Oatmeal Crunch Blondies

I have been a huge fan of Nicole Weston's blog Baking Bites for a few years now. She recently published a cookbook, which I love. Her book has delicious recipes that are all very approachable. One of the recipes is for white chocolate oatmeal crunch brownies. Don't let the name fool you, these are not chocolate brownies but white chocolate blondies. I knew I HAD to make these as I absolutely love blondies, maybe even more so than brownies!


The blondies have a thin crunchy oatmeal cookie base, which contrasts wonderfully with the chewy blondie layer. These are truly delicious, making it hard to stop at eating just one!

 

 

White Chocolate Oatmeal Crunch Brownies
From The Baking Bites Cookbook by Nicole Weston
Makes 20

Crust:
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup oatmeal
1/3 cup shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
1/3 cup butter, melted and cooled

Brownies:
2/3 cup all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2-oz white chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Make cookie base: Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil, for easy removal later.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, brown sugar, oatmeal and coconut. Pour in melted butter and stir to combine. Pour into prepared 8-inch square baking pan (pan can be ungreased if not using foil). Bake for 12 minutes.

Make brownie batter: Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl.

In another small bowl, melt white chocolate and butter together in the microwave. Set aside to cool.

Whisk together sugar and egg until light colored. When butter mixture is no longer hot, stir it into the egg mixture. Stir in the flour mixture, milk and vanilla extract, whisking until no streaks of flour remain.

When cookie base comes out of the oven, gently pour brownie batter on top and spread it out carefully with a spatula or the back of the spoon. The crust will not be set yet, so try to be gentle as you move the batter towards the corners of the pan. Return to oven and bake for 30 minutes.

Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.