Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Heath bar blondies

Gooey toffee deliciousness

It can be hard to muster the enthusiasm for baking when you're on a diet. Much as I love to bake, it's so much more fun when you can scarf down a bunch of what you're making. But everything in moderation, so when I decided to use up some mini Heath bars I had in the pantry, and take on one of my recipe nemeses, blondies, in the process, I did eat one. Just one, though. I was good. Willpower, win.

I always have a horrible time with blondies, 'cause I can never decide when they're done. I think I'm always looking for them to be cakey, but y'know, they just aren't, it just isn't the nature of the beast. If you ever manage to get the insides of a pan of blondie totally cakey and dense, the outside will be toast. And so, we compromise, with chewy-gooey insides and edges dry and chewy like the edges of a pan of brownies, which, after all, are what blondies are modeled after, so it makes sense.

These were a sure crowd-pleaser -- almost two dozen of these disappeared at my office over the course of a day, which is a good sign. Also, they made the house smell awesome, all caramel-vanilla-toffee-ish. And they were really easy to throw together. And yes, they were pretty yummy, too. :)

Heath Bar Blondies
From The Delicious Life

1 c flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick butter
1 c brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 tsp vanilla
1 c crushed Heath bars

1. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
2. In another, larger bowl, melt the butter, Stir in the brown sugar, then the egg, then the vanilla. Then stir in the flour mixture, and then the crushed Heath bars.
3. Pour into a greased 8-by-8 or 9-by-9 pan.
4. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Cool in pan.