Blondies

I had a really bad case of the "sweet tooth" tonight. I would have given my right arm to have a brownie, but I didn't have chocolate anywhere in the house. The next best thing to a brownie is a blondie, so I searched recipezaar.com and found this great recipe. Normally I don't like white chocolate, but this is the one exception (besides the Lindt truffles). You'll also probably never see me put nuts in a brownie, but for some reason all of that changes in blondies. Don't ask me why... I just follow my taste buds.

Aubrey has never had a blondie (that he remembers), so I wanted to let him have a taste. He thought they were really good. If you've never had one, you've got to try these out. They remind me a little of cookie dough. Maybe it's the brown sugar and the doughiness (is that even a word?). I ate my blondie "a la mode" with crushed pecans crumbled on top. Mmmmm.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar,
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans, toasted
4 ounces white chocolate, chopped (or 3/4 cup white chocolate chips)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Grease an 8" square baking pan.
Beat sugar and egg until fluffy, about 3 minutes with mixer.
Add vanilla and butter, and beat to mix well.
In a small bowl, stir flour, baking soda, and salt.
Add flour mixture to the butter mixture, beat just until incorporated. Don't over mix.
Stir in the pecans and white chocolate with a spoon.
Spoon the batter into the pan and smooth the top. (I pressed it down with clean hands)
Bake for 25- 30 minutes, until the top is dry and golden, and a knife inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs, not perfectly dry yet.
Remove from the oven and cool.
Cut into 2" squares.