January 22: Kentucky Blondies

Kentucky Blondies

Ingredients:
2 cups (9 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (8 oz) unsalted butter
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon Kentucky bourbon or apple juice, plus more for brushing on top
1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
1 cups pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 350 and place a rack in the center. Line a 9x13 inch metal pan with nonstick foil, or line it with regular foil and spray the foil with flour-added baking spray.
2. Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium-size bowl; set aside.
3. In a large, microwave-safe mixing bowl, microwave the butter on high for 1 minute, or until it is completely melted and very hot. With a mixing spoon, beat together the melted butter and brown sugar. Let the mixture cool for 10 minutes, and then gently beat or whisk in the eggs, vanilla, and bourbon. Stir the flour mixture into the batter. Let the batter cool if it is still warm, and then stir in the chocolate chips and pecans.
4. Spread the batter in the pan and bake for about 35 minutes, or until golden and the edges start to pull away from the sides of the pan. Let cool in the pan for 1 hour or until completely cool. If desired, brush the top with extra bourbon. Grasp the foil, transfer to a cutting board, and cut into 32 squares. For a cleaner cut, chill for about 2 hours before cutting.

Addition of brown sugar

Addition of apple juice, vanilla and eggs

Addition of dry ingredients

Addition of pecans and chocolate chips

Before...

And after.

Thoughts: Blondies are always easy to make. Very straightforward. I used apple juice instead of bourbon and I did skip brushing additional juice on top. They came out well and were very tasty. The only issue I had with them is that they were a little hard and definitely became even stiffer the more days that went by. The only thing that was lacking for me was the nutty flavor (like usual).