As much as I love all things chocolate, sometimes (sometimes!) it’s nice to take a teeeeeny little break.
You have no idea how hard it was for me to not add chocolate chips to this already decadent, ooey gooey chewy blondie recipe. Every time my hand naturally gravitated towards the bag of chocolate, I just ate more heath bar bits.
It was worth it.
These blondies are by far one of the best things to come out of my teeny tiny little kitchen (by the way I’m moving! But to a little house that still doesn’t have a dishwasher or a garbage disposal). They’re perfectly chewy and rich, and absolutely stuffed with delicious toffee bits and walnuts.
And who doesn’t love toffee??!
It practically makes up for the lack of chocolate.
If you bring one dessert to any Super Bowl party, this should be it. They’re so good that after baking them, I stood over the pan in my still sweaty yoga clothes and ate all of the edges off of all 16 blondies.
And then I ate all the crumbs.
And then I took a bite of one.
And then I ate the whole thing because who just “takes a bite” out of a blondie?
Sheesh.
Browning the butter really puts these blondies over the edge. Like these chocolate chip cookies, it gives them an almost nutty, caramelized taste…perfect for adding tons of toffee!
And I can’t even believe I’m saying typing this, but I kinda think I might even like them better than their brownie cousin.
Of course I’ll probably retract that statement next time I bake a batch of warm fudgey brownies.
But for now, all I can tell you is that these really are mind-blowing delicious. My favorite part is how chewy they are! And how easy they are to make, of course. Although that could be potentially dangerous when it comes to late-night blondie cravings.
We’ll cross that road when we get there.
Heath Bar Blondies
makes 12-16
adapted from Smitten Kitchen
1 stick butter
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract (or the seeds of one vanilla bean)
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup heath bar crumbles
1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts
Preheat your oven to 350 and butter an 8-inch square pan.
Brown your butter by melting it over medium heat on the stove until it becomes a golden caramel color (see here for more tips). Be careful not to burn the butter—you only want to brown it. This will take several minutes and it’s easiest to keep swirling the pan with your hand while it browns.
Pour the browned butter into the bowl of a kitchen aid and add the brown sugar. Beat for about four minutes, until creamy. Add the egg and beat again. Then, add the flour, salt and vanilla extract (or seeds). Beat until combined.
Fold in the heath bar bits and chopped walnuts. Spread out mixture in your buttered pan and bake for 25 minutes, or until edges begin to pull away from the sides of the pan.
Let cool before slicing into squares.
{ 115 comments… read them below or add one }
I would really like to consume mass quantities of these today.
1. All day while I speak about weight loss and diabetes I will be thinking about Health Bar Blondies.
2. I think you move more than I do which makes me feel good knowing I’m not the only one that goes ahead and saves their packing boxes because they will be needed soon enough!
I should definitely make these for the Superbowl. But I think I need to make them today to, you know, make sure they’re good
My mom would LOVE me if I brought this to the Superbowl party! Slightly warmed and topped with vanilla bean ice cream??? Heaven!
Omg. I can’t wait to make these the next time we have friends over! P.s. I don’t have a microwave or garbage disposal …it’s not so bad.
Deb’s Blondie recipe is my absolute favorite! (p.s. I also like blondies better than brownies… my evil little secret).
Heath bars are my favorite. Can’t wait to try this recipe, good thing its Thursday and the weekend will be here soon!
If it has Heath Bar in it, I’m sold!
Looks AMAZING!
Oooohh! I have GOT to stop reading your blog before I’ve had breakfast. On the plus side, these look fabulous and I’m definitely gonna try them – maybe for breakfast tomorrow
Dear Jenna,
Please come be my personal chef. Bring your heath bar blondies.
Hungrily yours,
Tracey
Ok! You make dinner and I’ll bring dessert
Two of my favorite things, together at last!!!
I need these in my life like I need water and oxygen.
For a second, I thought the title of this post was “health bar blondies.” Blech, thought I. Who puts a health bar in a blondie?
….And then I realized you would never do such a thing. These look AWESOME! Bars are so fun. They remind me of elementary school bake sales — in the best way
Bethany, I love this comment– I read the title the same way– too funny!
Jenna – this look incredible (I’m totally drooling on my keyboard as I type this…) It needs to be the weekend all ready so I can get my bake on
Haha, I read it the same way! But these look so ooey gooey delicious. Totally making them this weekend!
hah!! That’s funny!
Also, what IS a health bar??? There are energy bars, nutrition bars, etc… but I don’t even think a health bar is a real thing.
hah! You are so right.
Oh my gosh, these look AMAZING! I am a huge chocolate-lover myself, but sometimes I REALLY enjoy a nice, buttery blondie!
I’ve always been a chocolate girl, but recently that has changed. These blondies may change my outlook on life.
I have been looking for a blondie recipe without chocolate chips, believe it or not. This is the next recipe that will come out of my little kitchen, I assure you. I cant wait to make these! (and i definitely do the eat the edge thing too, shameless)
Heath and ooey gooey? Yes these look delicious!!
THese are wonderful blondies, looking and tasting good even without chocolates… !
I LOVE blondies! I actually hate chocolate so I always make blondies. (Plus, I’m a blonde
). Never thought to put heath in there. I want to try this recipe because the one I have is good but honestly difficult to get the timing right for some reason.
I have far too many times stood over a pan of brownies picking and eating before anyone else even sees them. YUM.
Do you know that I’ve never made the blondie plunge because warm, fudgey brownies always win? No. Oh. Well I haven’t
but these may be just the thing for me to take that chance. Sounds like a phenomenal recipe!
Oh those Heath bar bits…they’re amazing. They make all your troubles go far far away. And these blondies? They could do the same thing from the looks of them.
I’d like to eat 10 of these. Well, actually, because they’re health bars, let’s make that 20.
Oh, wow! That’s incredible. These look amazing!
Literally my glands just salivated. I might have to make these accompanied by the buffalo chicken wontons for the super bowl party. hmmm
YUM! …must…make…asap…
While chocolate steals my heart, I love those one night stands that turn into “whole batch” relationships with blondies. It’s just one of those relationships
Plus, browning butter is never wrong. Never.
I love everything about your comment. You know what’s up!
Ooh, these look fantastic!!! I love Heath bars, and I bet they would be delicious in blondie form!
Blondies! My specialty, as you know
Haha – I like the “retract” statement
Your moving? Your own house?! How come?
because my lease is up and it’s a cute house!
You move more often than some college students change their sheets!
Oh I bet you I could beat you on the moving – TRUST me!
Is it your own little house though? Or renting from owners?…A real kitchen?!
…also had to comment that I put Chocolate-Chips in EVERYTHING! – So I have no idea how you managed to abstain….I even put it in Cornbread I made…;)
Still in SR? What neighborhood? If we’re neighbors, I’ll wash dishes in exchange for baked goods!
It’s official: I’m moving in with you so I can chomp on all of these delicious treats!
Ahhh! I love toffee! These look delish! It’s a huge debate in our house because I like blondies more and my husband likes brownies more – what to do!
make both! Obviously!
wow. i wish we had the superbowl here just so i could make these! get in my belly.
Jenna! What are you trying to do to us? OMG, those look SO good!
Dang, those look incredible! I’m pretty sure they’d be gone in a second if I brought them to our Superbowl Party. I’m on it…
do it! And let me know how it goes
Yikes! Those look delicious. You’re so creative in the kitchen : ) Thanks for sharing!
Ohhh, love toffee!! These sound absolutely incredible!
Better than brownies??? I might have to give these a whirl.
I’LL admit it… I definitely like gooey blondies more than brownies
Ohhh these babies look sinfully good!!
Dear Jenna,
I live in Austin. Please deliver a big ol batch of these to me
k thanks. I’m glad we talked about this.
From,
Stephanie
NOM NOM NOM.
Haha, I totally did that same thing of eating all around the edges of a batch of brownies last week! It all equals about one serving total, right? These blondies look so gooey and delicious, I need to whip these up pronto.
Jenna! Your other blondies literally made friends for me when I handed them out the first few weeks of law school. I can’t wait to try these… who knows how popular I’ll be after handing these out! haha.
hahahaha my goal is to make you the most popular student everrrr!
Heath bar anything makes me happy. Remind me to send you my grandma’s recipe for Heath bar Mandelbred (like Jewish biscotti). They’re unreal!
mmm sounds delicious—I’ve tried Mandelbred before and love it!
please send some to Colorado immediately
Yes, I second this!!
Oooooh, I HAVE to make these for my husband! He looooooooooves Heath Bars! Thank you for posting this!!
Absolutely SINFUL
Oh man, you never cease to amaze me! I almost bought Heath Bar bits for a recipe the other day, but then I realized that I was going to end up eating the entire bag, so I refrained
Heath Bars are, hands down, my favorite kind of chocolate bar. These blondies are definitely going to be made in my kitchen!
I have been avoiding this awkward conversation because I’m shy (or not so much), but… You. Are. My. Hero!
not awkward at all!!
i’m glad you restrained yourself and left out the chocolate. i need more non-chocolate desserts in my life:D
Looks wonderful!! Except I don’t like heath bar…I know. I know.
just add walnuts and skip out on the toffee! Or add white chocolate or regular chocolate instead. You’ll love ‘em
Heath bar is my favorite candy bar.
When I lived at the beach I used to walk 2 miles roundtrip for a heath bar.
So yea, love those suckers.
Cannot.wait.to.make.these.
I thought this said “Health Bar Blondies”. Then I scrolled down, saw the HEATH package and was all “Whaaaaa?” Totally confused for a second. These look delicious and much better than what a “Health Blondie” would taste like
Can’t wait to make them!
These look delicious Jenna! I was wondering, will you still from time to time post the step by step pictures and instructions as you have in the past? I think it is SO helpful to see how the recipe forms along the way and to see what it should look like at each stage of the process. Then I know if I’m on the right track to making the dish as heavenly as yours always looks!
absolutely! I actually have a pretty special one planned for next week!
I got really excited at first… I thought they were HEALTH bar blondies. Damn.
That’s it. I’m making these NOW! One, because I already have the ingredients in my pantry (that never happens to me). Two, because I’m on my period and it’s the perfect excuse to bake/eat something sweet. THANKS!
I can’t say no to toffee! It is my favorite. Can’t wait to make these and eat the entire batch:)
Hey Jenna! These look delicious! Question: how can I keep them fresh for a few days? Whenever I make cookies, even in Tupperware they’re hard after like a day…I’d kinda like to make these for the Superbowl but I could also use some for an event I have tonight…so if I made them tonight would they still taste fresh by Sunday at all?
Thanks!
Make them today, stick them in the freezer (after you slice them–freeze in plastic bags) and then take them out of the freezer on Sunday morning! Good as new!
Man oh man. My Superbowl menu is quickly expanding thanks to you. Although I must say, I’m surprised you didn’t add any chocolate?!
OMG! I bought some of those toffee bits a month ago when I saw them at a grocery store I never frequent. There were no plans for them, but they looked so fun and irresistable. Since then they have just been sitting in my “mix-ins” basket (which contains approximately 30 bags of chips, bars of chocolates and bits of other things… not including nuts or dried fruits, which have a separate basket all their own… I think I may have a problem
).
I will DEFINITELY be making these for my Super Bowl party. Thank you so much for the inspiration!!!
Those look so gooey and incredibly caramelly delicious. Sounds like a real winner to me. I’d like to invite you to stop by this weekend and link these yummy bars up to Sweets for a Saturday #3.
The only time I’ve tried to make bondies the recipe didn’t work out. So saddening. It’s put me off blondies for life (so far). The brown butter and heath do sound oh so tempting though. Thanks.
I read…HEALTH bar instead of Heath bar, looked at the picture and thought, no way is that healthy…this girl has gone crazy!!
Hi Jenna, these look fabulous. Quick question – do you have the let the butter cool before mixing the other ingredients into it?
You don’t have to!
Am also dishwasher/garbage disposal free…because even minor architecturally charming details can trump major modern conveniences for me. I spy Blondie Valentine’s Day gift-making session in my near future. Thanks!
I want these!!!! I love love Heath bars! It’s one of my fave things ever! As a kid….I used to eat Heath bar DQ Blizzards like crazy!
perfectly chewy and rich, and absolutely stuffed with delicious toffee bits and walnuts = the way I want my baked goods!
Congrats on the pending move!
I just love eating brownie/blondie/bar edges, they’re definitely the best part!
mmhh these look so moist! I’m definitely making these for valentine’s day! the boy loves them.
If you let me lick the bowls, spoons and spatulas I will be your dishwasher and garbage disposal
Another yummy looking treat! Looking forward to making these.
What if I used something instead of the Heath bar… like butterscotch chips? Would that work, do you think?
Not that I’ve got anything against a Heath bar. In fact, I think they’re pretty awesome.
It’s just this buterscotch “thing” I’ve had lately… I want it in everything!
you can! That would be delicious.
I totally read this wrong and thought it said HEALTH bolondies. I was having a hard time figuring out what was healthy about them, but I was willing to roll with it.
Heath bars are amazing! You may have inspired me to make a little super bowl treat including some heath bits. Yum!
You had me at the words “ooey gooey”.
Although I have no idea what Heath Bars are… I don’t think we get them in Canada.
it’s just English toffee! I’m sure you guys have something comparable.
I’ve grown to LOVE Heath bars lately.
So I would like these right now!
My oh my your blog has changed ( I just read your first post)! Do you still weight the same ( I know this is a personal question) and eat the same amount of calories as you did back then? How did you make such a transition and what caused this?
Love you and your blog no matter which way you decide to eat- salads and heath bars and all!
thank you for reading! Really though, it’s pretty simple: I just changed my mind about what I wanted to do and write about! Nutrition and exercise used to really interest me in my teens and early 20′s and I just feel like over the past year or so I’ve really grown up and discovered “my voice” and what is I LOVE, which is writing about FOOD and developing new recipes to share with all of y’all!
lovely! i can’t wait to try these!
I just always have a bag of health bars in my house (thanks to my obsessed mother)…. I think I might just have to snag the bag and make these!! Plus, everyone knows blondies have more fun
Yum yum! Going to go buy Heath bars in bulk so I can make this at anytime.
I currently have 1 lb of butter in my fridge and I am desperately trying to narrow down my list of recipes to make so that I do not have to go out and buy more. This has just shot to the top of my list. I blame you for my jeans not fitting. But don’t feel too bad, it’s worth it!
p.s. Congrats on the move! I remember the big move to Cali, crashing at Adam’s, and then the move to the apartment, and now a house! So excited for you!
I have a bag of those chocolate covered toffee pieces an they have been begging to be turned into some fabulous treat. I think I just found my recipe!
I just discovered your website and I just want to say that I love it. Making these blondies for an all girl Twilight sleepover at my friend’s house in New Port Richey tomorrow night. I know it sounds silly but we girls need any excuse to get together. I just graduated from college so I’m still trying to find myself in the world but your blog has taught me a lot about life and what’s important. I started yoga after many months of doing it once a week or once every two weeks. Keep up the good work.
Smitten Kitchen is my food porn. I love her site!
Made these tonight with walnuts instead of almonds. So so good!
Made these for the boy and he looved them. Thanks for the recipes Jenna!
At first glance, I read “Health Bar Blondies” and thought this should be interesting. I loveeeeee blondies so much more than regular brownies – can’t wait to try this recipe!!! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for this recipe Jenna! It was super easy. The only thing that took any effort was browning the butter and that isn’t hard. I used about 1/2 cup mini-chocolate chips instead of heath since I love chocolate and didn’t have any toffee. It’s the best blondie I’ve had in a long time. My husband raved over it – since I mostly bake healthy vegan recipes – he loves real butter
.
Hey! I made these tuesday night and then, expecting to have some the next day, I walked into the kitchen to find no blondies–not even their container they were baked and stored in! AH! I didn’t eat the container, but I’m thinking someone probably like it cleaned then decided to wash the evidence away..
I really liked these Heath bar blondies and I was hoping you could send me another recipe with Heath bars incorporated in them. thanks!
made these last night. heaven on earth. thanks for another winner, jenna!
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