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If there was ever a recipe that screams make me, eat me, it’s these soft and gooey Coffee Chocolate Chip Blondies. Made with nutty browned butter, brown sugar, real maple syrup, and just a touch of coffee, plus sea salt to finish. There’s really nothing not to love about these chocolatey coffee-swirled blondies. The true secret? Brown butter mixed with vanilla and coffee. The trio together creates a blondie bar that’s incredibly flavorful – soft, gooey, and with a lightly crinkled flaky top. So delicious and almost zero effort to bake up!
Sometimes all you really need is a good cup of coffee…or let’s be real a salted cookie. These cold March days can be tiring. Though the added hour of daylight is welcomed with both arms, it makes me so happy!
But still, some days you really just crave a classic cookie or something similar. And for me, those days often come in March. This is such a weird transitional time. It’s not yet spring, but we’re all wishing it was. Our heads are thinking spring, but the weather still says winter.
With buckets and buckets of snow this past weekend, all I felt like doing in the kitchen was baking. So I baked up these yummy blondies.
I’ve had this idea for a while now, months actually. I was originally thinking of sharing these in the fall, but never got around to baking them up.
But here we are, and this feels like the most fitting recipe for today! They’re the easiest to make and so delicious. Perfect for any random weekday baking.
The details
What I love about this blondie recipe is just how simple it is. You don’t even need a mixer!
Like many of my desserts, this recipe requires brown butter, so start there. Just allow the butter to bubble up and brown on the stove. It will smell nutty and super delicious. This is when you know it’s done.
To the butter, mix in brown sugar and maple. The butter keeps the bars rich and flavorful, but the maple adds sweetness while also adding moisture. Combined together they make the best blondie bar.
Once the mix has cooled, add in the eggs and the vanilla. I use a lot of vanilla, two whole tablespoons, which I think is the real secret. It gives a wonderful flavor, especially when combined with chocolate and coffee.
Finish with the flour, baking powder, coffee powder, and salt. Then lots of chocolate chips, I like semi-sweet chips best for this.
Bake and enjoy the sweet, sweet smells coming from the oven. I always add sea salt just after I pull the bars out of the oven. But of course, this is completely optional. Then, we like to cut the bars while hot and enjoy a few squares of extra melty pockets of chocolate.
Oh, they’re just perfect, and what we really appreciate is the ease!
Looking for other fun desserts? Here are my favorites.
Lucky’s Golden Ticket Cupcakes
Double Strawberry Sugar Cookies
Chocolate Chip Nutella Oatmeal Cookies
Homemade Vegan Peanut Butter Twix Bars
Soft and Crinkly Brown Sugar Peanut Butter Cookies
Lastly, if you make these Coffee Chocolate Chip Blondies, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Coffee Chocolate Chip Blondies
Servings: 24 bars
Calories Per Serving: 164 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) salted butter
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1-2 tablespoons vanilla extract (I always use 2)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1-2 tablespoons instant espresso or coffee powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
- flaky sea salt (optional)
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a 9×13 inch baking dish with parchment paper.2. Add the butter to a medium pot set over medium heat. Allow the butter to brown, until it smells toasted, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the brown sugar and maple syrup. Let cool 5 minutes. 3. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla. Add the flour, baking powder, espresso/coffee powder, and salt. Mix until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.4. Press/spread the dough out into the prepared dish. Bake for 18-22 minutes, until just set in the center. Sprinkle with sea salt. Cut into bars, and enjoy!
Notes
Storing:Â these bars keep well for 3-4 days at room temperature or in the fridge.Â
Do you adjust this recipe when you are baking them at altitude? I am at 8300 feet. Thank you!
Hey Jeanne,
You should be just fine to follow the recipe as written:) Please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy Friday! xT
These were scrumptious! I read the reviews before I made this and there were a couple of things I did that made a difference! After I browned the butter, I added it to a bowl let it sit for 15 instead of 5 minutes to cool. For the fluffiness, don’t pack your flour and don’t overmix. When it came out of the oven it was fluffy looking, but I let them sit in the fridge so they settled more into that bar consistency!
Hey Ashlyn,
Wonderful!! Thanks so much for sharing what worked well for you and giving this recipe a try, so glad it was enjoyed! xT
Love this recipe. Instead of chocolate chips, added a bag of white chocolate chips and 1 cup of chopped toasted pecans.
Hi Donna,
Wonderful!! I am so glad to hear these turned out well for you, thanks a lot for trying the recipe! xT
First, love this recipe! Second, I made it gluten free with an all-purpose gf flour (that was the only substitution) and they turned out fantastic!
On a side note the flakes of salt on top is essential and brings out the other flavors in this recipe.
Hi Emily,
Wonderful!! Love to hear that these turned out well for you with the gf flour. Thanks for trying the recipe! xT
Love it!!! Thank you for share this epic recipe! <3
Love it!!! Thank you for sharing this epic recipe! <3
Thank you so so much! xT
When you say coffee powder can we just used regular ground coffee beans instead of instant coffee powder? TIA!
Hi Karlee! Yes that should be just fine! xT
So so good – but second time I made them the 5min of brown butter/sugar mix was not cool enough. Would recommend giving the butter mix 10 minutes to cool off so they don’t turn into brownies haha.
Hi Leah,
I appreciate you trying this recipe and your review, so glad it was delish! Thanks for sharing your feedback! xT
Can these be frozen after baked?
Would I thaw them on the counter?
Hi Dominique,
You bet, that would work well for you! Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xx
I’ve made this a couple times and everyone loves them! That’s why I want to freeze the leftovers! (:
Any tips on how to freeze? With ziplock or parchment paper or both?
Both would be great!!
Absolutely scrumptious!
Thank you so much for giving the recipe a try! Have a Happy Halloween! 🙂 xT
Can I leave the coffee powder out or do I need to substitute something for it?
I’ll be baking these for someone who doesn’t want the coffee flavor
Hi there! Yes, you can definitely leave the coffee powder out! xT
I made them and they came out great! Thank you!
These came out great! I substituted brewed espresso for the powder and added some chopped pecans I had left over. Great recipe.
Thank you so so much! I appreciate you giving the recipe a try! xT
YUM! Not sure if I can wait until these cool with my kitchen smelling SOOO amazing 🙂
Thank you Janice! xT
Looks great! I only have unsalted butter. Should I just increase the kosher salt to 1 tsp total?
Hi! That should work great! xT
These were delicious!
Thank you!!
I’ve made these twice once in a glass pan and once in a metal pan and feel like they’re too gooey each time. I don’t have a 9×13 so maybe it’s because of that?! This round I split into two 8×8
Hi Anna,
Thanks for trying this recipe, I always recommend baking in metal pans for best results. If you are using something smaller than a 9×13 baking pan, the bake time will certainly need to be increased! xx