coffee blondies

every once in a while, a girl  needs a non-chocolate sweet treat, know what i mean? while perusing my pinterest boards a couple weeks ago, i realize i don't make bars and brownies nearly enough - considering i still have 90+ pinned on my board. considering how easy and delicious they usually are, i need to add them to my holiday baking list.

while some blondie recipes i've tried have left me wanting more flavor, these are deliciously full of coffee. not too much, but definitely there. and i think fresh ground coffee makes all the difference. a layer of crunchy, sliced almonds between the brownies and the glaze adds the perfect amount of crunch to the chewy brownies. if you're serving these to adults, irish them up a la martha, and use irish whiskey instead of water in the glaze. 

coffee blondies
adapted from martha stewart
45 min + cooling time, makes 18

to make a 9x13" pan of blondies, simply double the ingredients, keep the method the same, and bake for the same amount of time.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon + 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground coffee
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup powdered sugar

1. preheat your oven to 350F and line an 8x8" or 9x9" baking pan with parchment paper.
2. in a large bowl, whisk the melted butter, sugar, coffee, and salt. whisk in the egg and vanilla extract.
3. add the flour and baking powder and stir just until combined. 
4. pour batter into the pan, spread evenly, and sprinkle with almonds.
5. bake 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. let cool in the pan completely before icing.
6. to make the glaze, add water, a teaspoon at a time to the powdered sugar until it is the right consistency. if it's too thick, add more water; too thin, add more sugar. drizzle over the blondies. let glaze dry before cutting.  

 2014.07.06 this was the pajama chef's pick for the secret recipe club!