Peanut Butter Blondies are everything you could want in a dessert — soft, chewy, and full of nutty peanut butter flavor! Studded with sweet peanut butter candies in every bite, these are a peanut butter lover’s dream.
Table of Contents
It’s not exactly a secret that we love dessert. And peanut butter-flavored varieties are some of our favorites! Just take a look around our site. You’ll find lots of options like our Soft Peanut Butter Cookies, Peanut Butter Lovers’ S’mores Dip, and Christmas Peanut Butter Blossoms.
However, these peanut butter blondies are one recipe we come back to again and again. If you love peanut butter, you won’t want to miss out. A family-friendly recipe, we know you’re going to adore these flavor-loaded blondies!
What’s in a Peanut Butter Blondies Recipe?
- Light Brown Sugar – This helps sweeten the batter while keeping it soft and moist and adding a caramel-like flavor. If you don’t have brown sugar on hand, you can make homemade brown sugar by combining granulated sugar and molasses.
- Butter – Unsalted butter creates brown butter. It infuses these Reese’s blondies with even more nutty flavor. If salted butter is all you have, reduce the amount of extra salt included.
Note: If you have a peanut allergy, feel free to substitute any other nut or seed butter. Almond butter, cashew butter, or sunflower seed butter all work great. Just note that the flavor of the blondies will change slightly. - Eggs – Large eggs provide structure to the recipe, helping the blondies hold their shape.
- Vanilla Extract – Use a high-quality pure vanilla extract.
- All-Purpose Flour – Make sure to use a food scale or the spoon and level method to measure accurately! If needed, use a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour instead.
- Baking Powder (not to be mistaken for baking soda) – Make sure it’s fresh!
- Salt – Just a pinch helps enhance the flavor of the rest of the ingredients.
- Creamy Peanut Butter – If possible, avoid using natural peanut butter. It tends to separate and can cause your blondies to become runny and crumbly. Instead, we recommend a brand like Skippy of Jif.
- Add-Ins – We add Reese’s Pieces and mini peanut butter cups for extra taste and texture. They ensure you get bites of peanut butter and chocolatey goodness in every bite!
Step-By-Step Instructions for the Perfect Peanut Butter Blondies
- Prepare. Preheat the oven, and line a baking dish with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
- Create the brown butter. Melt the butter in a medium-sized pan over medium heat just until browned. Be careful not to let it burn! Remove the butter from the heat, and immediately stir in the sugar.
- Mix the wet ingredients. Add the eggs and vanilla to the butter, and stir until smooth.
- Add the dry ingredients. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into the butter mixture, and whisk just until combined. Then, gently fold in the candy pieces.
- Layer. Pour half the blondies batter into the prepared baking pan. Heat the peanut butter in a microwave-safe bowl, and drizzle it over the batter. Spread the remaining batter evenly on top.
- Bake. Transfer the pan to the oven, and bake just until the edges are firm and golden. The center should still be soft!
- Top. Sprinkle the remaining candy on top.
- Cool. Allow the peanut butter blondies to cool completely. Then, slice them into bars, and serve.
Optional Add-Ins
These peanut butter blondies work well with a variety of flavors. So, feel free to mix and match different add-ins!
- Dark Chocolate Chips or White Chocolate Chips
- Chopped Nuts
- M&M’s or Peanut Butter M&M’s
- Oreo Pieces
- Pretzel Pieces
- Marshmallows
- Maple Syrup
Common Questions About This Peanut Butter Blondies Recipe
Blondies can be a little gooey in the middle. To achieve that texture take them out of the oven while they are still slightly soft and allow them to cool briefly in the pan where they’ll continue to cook just a little bit more.
Blondies that have a cake-like texture have been over-baked. Be sure to watch the cooking time and take them out of the oven when the edges are golden brown and they are still soft when pressed.
Blondies do harden as they cool. Once they are cooled to room temperature, they should have the texture of a fudgy brownie.
Brownies are flavored with cocoa and chocolate and are dark in color. Meanwhile, blondies have a lighter color and are flavored with brown sugar and vanilla.
More Peanut Butter Lovers’ Desserts
Want more peanut buttery goodness to keep around to satisfy cravings? We have plenty for you!
- Brownie Peanut Butter Pudding
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Oreo Peanut Butter Bars
- No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie
Peanut Butter Blondies Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 sticks unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar packed
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups organic all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup Reese’s pieces
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
- 12-16 Reese’s mini peanut butter cups
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line an 8×8 baking dish with foil or parchment paper, and set aside.
- In a medium-sized pan over medium heat, melt the butter just until it has browned.2 sticks unsalted butter
- Remove the pan from the heat, and stir in the sugar until well combined.1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
- Add the eggs and vanilla, and whisk until smooth.2 large eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt just until combined. Gently fold the Reese’s Pieces and chocolate chips into the batter.2 cups organic all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1 cup Reese’s pieces
- Pour half the batter into the prepared pan.
- Heat the peanut butter in a microwave-safe dish in the microwave for 30 seconds to melt. Pour it over the blondie batter, and add the remaining batter on top.1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
- Bake 25-30 minutes or until the edges are firm and golden and the center is still soft.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven, and immediately sprinkle the peanut butter cups on top.12-16 Reese’s mini peanut butter cups
- Set aside to cool and set. Slice into bars, and serve!
- Store covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Equipment
Would you like to save this? 🔖
We’ll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
