I know I wasn’t the only gay boy who dreamed of being a Girl Scout. The nature-y, survival aspect of Boy Scouts (learning how to make a fire, use a pocketknife, kill a bear, and so on) was never really appealing, but selling baked goods in a hypercompetitive environment for prizes, all while sporting a cute vest adorned with colorful pins and patches? Sign me up. I didn’t get to live out my destiny as a child, but consider these Tagalong-inspired blondies as revenge against a society that crushed my adolescent dreams. Now I can be whatever I want to be, and in this case, it’s an adult who binges on Girl Scout cookie-anything whenever I’d like. On my honor.
1stick unsalted buttermelted and cooled, plus more for greasing
1½cupsall-purpose flour
1teaspoonbaking powder
1teaspoonfine sea salt
¾cuppacked light brown sugar
¾cupgranulated sugar
½cupcreamy peanut butter
2eggs
2teaspoonsvanilla extract
FOR THE PEANUT BUTTER FILLING
1cupcreamy peanut butter
1cupconfectioners’ sugarsifted
FOR THE CHOCOLATE GANACHE
8ouncessemisweet chocolate chips
½cupheavy cream
Flaky sea saltfor garnish
Instructies
Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch square baking pan.
Line with parchment paper and butter the parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and fine sea salt.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, peanut butter, eggs, and vanilla.
Gradually add the flour mixture and whisk until fully combined.
Transfer to the prepared baking pan and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden and set but still a little gooey in the center.
Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
Remove from the pan, discard the parchment paper, and transfer to a wire rack set over a baking sheet.
Meanwhile, make the peanut butter filling: In a medium bowl, mix the peanut butter and confectioners’ sugar until fully combined and smooth.
While the blondie is still a little warm, spread the peanut butter filling over the top in an even layer using an offset spatula.
If the filling is a little too firm, warm the spatula with hot water, then dry it, to help it spread more easily.
Make the chocolate ganache: Put the chocolate chips in a medium bowl.
Set aside.
Heat the heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until bubbles just begin to appear.
Remove from the heat and pour over the chocolate chips.
Let sit for 5 minutes.
Stir the chocolate and cream until smooth and well combined.
Pour the chocolate ganache over the peanut butter layer, top with some flaky sea salt, and let sit until the ganache has set.
Once set, cut the blondies into 9 large squares or 16 small squares and serve.
Notes / Tips / Wine Advice:
To set the blondies quicker, you can chill them in the fridge before cutting.
My favorite pan to bake brownies or blondies in is a light-colored aluminum pan. It heats up quickly in the oven and cools down quickly once you are done baking.