction, which is one of my [...]

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