These Pumpkin Brown Butter Blondies are the ultimate pumpkin treat! Sweet pumpkin and inviting brown butter level up these delicious cookie bars.
Pumpkin Season
When the sun starts setting just a little earlier, the dark bringing with it a crisp coolness, one thing’s for certain: Fall is coming. A season filled with all sorts of quintessential seasonal flavors like apple, cinnamon, nutmeg, fig, and of course the ultimate Fall flavor…pumpkin!
This time of year I want nothing more than to eat pumpkin flavored things for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Whether it’s in a spicy enchilada sauce, in a savory side, or in a popular coffeeshop favorite, pumpkin hails supreme this time of year.
Of course, of all the pumpkin recipes out there, it’s tough to beat a sweet pumpkin treat. These Pumpkin Brown Butter Blondies are the ultimate pumpkin recipe to try this Fall!
How to Make Blondies
There are some recipes that just perplex me. This is one of them! I made these blondies countless times, with every result though delicious, was very un-blondie like.
Too cakey. Far too dense. Much too light. Way too dry.
I could not crack the blondie code! After some research, I learned a few things:
- There was too much pumpkin. I had been using 1 cup, since I wanted the pumpkin flavor to shine through, but this was adding to the texture issues.
- I wasn’t using the right amount of sugar (or the correct combination)! This recipe includes both white and brown sugar, with the latter making up the majority.
- I hadn’t cooled the brown butter down enough. After browning the butter, I was mixing it with the sugar in it’s liquid form, as opposed to allowing it to slightly solidify again.
- Baking soda versus baking powder? Baking soda yielded the right amount of “rise” for the blondies (which isn’t much!).
Suffice to say, I now consider myself a Blondie expert, in case you were wondering.
Pumpkin + Brown Butter
If you’re looking for the world’s most perfect flavor combination, look no further. Brown butter offers a toasted and complex flavor profile to these blondies. Brown butter is exactly what it sounds like: butter that has been heated until the milk solids brown and the water in the butter is cooked out. It’s incredibly simple to make, and pays dividends in flavor.
Combining pumpkin with brown butter takes the already scrumptious seasonal flavor to the next level. The brown butter enhances the pumpkin in ways you didn’t even realize were possible. I assure you: they are.
A Fall Must-Make
These Pumpkin Brown Butter Blondies should absolutely be prioritized in your baking plans this Fall! They may just be a sweet treat you make time and time again (I know I will be!).
Tried these Pumpkin Brown Butter Blondies and loved them? Use the hashtag #sohappyyoulikedit and tag @sohappyyoulikedit on social media so I can see your creations!
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Pumpkin Brown Butter Blondies
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/8 tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks)
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup pumpkin
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8x8 baking pan.
- In a small saucepan, heat butter until melted. Allow to simmer, stirring or swirling occasionally, until the butter has browned. Remove from heat and use a spoon to stir the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Set aside and allow to cool slightly before placing in refrigerator. You'll want the butter to re-solidify slightly.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. In a separate bowl, combine eggs, brown sugar, sugar, pumpkin, and vanilla. Add cooled browned butter, using a hand mixer to combine.
- Add flour in 3 batches, scraping the side of the bowl after each addition.
- Transfer batter to prepared baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes and check! You do not want to overbake these bars! If the center is still slightly wet, add another 3 minutes. Allow to cool and slice in to squares.
These look so good. I have been baking a lot since the lockdown started. Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe, I absolutely loved doing it.
I’m so happy to hear that, Dimitri! Enjoy! 🙂
These just came out of the oven—AMAZING! I swapped
pumpkin purée for pumpkin butter (used same amount), used a 1/2t. pumpkin pie spice (because it was already on the counter and my spice cabinet is a mess) and a heaping 1/2t. Saigon cinnamon. I baked them in a brownie pan, all the edges are crisp and perfect. Thank you for sharing! 🥰
I am so happy to hear this, Annie! Great swaps – they sound amazing! 🙂
Made these last night and they were SO TASTY! Thanks for a great recipe ☺️
Thrilled to hear this, Kristine! 🙂
Good, but this is definitely cake
Flavor was ok but this is cake, not a blondie
I added chocolate chips and a little pumpkin spice and these are absolutely delicious. Thank you for the recipe!