Chocolate Chip Blondies

Why you'll love this recipe

• Brown butter is the secret ingredient for super-chewy, butterscotchy blondies
• Part cookie and part brownie, no one can resist this classic sweet treat
• Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream to take buttery-soft blonde brownies over-the-top
• The perfect easy and quick dessert that’s practically no-fail

What are chocolate chip blondies

Sure, you could take your tried and true Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe (here’s my best one, if that’s what you’re looking for!) and spread the batter in a pan rather than scoop into individual cookies.

However, this usually doesn’t turn out so well in that the cookie bars are dry and tough.

Chocolate chip cookie recipes are created with the intent to bake cookies individually.

And without the browning that occurs from baking them individually, you end up with dry and tough cookie bars.

So what makes these chocolate chip blondies special, you ask? Lemme tell ya.

For starters, they contain no leavener like in cookies, such as baking soda or baking powder, so they have chewy edges and gooey centers.

Adding leavener would make these more cakey and we are going for the opposite of that. Chewy blondies all the way.

This recipe starts with brown butter.

Now, the brown butter is optional (you could just melt the butter instead), BUT the brown butter brings a delicious nuttiness to the chocolate chip blondies that is really something special. (see more on the brown butter below). And for a full tutorial on How to Make Brown Butter, click here!

Lastly, there's a good amount of brown sugar in this blondie recipe and no granulated sugar, which provides a chewy texture, rich caramel flavor and helps maintain moisture in the final baked cookie bar.

So, to be straight with you, these easy chocolate chip blondies are nothing short of buttery, dense in the best way possible, gooey deliciousness you need to bake ASAP.

Ingredients & substitutions

• All-purpose flour and salt
• Chocolate chips: My favorite is semi-sweet chocolate. Or change up the flavor and mix and match any kind you like: milk chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, white chocolate chips and butterscotch chips
• Butter: I like unsalted best 
• Brown sugar: substitute light brown sugar if you don’t have dark
• Egg: you’ll only need one large room temperature egg
• Vanilla extract: use a good quality pure vanilla extract, not imitation vanilla. You can tell the difference!

Brown butter vs. melted butter

Butter is essential. It makes everything in our lives taste so much better.

But when you melt it and brown it, these chocolate chip blondies get taken to a whole other level.

Like, I wanna eat the entire bowl of batter now cuz the it’s just so damn good level. But, I won’t do that (well, maybe just a little…).

That’s cuz the browned butter, for one, gives the blondies a chewier texture which is what moves them out of the ordinary and into the extraordinary category.

And, brown butter makes the flavor of these blondies slightly nuttier tasting and full of butterscotchy goodness.

A flavor that goes oh-so-well in this recipe.

Browning the butter takes just a few minutes and is worth its weight in gold, if you ask me.

The brown butter adds an extra layer of nutty flavor that you wouldn’t otherwise achieve with plain melted butter.

For a full tutorial on How to Make Brown Butter, click here!

To brown butter, place the butter (it can be cold from the fridge) in a saucepan over medium-low heat and swirl the butter around in the pan every minute or so.

Keep a careful eye on it, as the butter can go from melted to burned, passing right over that perfect browned phase quickly if you’re not paying attention.

You’ll start to see brown flecks in the butter and smell a nutty aroma. That’s how you know it’s done!

How to make easy chocolate chip brownies

Step 1

Start by heating your oven to 350°F (177°C) and lining a square baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.

Step 2

Melt the butter in a medium-sized skillet over medium-low heat. Stir it as it melts until it is barely browned and has a nutty smell. Butter can easily burn, so make sure you keep an eye on it.

Step 3

Add the browned butter and brown sugar to a large mixing bowl. Whisk until the mixture looks like wet sand and the ingredients are well blended. Add the egg and vanilla, then whisk until combined. Pour in the flour and salt until just blended. You shouldn’t be able to see any dry spots. Fold in the chocolate chunks. 

Step 4

Scoop the blondie batter into the prepared pan. Press the dough into the corners until it forms an even layer. After a baking time of 20-25 minutes, the edges will turn golden brown and the bars will be finished. Remove from the oven and cool the pan on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes.

Step 5

Cut the cooled blondies into 16 squares. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.

Pro tips 

• Browning the butter for this chocolate chip blondie recipe is completely optional. But, it doesn't take long (see above for a how-to) and is well worthwhile for adding an extra layer of flavor to this recipe
• I recommend baking these just until they seem barely baked in the middle. This will result in that ooey gooey center we're going for. Allow the blondies to cool in the pan for a bit which will continue the baking for a few more minutes in the hot pan. Overbaking these chocolate chip blondies will result in a more cakey texture. If that's what you're going for, then keep them in the oven up to 5 minutes longer than the recipe calls for
• As difficult as it may sound, allow these to cool for at least 20 minutes before cutting into them. This time will allow the blondies to continue baking a bit and set up or firm up just slightly enough for them to hold together well when you slice them up

FAQs

What is the difference between a blondie and a brownie?

Blondies are lighter and softer than brownies, with a taste more like chocolate chip cookies. Blondies are bar cookies that use brown sugar and vanilla, while brownies use cocoa powder and melted chocolate.

How can you tell if a blondie is undercooked?

When done, the tops of the blondies will turn golden brown and the edges will start to pull away from the sides of the pan. The toothpick test should yield a few moist crumbs but no uncooked batter.

Are blondies supposed to be gooey?

The best blondies have gooey centers and chewy edges. If you bake them for 20-25 minutes and let them cool slightly before cutting, you’ll end up with done-just-right bars.