I am very pleased to present a recipe I’ve been working on for FAR TOO LONG: High Altitude Malted Butterscotch Blondies.
But first, real life.
Before we dive in, let me pause and say … it’s been a motherfucker of a couple of weeks (I told you I drop F-bombs when warranted). First, I turned 50. Fifty! You guys, it’s so weird. I’m not upset about it. It’s just kind of … surreal. How did I get here so fast?
It doesn’t matter. I am safely on the other side of middle age, happy to be fit and energetic and far from grandparentry, and honestly, happier than I’ve ever been in my life. Here’s a photo of me doing a headstand on my birthday in an attempt to prove to myself and everyone else that I am not old. I’m going to keep kicking! and stretching! like Sally O’Malley.
So that happened. And then, the next day, David’s eye starting feeling weird. Those of you who have followed me for a while may remember the intense eye drama on our wedding trip to Italy last summer. And yep, guess what? Another detached retina. He had emergency surgery down in Denver and then was forbidden to come back home to higher altitudes until he recovered a bit (two weeks, to be exact). So I’ve been making the two-hour drive back and forth, taking care of both him and my kiddo here at home. It’s been a little crazy. I mean. Cocktails were needed.
Thankfully, he’s fine now. We’re back home. And I’ve been more than ready to get back into the kitchen and dive into a project. So I tackled my nemesis: blondies.
Ready for the recipe?
Blondies are deceptively difficult to make at high altitude. They seem like they’d be simple, right? Just brownies without the chocolate, basically. Nope! Getting that perfect texture, halfway between the chewiness of a cookie bar and the loftiness of a cake, and the perfectly balanced sweet-salty flavor? It’s ridiculously difficult. A lot of my tried-and-true high altitude alterations did not work. I made, like, six? seven? batches before I was satisfied. Lots of blondies, people. *releases top button of pants*
The hard work paid off, though, and now you can rest assured you’ve got a blondie recipe that not only works at high altitude, but is satisfyingly chewy and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. The flavor is deeply butterscotch-y, with a beautiful sweet-and-salty balance.
We start with browned butter, which makes everything better (as seen here and here). Blended with some dark brown sugar and vanilla, its nutty warmth and richness provide the perfect foundation for the blondies’ butterscotch-y flavor. Then eggs, which you can plop in all at once. Like brownies, blondies rely completely on eggs for leavening. I added an extra one to compensate for the difficult rise at this altitude.
Next, we’ve got some all-purpose flour and salt, plus, a secret flavor-bomb ingredient: malted milk powder. Malted milk adds a smidge more saltiness (a good thing here) and an unctuous, umami-like depth to the flavor. If you’ve ever had a chocolate malt, you know just how that one ingredient can amp up the flavor of plain chocolate ice cream.
The batter is very, very thick – almost cookie-dough thick. Be sure to line your pan with parchment, and here’s a pro tip: use a little butter on the bottom and sides of the pan to help adhere it so it doesn’t slip around too much while you’re spreading your batter.
A little sprinkle of flaked salt never hurt anyone. I like the extra zing and crunch it adds.
Not too dense, not too cakey. These are the perfect balance of chew and loft. Approved by the elderly, the blind, and kids (aka my family). Enjoy!
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High Altitude Malted Butterscotch Blondies
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Yield: 16 2-inch blondies 1x
Description
Rich and chewy, with brown butter and sweet-salty malted undertones, these blondies can safely be made at elevations up to 10,000 feet.
Ingredients
1/2 cup (8 TB, 1 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup + 2 TB dark brown sugar*
3 TB granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup malted milk powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
flaky sea salt, for garnishing (optional)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8×8 or 9×9 pan with parchment paper (use a little butter to help it stick).
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, malted milk powder, and salt; set aside.
Cut the unsalted butter into chunks and heat in a small saucepan pan over medium heat. When the butter begins to foam, then subside, watch carefully; as soon as the solids begin to brown and fragrant, remove pan from heat.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the hot brown butter with the sugars and beat until well-mixed, 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the vanilla and both eggs and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy, another 2-3 minutes. On the lowest speed, add the flour mixture until all traces of flour are incorporated. Beat another 30 seconds or so. The batter will be very thick, almost like cookie dough; do not be alarmed.
Scrape the batter into the parchment-lined pan and spread evenly. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester come out clean. While the blondies are still warm, garnish with flaky sea salt, if desired.
Allow to cool in the pan, then flip or lift the blondies out onto a cutting surface and cut into squares.
Notes
… when browning butter, use a saucepan instead of a skillet. The higher sides help with spattering.
… you can use light brown sugar instead of dark brown if that’s what you’ve got on hand. The flavor and color of the blondies will be slightly lighter.
If i can’t find malted milk powder, do you suggest substituting regular milk powder or just leave it out? I live in Bolivia so …
Hi Kristin! If you can find plain malt powder, you can mix it with milk powder to make your own. Otherwise, try using plain milk powder and increase the salt by half a teaspoon.
Ok, I just made these, but I made a lot of changes. I didn’t have any malted milk powder, or milk powder of any kind, so I added Trader Joe’s Salted Caramel Flavored Hot Cocoa powder. I doubled the recipe, but used only 1/4 c of the cocoa powder. Then I tried to adjust the sugar, knowing that powder had sugar added. I think I should have used more sugar. Into the double batch I added 1/3 c peanut butter chips, 1/3 c milk chocolate chips and 1/3 c Trader Joe’s 72% dark chocolate chips. I also added an extra egg – don’t ask me why! So, bottom line – the flaky salt on top is a must – really added to the flavor. They were still bland (I’m sure because I didn’t us the ‘real’ recipe), so I melted chocolate chips and drizzled that over top. That did the trick! My husband said he had never tasted anything like them, but that they were good! I’m taking them to two different events tomorrow. Probably should have waited to post this until then. Thanks so much. You’re my go to place for high altitude.