If you have never made blondies before, let me be the one to introduce you to what is about to become your new favourite bake.
Blondies are essentially brownies — but instead of cocoa powder and dark chocolate, they are built around brown sugar and butter, which gives them a deep, almost caramel-like flavour that is completely addictive. Dense, fudgy, chewy in the centre, slightly crisp on the edges, and loaded with melty chocolate chips throughout.
They are one of those bakes that looks and tastes like you spent a lot of effort, but the reality is they come together in one bowl in about 10 minutes of prep. No mixer needed. No fancy technique. Just melted butter, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, flour, and as many chocolate chips as you can justify adding.
Once you make them you will completely understand why blondies have been a baking staple for decades.
Blondies vs Brownies — What Is the Difference?
Brownies get their flavour from cocoa powder or melted chocolate. Blondies get theirs from brown sugar.
Brown sugar is made with molasses which gives blondies that distinctive deep, butterscotch-like flavour that is incredibly rich and complex. Combined with melted butter and vanilla, the base of a blondie batter tastes incredible even before anything else goes into it.
The texture is similar to a brownie — dense and fudgy rather than cakey — but the flavour is warmer, sweeter, and more caramel-like. Some people prefer blondies to brownies. Once you try them you will have a very strong opinion on the matter.
Why You Will Love These
One bowl and a whisk — no mixer, no complicated equipment. Ready from start to finish in about 35 minutes. They stay soft and fudgy for days stored at room temperature.
They are endlessly customisable with different mix-ins. They freeze beautifully. They travel well and are perfect for potlucks, bake sales, and gifting.
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Ingredients
1 cup (225g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1½ cups (300g) light or dark brown sugar, packed
¼ cup (50g) white granulated sugar
2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1½ cups (255g) semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
Flaky sea salt for sprinkling on top (optional but highly recommended)
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9×13 inch baking dish generously with butter or cooking spray. Line with parchment paper, leaving some overhang on the sides — this makes lifting the blondies out completely effortless once they have cooled. Grease the parchment too.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the melted butter and both sugars until smooth, glossy, and well combined. The mixture will look thick and slightly grainy at this stage — that is completely normal.
- Add the eggs, egg yolk, and vanilla extract. Whisk vigorously for about 1 minute until the mixture is smooth and slightly paler in colour. This step adds air and helps give the blondies that shiny, slightly crackly top.
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt directly into the wet ingredients. Switch to a rubber spatula or wooden spoon and fold everything together until just combined — stop mixing the moment you can no longer see dry flour streaks. Do not overmix. Overmixing develops gluten and will make your blondies tough and cakey rather than soft and fudgy.
- Fold in 1 cup of the chocolate chips, reserving the remaining ½ cup for the top. The batter will be very thick — thicker than brownie batter. That is exactly right.
- Spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking dish. Use the back of a spatula or damp fingertips to push it all the way to the corners and smooth the surface. Scatter the reserved chocolate chips over the top and press them in very lightly.
- Sprinkle flaky sea salt generously over the top if using. The salt against the sweet chocolate and caramel blondie base is one of the best flavour combinations in baking.
- Bake for 22–26 minutes. The top should be golden and set, the edges should be pulling away slightly from the sides, but the centre should look just barely done — perhaps even slightly underdone.
This is exactly what you want. A toothpick inserted in the centre should come out with a few moist crumbs — not wet batter, but not clean either. - This is the hardest step because the whole house smells incredible and every instinct says to cut into them immediately.
Do not.
Let the blondies cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes, then lift out using the parchment overhang and transfer to a wire rack to cool for another 20–30 minutes before slicing.
Cutting into warm blondies results in messy, crumbly squares that fall apart.
Cutting into fully cooled blondies gives you clean, beautiful bars with perfect fudgy centres that hold their shape.
Slice into squares or rectangles and serve.
The Most Important Tips for Perfect Blondies
Do not overbake.
This is the number one mistake people make with blondies. They look underdone when they come out of the oven and the instinct is to put them back in for a few more minutes.
Resist it. The blondies will continue cooking from the residual heat of the pan as they cool. Overbaked blondies are dry and crumbly rather than dense and fudgy.
Use brown sugar that is fresh and moist.
Old, dry brown sugar that has gone hard will not incorporate properly and will affect the texture. Fresh, soft brown sugar is what gives blondies their chewy, moist crumb.
Do not skip the extra egg yolk.
It adds fat and richness that makes the texture significantly more fudgy. It is one extra step that makes a noticeable difference.
Room temperature eggs.
Cold eggs can cause the melted butter to solidify when mixed together. Room temperature eggs incorporate much more smoothly and evenly.
Weigh your flour if you can.
Too much flour is the second most common reason blondies come out dry and cakey rather than fudgy. Measuring by weight is always more accurate than measuring by cup. If you are using cups, spoon the flour into the measuring cup rather than scooping — scooping packs the flour and can add up to 20% more than the recipe intends.
Line the pan with parchment.
This is not optional for perfect blondies. It allows you to lift the whole slab out cleanly and cut perfectly even bars on a flat surface. Trying to cut blondies in the pan always results in uneven squares and damaged edges.
Use good quality chocolate chips.
You taste every ingredient in blondies and the chocolate chips are a major flavour component. Use semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips for the best balance against the sweet caramel base.
How To Store Blondies
At room temperature — store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. They actually get slightly chewier and more fudgy on day two and three which many people prefer.
In the fridge — keep in an airtight container for up to a week. Let them come to room temperature before eating or warm in the microwave for 10–15 seconds.
In the freezer — blondies freeze beautifully for up to 3 months. Wrap individual squares in plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag. Thaw at room temperature for about an hour or warm in the microwave for 20–30 seconds for a warm, gooey treat whenever you need one.
Homemade Chocolate Chip Blondies
Course: Recipes4
servings30
minutes40
minutes300
kcalIngredients
1 cup (225g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1½ cups (300g) light or dark brown sugar, packed
¼ cup (50g) white granulated sugar
2 large eggs plus 1 egg yolk, room temperature
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1½ cups (255g) semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
Flaky sea salt for topping (optional)
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9×13 inch baking dish and line with parchment paper leaving overhang on the sides.
- Whisk melted butter with both sugars in a large bowl until smooth and glossy.
- Add eggs, egg yolk, and vanilla. Whisk vigorously for 1 minute until smooth and slightly paler.
- Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Fold with a spatula until just combined — stop the moment no dry flour streaks remain. Do not overmix.
- Fold in 1 cup of chocolate chips.
- Spread batter evenly into the prepared pan all the way to the corners.
- Scatter remaining ½ cup chocolate chips over the top and press in lightly. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
- Bake for 22–26 minutes until the top is golden and set and the edges are pulling away from the sides. The centre should look just barely done — slightly underdone is perfect.
- toothpick in the centre should come out with a few moist crumbs — not wet batter and not clean.
- Cool in the pan for 30 minutes then lift out using the parchment and cool on a wire rack for another 20–30 minutes before slicing into bars.
Notes
- Do not overbake. The blondies will look underdone when they come out of the oven — they firm up as they cool. This is what gives them their fudgy centre.
- Weigh the flour if possible. Too much flour makes blondies cakey. If using cups, spoon flour into the measuring cup — do not scoop directly from the bag.
- The extra egg yolk is not optional — it is what makes the texture noticeably richer and fudgier.
- Use dark brown sugar for an even deeper caramel and butterscotch flavour.
