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You know a dessert is good when someone asks, “Wait…who made this?”. And suddenly everyone is sneaking bites until the pan is gone. These Butterscotch Cornflake Blondies are the kind of dessert that will have your friends seconds, texting you for the recipe the next day, and maybe even sneaking a square in a napkin to take for the drive home.
Soft, chewy blondies with butterscotch chips and caramelized corn flakes folded into the batter and extra candied cornflakes sprinkled on top for an extra crunch. They’re buttery, caramel-y, and have the right amount of crunch. As they bake, everything melts together into chewy golden bars that are crisp around the edges and soft in the center.
They’re a super cozy treat that feels special. Be sure to hide a piece for yourself before serving them because you won’t have any left to bring home.
Why You’ll Love These Butterscotch Cornflake Blondies
- They taste familiar yet special! We are all familiar with blondies, but we are giving these a caramely, crunchy upgrade. A simple buttery blondie is elevated with butterscotch chips and caramelized cornflake crispies. Each bite is cozy and irresistibly good!
- Soft and chewy with an unexpected crunch! As these blondies bake, they become caramelized and crispy on the edges. When they finish cooling, they become a dense, gooey texture. And the caramelized cornflakes that are both blended into the batter and sprinkled on top add the perfect crunch!
- Perfect for a crowd! We love making dessert bars for a crowd because you don’t have to make multiple batches. Just mix, bake and slice into larger bars or smaller bites depending on how many people you’re serving.
What You’ll Need
Butterscotch Blondies
- Butter
- Brown sugar
- Eggs
- Butterscotch chips
- Vanilla extract
- Flour
- Baking Powder
- Salt
Crunchy Cornflake topping
- Cornflakes cereal
- Milk powder
- Salt
- Butter
- Sugar
How to Make Butterscotch Cornflake Blondies, Step by Step
Step 1: Make Caramelized Crunchy Cornflakes
This is the key ingredient to these butterscotch cornflake blondies. They will give them a crunchy texture and elevate the caramel flavor incorporated throughout the blondie batter.
The crunchy cornflakes are super easy to make. Start by preheating your oven to 300ºF and lining a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, mix cornflakes, milk powder, salt, melted butter, and sugar. This blend will essentially create a caramel-like texture and flavor. Use a rubber spatula or wooden spoon to mix the buttery mixture together. Once the cornflakes are evenly coated, spread them onto the baking sheet and bake for about 5 minutes or until the cornflakes start to brown a bit.
The cornflakes will smell like caramel. Let them cool completely while you make the blondie batter.
Tip: Place the crunchy cornflakes in the freezer for about 8-10 minutes to cool down quickly.
Step 2. Make peanut butter blondie batter.
The best part about this blondie batter is that you can make it all in one bowl. Start by melting butter and butterscotch chips, stirring to incorporate and evenly melt as you heat the mixture up.
Once the butter and chips have melted into a smooth mixture, add them to a large bowl and stir in brown sugar until incorporated. Next, stir in one egg, an egg yolk, and vanilla extract until evenly blended.
Lastly, whisk in your dry ingredients – flour, baking powder, and salt until combined. The batter will be thick.
Step 3. Fold crunchy cornflakes into the batter.
Before you pour the blondie batter into the pan, fold 2/3 of the caramelized cornflakes into the batter until evenly blended. As the cornflakes cook into the blondies, they will enhance the caramel flavor in each square.
Step 4. Sprinkle with the rest of the caramelized cornflakes.
Topping these blondies with the caramelized cornflakes will add a delicious crunch to the top of the blondies. Sprinkle the rest of the cornflakes on top of the blondie batter and gently press them into the batter.
Step 5. Bake blondies, Cool and Slice.
Bake the blondies in a preheated oven for 25-35 minutes until cooked through. Let the blondies cool for at least 10-15 minutes before slicing.
Tips for Perfectly Gooey Blondies
- Egg yolks add chewiness! Our goal was to make a soft and chewy blondie that wasn’t dry. One way to do that is to make sure you have enough fat in your batter. Adding an egg yolk increases the fat content a bit, helping to make them deliciously chewy.
- Don’t over-mix your batter. Overmixing the batter can create a drier, tougher blondie.
- Brown sugar will add depth to the blondies. A great blondie has more flavor depth and one way to do this is to use brown sugar. This will create a delicious caramel-like flavor in the batter. Before you start to add the other caramel-flavored ingredients.
- Use a metal pan vs glass. The blondies will cook more evenly in a metal pan. In a glass pan, they may be undercooked or may not cook evenly.
What’s in the crunchy cornflake topping?
The caramelized cornflakes are not only used for a topping on these blondies, but they are also baked into the batter for extra crunch.
Cornflakes are tossed in a mixture of melted butter, milk powder, sugar, and salt. The idea was to imitate a caramel coating. Caramel is typically made with sugar, butter, and heavy cream, so we swapped heavy cream for milk powder to add the flavor and texture!
Easily remove dessert bars from the pan with this trick!
No one likes to leave bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Try this fool-proof method to remove dessert bars- like these blondies- from the pan every, single time!
- Butter the pan. Making sure to cover the bottoms, corners, and sides.
- Place a piece of parchment paper on the bottom of the pan, making sure it is long enough to hang above the batter 1-2 inches. This parchment paper will act like a sling for your brownies.
- After the dessert bars are baked and cooled. It is important that they are cooled for at least 10-15 minutes before you lift them from the pan. Carefully lift up on both sides of the parchment paper and lift up out of the pan. Place them on a cutting board to slice and serve.
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Butterscotch Cornflake Blondies
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 9–12 blondies 1x
Description
Soft, chewy blondies with butterscotch chips and caramelized corn flakes folded into the batter and extra candied cornflakes sprinkled on top for an extra crunch. As they bake, everything melts together into chewy golden bars that are crisp around the edges and soft in the center.
Ingredients
Crunchy Cornflake Topping
- 2 cups Cornflakes cereal
- 2 tbsp Milk powder
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 4 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp sugar
Butterscotch Blondie Dough
- 1 1/2 sticks butter, melted
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
- 1 egg + 1 egg yolk, room temp
- 3/4 cup butterscotch chips
- 2 tsp. Vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/4 cup baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- Make crunchy caramelized cornflakes. Add cornflakes, milk powder, salt, melted butter and sugar in a bowl and mix until cornflakes are evenly coated. Bake in oven at 300ºF for about 5 minutes until slightly browned. They should smell like caramel. Break into smaller bits and set aside to cool.
- Increase oven temperature to 350ºF. Butter and line an 8×8 inch brownie pan with parchment paper. The parchment paper will serve as a sling to help remove the brownies from the pan.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients – flour, baking powder, salt and set aside.
- In a small skillet over medium heat, melt butter and butterscotch chips. Once butter and chips have melted into a smooth mixture, pour into a bowl and whisk in brown sugar.
- Stir in one egg until combined before mixing in the yolk. Whisk in vanilla before you add the dry ingredients.
- Stir in the flour mixture until combined and your batter is smooth. Pour in 2/3 of the cornflake crunchies into the batter and fold them into the batter. Save the rest for topping.
- Spread out the batter in the greased, parchment-lined pan. Add sprinkles of crunchy cornflake bits to the top.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 25-35 minutes until cooked through. Test doneness with a toothpick or fork. Depending on how your oven cooks, you may need to add more time. Add 5-8 minute increments until cooked through. The middle may be a bit softer and will harden more as it sets.
- Let the blondies cool for 15-20 minutes on a cooling rack. You want them to be solid enough to slice. Slice into 9-12 squares and enjoy!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cooling Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
