The Impulsive Baker

I have issues.  Mostly with sugar, but issues all the same.  I have been craving a blondie lately.  A few weeks ago I was buying bread at Great Harvest Bread Company and they gave me a sample of their blondie.  It's all I can think about since!  I actually stopped by there today to "buy bread," fully intending to get the full-size chocolate-free brownie.  Apparently they only make those on Thursdays.  All they had were chocolate brownies.  And that is not what I was craving. 

Blondes have more fun.

I went home and spent the afternoon writing a paper for class.  For me, writing papers involves lots of procrastination.  So, I'd pretty much write a sentence... sweep the floor... reword the sentence... get a drink of water... reread the sentence... Oooh!  I should organize my recipes!  As I was going through the pile of recipes I've accumulated, I came across one that I'd completely forgotten about; BLONDIES!!!

I scanned the recipe quickly.  I had all the ingredients on hand and it takes 20 - 25 minutes.  Check the clock... it was 2:20 (seriously, who bakes in the afternoon?) and I had to leave for class by 3:00.  That gives me 10 minutes to get the mix ready, 20 minutes to bake, and another 10 minutes to cool so I can cut them and grab one for the road.  Looks like I have the time... but is there something I'm forgetting?  Oh yeah, that paper.  Screw the paper.  My sweet tooth wins.  Every time.

They took a bit longer to cook, so I had less time to let them cool.  They were pretty crumbly when I cut into them.  Crumbly and delicious.

Crumbly is good.

In case the mood strikes and you find yourself with a compulsion to bake, this is the recipe for you!  It was so quick to throw together and turned out amazing.  I found myself wishing I'd brought two for my little road trip.

Blondies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup dark brown sugar, tightly packed
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda (I don't have an 1/8 teaspoon, who does??)
• Pinch of salt (I actually do have a spoon labeled "pinch")
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup butterscotch chips, walnuts, or chocolate chips (I used walnuts)

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 350.  Lightly butter and flour an 8X8 pan.  Whisk together the melted butter and sugar.
• Add the egg and vanilla extract and whisk.
• Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Mix it all together.  Add the mix-ins.
• Pour into pan and spread evenly.  Bake for 20 to 25 minutes (at least 25!) or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Allow to cool.  Cut into squares and serve.
• Makes 9 blondies (I cut 'em small).

I used my hand-held mixer to make the batter-making process go super quick.  My immediate thought as I poured the batter into the pan was, "I should have added pumpkin!"  Duh.  I bet you could make a healthy version by swapping the butter for pumpkin, the white flour for whole wheat, and cutting the sugar a bit.  Plus lots of cinnamon!

I found Simply Recipes on Miss Lauren's blog roll. It is full of really great stuff that is pretty simple to bring together.  It totally makes me want to get adventurous in the kitchen.  Oh, and Lauren's blog is pretty kick-butt too.  But we all knew it would be.

Now... back to that paper.