delectable, delightful, masterpiece

Applebee's Blondie Brownie -

I long for the evenings spent with my girlfriends, splitting this delectable dessert, and catching up on the latest news. Deeanna, Carole, Anne, Jenna, Kristin, Laura, Leslie - you all know the magic of devouring this delightful treat. It has helped assuage our hurt and pain -- simply spending time in quiet reflection with friends... ok... maybe not quiet, but you get the point.

Yesterday, I got the idea that maybe I could recreate this masterpiece in my own kitchen. After carefully combing through countless recipes (for about 5 minutes) I settled on the one sent to me by my new sister-in-law. The recipe included the secret ingredient mentioned in all the reviews of the recipes I found online - creme cheese.

How did it taste? I'd give it a 7 out of 10. It came close to the real thing -- but like many reviews of recipes I found online it wasn't quite as fluffy as the real thing. If I did this again (and you know I will) I would do the following to make it rise a bit higher:

• 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder (instead of 4 teaspoons)
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon Baking Soda (instead of a pinch)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

I also think I over-did it on the vanilla chips (I used 3 bricks of vanilla almond bark and could have stuck with 2).

Finally, the icing wasn't quite right - I think it had too much of a cream cheese flavor. I might try a basic icing recipe next time and simply add some syurp to see if I fair a bit better -- or perhaps it isn't creme cheese, but almond bark that should be added to give it the right taste and consistency... Don't worry this is one of my favorite deserts so I will be trying it again :)

Thank you Nansie Whitt for this recipe! :)

Applebee's Blondie Brownie
The Ingredients:
• 1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 pinch baking soda
• 1 pinch salt
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/3 cup melted unsalted real butter
• 1 1/3 cup packed brown sugar - divided (1 cup and 1/3 cup)
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup vanilla baking chips
• 1/4 cup unmelted, unsalted real butter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 tsp. maple extract





Applebee's Blondie Brownie
The Process:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Stir in nuts and set aside.
4. With an electric mixer, beat together melted butter and 1 cup brown sugar.
5. Beat in egg and vanilla extract.
6. Slowly beat dry mixture into wet mixture.
7. Turn mixer off. Stir in vanilla baking chips by hand.
8. Spread batter into a greased 9" X 9" X 2" baking pan.
9. Bake in 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean; set aside to cool.
10. In a saucepan over low heat, melt remaining 1/4 cup butter and maple syrup.
11. Stir in remaining 1/3 cup brown sugar into saucepan until it has dissolved (the sugar, not the pan!)
12. Remove saucepan from heat and beat in cream cheese and maple extract until smooth.
13. Return saucepan to low heat and simmer, stirring constantly, until desired consistency
14. Cut warm blondies into 4" X 4" squares, top with vanilla ice cream, and pour sauce over the top... YUM!