Since I had myself been in the Hannah Montana heyday, I was obligated to make the joke that these blondies are, indeed, 'the best of both worlds.' This recipe is made with one simple batter yielding a vanilla blondie and a chocolatey, brownie-ish batter layered and swirled together for visually stunning and indescribably decadent marbled blondies. This recipe is the answer if you can't decide between blondies and brownies.
You can tell the individual additions, the buds of white chocolate chips in the caramel-y, vanilla blondie batter and the beads of overly oversized semi-sweet chocolate chips in the thick, rich brownie batter, when baked and cut because they are stark and stunning. These marble blondies are both chewy around the edges and soft and fudgy in the middle, so they've got a little something for everyone.
Blondies vs. Brownies
Blondies and brownies aren't all that different, but they have completely different batters. Brown sugar is blended, which means all brown sugar is used, so you get moisture, fudgy and deep caramel flavor. This batter simultaneously works as blondie and brownie means I use a combination of light brown sugar and a little granulated sugar to balance the chocolate flavor and that crinkly paper thin top of a good brownie.
For making it chocolate, I dot the extra egg yolk and espresso powder into the goldie batter, and add melted choco plus Dutch process cocoa. This extra egg yolk gives you the extra fat you need to cancel out that dry cocoa. The deep color and rich flavor of Dutch process cocoa, and the fudgy texture of the melted chocolate, make for a yummy snack. When baked together, the batters come together and provide a treat that's truly wonderful.
Best of Both Worlds
I never get regular soft serve, as I'm such an incredibly indecisive person. These are the "twist" of blondies. marrying the world's best of vanilla blondie and chocolate brownie…
In each bite, you have a bit of everything: the brown sugar (caramel) notes, the sweet vanilla, the chocolate decadence, the creaminess of the melted chocolate, the chewy edges, the fine and delicate crust and the soft, fudgy center with this recipe. They will think you spent hours creating those playful swirls with your amazing eye catching marbled appearance!
The Perfect Marble Effect: Tips
It's daunting swirling the batters, especially for a recipe like this where the batters are thicker than cake batter. Everything you need to know on making the most stunning marbled effect.
- The layering of batters in the pan does most of the heavy lifting in creating a marbled cross-section in the blondies. In other words, you simply want to alternate dropping the batters two layers deep in a checkerboard pattern. After doing this, we obtain contrasting layers in the blondies, which give them a marbled appearance when sliced. Also, this partly means that you only have to think about creating your swirls on the surface and not all the way through.
- For swirling the batters I prefer the side of a small offset spatula or the spine of a butter knife rather than a toothpick. These tools are good enough to pull the sticky batters together.
- It doesn't matter about the texture on the surface that results from swirling. When baked it'll pretty much settle.
Easy Variations
Want a little extra pizzazz? Consider this:
- Instead of using white chocolate chips, use toasted nuts such as pecans or walnuts to add to that blondie batter.
- Skip the semi sweet chocolate if you want something more rich — less sweet — than semi sweet, and use bittersweet instead.
- Pour a few tablespoons of your favorite nut butter or a portion of Nutella in your brownie batter to give it a flavor.
How to Store Marble Blondies
Baked day of, these blondies are the best. When your blondies have cooled, leave them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days if you find yourself with extra blondies left over.
Wrapped in plastic wrap, these marble blondies are frozen in an airtight container or resealable plastic bag up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature.
Blondies and Brownies Galore
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