Chewy, not-too-sweet, and loaded with apple flavor, these Brown Butter Apple Blondies are so good and so easy that you’ll never want them any other way!
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Blondies are so amazingly delicious, and these Brown Butter Apple Blondies have oatmeal in them, too, for extra flavor and nutrition; plus, a brown sugar glaze puts these tasty treats over the top.
Brown butter makes everything better, and these blondies are no exception. Not too sweet, and with the caramel-y nuttiness of brown butter, these blondies are just so crazy good!
What you’ll love about Brown Butter Apple Blondies
- They have amazing apple flavor!
- Nut-free and easy to make!
- They freeze well, so you can enjoy them later!
What Are Blondies?
Think of a blondie like a chocolate-less brownie. They have the same moist, chewy texture, but without any chocolate, the other flavors can really shine through. They’re made and baked like a brownie, and you can cut them into squares.
Ingredients
- Butter – Salted.
- Eggs – 2 eggs.
- Brown sugar – Light or golden brown sugar.
- All-purpose flour
- Ground cinnamon
- Baking powder
- Ground nutmeg
- Old-fashioned oats – Not the quick-cooking kind.
- Apples – Use a tarter apple, and dice it small. Use an alligator chopper to dice it up quickly.
For the glaze
- Butter – More salted butter.
- Brown sugar
- Maple syrup – Use the real stuff.
- Vanilla extract – Real or artificial
vanilla extract is fine. - Powdered sugar – Also called icing sugar or confectioners sugar.
You’ll Also Need
- 9 x 13 baking dish
- Parchment paper – NOT waxed paper.
- Stand mixer
How To Make The Best Apple Blondies
For a full list of ingredients and instructions, please scroll down to the recipe near the bottom of this page.
- Preheat the oven to 350-F and prepare a 9 x 13 baking dish by lining it with parchment paper so that the parchment paper comes up over the sides of the dish.
- Make the brown butter. Melt the butter in a saucepan on the stove over medium-low heat and just let it cook. Stir frequently. The butter will foam up, and after the foam subsides, the milk solids in the butter will have turned a nut-brown color and will smell like caramel. Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool.
- Whisk the flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking powder in a bowl. Set it aside.
- Add the cooled (but not solid) brown butter to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix in the eggs until well combined.
- Add the brown sugar and vanilla to the egg-butter mixture and mix until combined.
- Add the flour to the wet mixture, and mix well, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Remove the bowl from the mixer, and with a wooden spoon or spatula, fold in the oatmeal and diced apples.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth it out a bit. Pop it in the oven for about 30-35 minutes.
- Cool the Brown Butter Apple Blondies and make the glaze.
To Make The Glaze
- Melt the butter and brown sugar in a small pan on the stove over medium heat. Simmer it until the brown sugar is just dissolved. Remove the pan from the stove and let the butter-sugar mixture cool a bit.
- Add the maple syrup, vanilla, and powdered sugar to the melted butter mixture until smooth and thick enough to drizzle. Thin it with a teaspoon of milk if it is too thick.
To Finish The Apple Blondies
- Drizzle the brown sugar glaze over the top of the Brown Butter Apple Blondies, then cut and serve!
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- Don’t over-mix the batter, and scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- No parchment paper? You can use cooking spray in the baking dish, but getting your blondies out in one piece will be challenging. I highly suggest using parchment paper. Do NOT use waxed paper.
- The best apples for this apple blondies recipe are slightly tarter apples. Granny Smith, Pink Lady, Braeburn, and Cortland apples are all good picks.
How Do You Know When Blondies Are Done?
Poke the middle of the blondies with a finger, and the top should spring back. You can also insert a toothpick, but try not to stab it through any apple chunks. A few crumbs on the toothpick are OK, but raw batter means your blondies need more time to cook. This apple recipe should cook in 30-35 minutes at 350-F.
Recommended
Serving Suggestions
I love freezing these Brown Butter Apple Blondies and then putting them out with a selection of other tasty desserts for guests. Other favorites are Apple Pie Cinnamon Rolls, Salted Caramel Brown Butter Snickerdoodles (my all-time favorite cookie!), or these Apple, Date, and Walnut Muffins.
Step By Step Process
Brown Butter Apple Blondies
Equipment
- 9 x 13 baking dish
Ingredients
For the blondies
- 1 cup butter salted
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
- 2 cups diced apples about 2 apples
For the brown sugar glaze:
- 2 tablespoons butter salted
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar icing sugar or confectioners sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350-F and prepare a 9 x 13 baking dish by lining it with parchment paper so that the parchment paper comes up over the sides of the dish.
- Make the brown butter. Melt the butter in a saucepan on the stove over medium-low heat and just let it cook. Stir frequently. The butter will foam up, and after the foam subsides, the milk solids in the butter will have turned a nut-brown color and will smell like caramel. Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool.
- Whisk the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking powder in a bowl. Set it aside.
- Add the cooled (but not solid) brown butter to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix in the eggs until well combined.
- Add the brown sugar to the egg-butter mixture and mix until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, and mix well, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Remove the bowl from the mixer, and with a wooden spoon or spatula, fold in the oatmeal and diced apples.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth it out a bit. Pop it in the oven for about 30-35 minutes.
- Cool the Brown Butter Apple Blondies and make the glaze.
To make the glaze
- Melt the butter and brown sugar in a small pan on the stove over medium heat. Simmer it until the brown sugar is just dissolved. Remove the pan from the stove and let the butter-sugar mixture cool a bit.
- Add the maple syrup, vanilla, and powdered sugar to the melted butter mixture until smooth and thick enough to drizzle. Thin it with a teaspoon of milk if it is too thick.
- Drizzle the brown sugar glaze over the top of the Brown Butter Apple Blondies, then cut and serve!
Notes
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- Don’t over-mix the batter, and scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- No parchment paper? You can use cooking spray in the baking dish, but getting your blondies out in one piece will be challenging. I highly suggest using parchment paper. Do NOT use waxed paper.
- The best apples for blondies are slightly tarter apples. Granny Smith, Pink Lady, Braeburn, and Cortland apples are all good picks.
Nutrition
A Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed.