Peanut Butter Blondies

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These peanut butter blondies are rich, chewy, and packed with the perfect balance of peanut butter and chocolate. They're soft in the center and slightly crisp on the edges, perfect for a quick dessert or a treat alongside a café con leche.

Overhead view of peanut butter blondies cut into squares on parchment paper over a striped wooden cutting board, with two blondies stacked on the yellow surface below.

Peanut butter blondies are not part of the Puerto Rican menu, though our panetela de guayaba comes close; they are quite delicious nonetheless. These blondies are the perfect finishing touch to a Puerto Rican spread like Pollo Asado with Arroz con Habichuelas, or just as welcome after a comforting plate of Stuffed Shells with Meat Sauce.

For more Desserts and Sweets, check out Pan de Mallorca, a buttery, sweet cake that's great as is or on a sandwich. Polvorones, crumbly shortbread cookies topped with guava paste. Tembleque de coco or Pistachio Tembleque, both are no-bake custards full of silky flavor.

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Why you'll love this recipe
What are Blondies?
Ingredient Notes
Variations and Substitutions
Top Tip
How to make Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Blondies
Expert Tips
Recipe FAQs
More Desserts, Sweets, and Breads Recipes
Before You Go . . .
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Why you'll love this recipe

Perfect texture: Chewy centers with slightly crisp edges make every bite satisfying.
Balanced flavors: Brown butter, peanut butter, and chocolate create a rich, nutty, sweet combination that works every time.
Easy to make: No mixer needed, no complicated steps, just one pan and simple ingredients.
Great for any occasion: Holidays, gatherings, care packages, or a cozy treat at home with Puerto Rican Café con Leche.

What are Blondies?

Blondies are like brownies, except there is no chocolate in the batter, not counting any chocolate chips that might be added. Essentially, blondies are thick, chewy cookie bars. They get their rich, caramel-like flavor from brown sugar and butter rather than cocoa.

Ingredient Notes

Flat lay of peanut butter blondie ingredients on a yellow background, including flour, brown and white sugar, butter, egg and egg yolk, pecans, peanut butter chips, chocolate chips, vanilla extract, and maple syrup with labeled text overlays.

Butter: Brown butter, to be exact. Browning the butter before adding the other ingredients builds a deep, nutty flavor that sets these blondies apart from a standard recipe.
Brown sugar: Brown sugar adds notes of caramel and molasses, giving blondies their signature depth.
Maple syrup: Real maple syrup adds a subtle earthy sweetness that works beautifully with the brown butter and peanut butter.
Peanut butter chips: These add nuttiness and creaminess throughout the bar. If peanut butter chips are unavailable, substitute ¼ cup of peanut butter stirred directly into the batter.ed crunch.

See my recipe card below for a complete list of the ingredients with measurements.

Variations and Substitutions

Switch the chocolate or mix-ins: Use white chocolate or dark chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet, or swap in toffee chips for a butterscotch note.
Add spice: A teaspoon of cinnamon added to the batter turns this into a snickerdoodle-inspired blondie.
Peanut butter swap: Peanut Butter & Co has a great selection of peanut butters. I made these blondies with their cinnamon variety, and the result was incredible, warm, spiced, and studded with semi-sweet chocolate chips throughout. Their White Chocolate Peanut Butter would be amazing in this application.

Top Tip

Room Temperature is Key: Having the ingredients at room temperature helps manipulate them. Plan and do not do shortcuts like microwaving the butter before mixing it with the crust ingredients. Ingredients have different molecular structures at various temperatures, which is the key to this recipe. Let the blondies cool completely before cutting to get clean slices.

How to make Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Blondies

Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 350°. Line an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper and set aside. See step 8 for an example of the parchment paper-lined pan.

Chopped pecans toasting in a small cast iron skillet on a yellow background.

Toast pecans: Chop the pecans and toast them in a heavy sauté pan, stirring continuously, until light brown, about 5 to 8 minutes. Set aside.

Browned butter with golden milk solids in a stainless-steel saucepan, resting on a striped wooden cutting board against a yellow background.

Brown butter: In a large, heavy saucepan, melt the butter and bring it to a boil, stirring constantly, until golden brown, for about 4 minutes. *Do Not Leave Unattended! Once the butter starts to change color, it could burn rather quickly.

Hand holding a white bowl with granulated and brown sugar over a saucepan of browned butter on a striped wooden cutting board.

Adding Sugar: Remove from heat and add both sugars until well blended.

Brown butter and sugar mixture cooling in a stainless saucepan with an orange rubber spatula, on a striped wooden cutting board.

Step 4: Let cool to barely warm.

Egg and egg yolk added to brown butter and sugar mixture in a stainless saucepan, with measuring spoons on a striped wooden cutting board.

Eggs and Flavorings: With a rubber spatula, stir in the egg, egg yolk, maple syrup, and vanilla until well combined.

Small white measuring cup filled with all-purpose flour mixed with leavening agents beside a dark ceramic dish holding salt, baking soda, and baking powder on a yellow background.

Dry Ingredients: In a medium mixing bowl, using a whisk, mix together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Wet blondie batter in a stainless saucepan surrounded by bowls of flour, chopped pecans, peanut butter chips, and chocolate chips on a striped wooden cutting board.

Putting it all together: Add the flour mixture, peanut butter chips, chocolate chips, and toasted pecans from step 1. The batter will be looser than cookie batter but thicker than cake batter.

An 8x8 gray baking pan lined with unbleached parchment paper on a striped wooden cutting board against a yellow background.

Step 6: Parchment paper-lined baking pan. You may add a light baking spray or butter at the bottom of the pan to keep the parchment in place. Or you can use binder clips and avoid the extra butter.

Peanut butter blondie batter spread into a parchment-lined 8x8 gray baking pan on a striped wooden cutting board.

Step 5: Scrape batter into the baking pan and spread to the edges. A silicone spatula is great for this step because the batter doesn't stick to it as much. For fudgy blondies, bake 20 to 25 minutes; for a cakier texture, bake up to 30 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with a few moist crumbs when fudgy, and clean for cakier.

Overhead view of freshly baked peanut butter chocolate chip blondies in a parchment-lined 8x8 gray baking pan on a blue patterned cloth and yellow surface, showing a golden brown top studded with chocolate chips and pecans.

Step 6: Remove the pan from the oven and place it on a cooling rack. Let it cool until it's easy to handle but still warm. Cut into 8 to 12 pieces and serve as is or alongside a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Hand holding a peanut butter blondie cut in half showing a dense, chewy interior studded with chocolate chips and pecans, with a full tray of cut blondies on parchment paper in the background.

Expert Tips

Brown the butter: Do not skip this step. Melted butter gives blondies their chewy texture, but browned butter takes the flavor to another level entirely - deeply nutty and complex.
Do Not Leave Unattended: Important enough to say twice. Once the butter starts to change color, it moves fast. Pull it off the heat a shade earlier than you think, because it continues to darken off the burner.
Measure brown sugar by weight: If your brown sugar does not 'pack', believe me, mine doesn't, then weigh it.
Don't overmix: Stir just until combined after adding the flour. Overmixing develops gluten and leads to a tough, dense bar.
Use an instant-read thermometer: The toothpick test is subjective - moist crumbs mean different things to different people. A thermometer removes all guesswork. Pull the blondies at 200 to 210°F for a perfectly set, fudgy center every time. This is the same standard used in professional kitchens.

Recipe FAQs

Can I make these ahead of time?

Yes. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. Make sure the blondies are fully cooled before sealing the container. Trapping steam will make them soggy and introduce moisture that could spoil them more quickly.

Can I freeze blondie?

Yes. Wrap individually in plastic wrap, then place in a zip-top freezer bag. The plastic wrap will protect the blondies from freezer burn and allow them to be served individually. Freeze for up to 3 months. thaw at room temperature for about an hour before serving.

How do I make them chewier?

Use all brown sugar instead of a brown-and-white sugar combination, and take them out of the oven at the lower end of the bake time range. Under-baking slightly, confirmed with a thermometer at 200℉, produces the fudgiest results.

Why are my blondies dry?

The most common culprit is overbaking. Waiting for a clean toothpick almost always means you have gone too far. Use an instant-read thermometer and pull at 200℉ to 210℉, regardless of what the toothpick says.

I don't have peanut butter chips. What do I use?

Substitute ¼ cup of peanut butter stirred directly into the batter. Cinnamon peanut butter works especially well, adding a warm depth to the flavor.