PB Chocolate Chip Blondies

Bake sales…they rank right up there with lemonade stands.  They make me smile.  I just like them. 

I like them a lot.  Its childhood, small town America, innocence, sugar.  All wrapped up, placed behind a card table with a homemade sign and smiling faces.  All is good. 

My only quip with bake sales is that they are a fundraiser.  I HATE fundraisers – their purpose is good, the actual doing stinks.  I hated going door to door when I was a young-un selling candy bars or fruit or something overpriced and gross from those pamphlets.  The thought makes me twitch.  I am not a saleswoman.  I stumble over my words, my hands get clamy, I mumble, I stutter, I look at my feet – its just down right awkward and the only reason anyone ever bought candy from me was because they felt sorry for me. 

But a bake sale…the customers come to you.  No knocking on doors, no sales pitch, no delivery of items, and no feeling sorry for some short blondie in band.  Every one wins! Oh and to this day, I will buy loads of crap  from any child who knocks on my door and even slightly stutters because I feel their pain and the more I buy from them then the fewer doors they have to knock on….

Future children…I will not make you sell stuff unless you want to – which if you do, WEIRDO!  But I will make you these PB blondies as your after school snack.  Promise…Pinky swear. 

Lets move on.  The most recent bake sale I partook in was just the other day and I made peanut butter chocolate chip blondies…well not the ones picture – just keep reading.  This recipe took 2 tries to nail.  The first batch was too cake like, the flavor flat, and sadly over baked – don’t go home from a 10 hour overnight shift and bake…you will think you set the timer, but you didn’t, nopers, not a chance.  Fail.  However, I still cut the blondies up, individually wrapped them, and sent them off to take part in the bake sale.  What else was there to do?

Nothing but to think of what went wrong and then go home and make them again.

So I did.  With a few alterations they emerged from the oven tasting and looking like blondie brownies…amazing what a few small changes and a timer being set can make.  However, now I have a pan of blondies staring at me and no bake sale…what is a girl to do?

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Blondies (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

Ingredients

• 1 Stick Unsalted Butter – melted
• 3/4 Cup Peanut Butter – I used natural PB – I think it made a difference
• 2 Cups Brown Sugar
• 2 Large Eggs
• 2 Teaspoons Vanilla
• 2 Cups Flour
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• 12 ounces ( 1 bag ) Chocolate Chips – I bet PB chips would be great too!

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and grease the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13 pan.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, salt, and baking powder – set aside.
3. With a hand or stand mixer, beat together the sugar and melted butter.  Add peanut butter and continue to beat until well mixed.
4. Add eggs one at a time.  Mix in vanilla.
5. With mixer on low, blend in the flour mixture until combined.  Speed can be increased once the flour is moistened – just don’t want to send up a cloud of flour!
6. With a wooden spoon, stir in the chocolate chips.
7. Pour/scoop (stiff batter) into prepared pan and press down into the pan.
8. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes – SET THE TIMER!
9. Remove from oven and let cool before cutting.
10. Pour yourself a glass of cold milk, cut,  and enjoy!  Do it
11.