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Chewy Almond Squares (Blondies)

Almond blondies! Chewy almond squares, easy to make, no need for a mixer.

Elise Bauer

Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.

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Elise Bauer
Updated February 16, 2021
Elise Bauer
Chewy Almond Blondies
Elise Bauer

Sometimes I want to bake something sweet, but I just don't want a big fuss with a mixer or running the oven for an hour.

These chewy almond squares fit the bill!

They're basically blondies, but made with almond extract instead of vanilla, and with chopped toasted almonds mixed in instead of butterscotch.

A big thank you to commenter Chris who made these substitutions on our blondie recipe and shared how well they turned out!

Chewy Almond Squares (Blondies)

Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 30 mins
Total Time 45 mins
Servings 9 squares
To make the decorative almond halves, take a whole raw almond and pinch it between your fingers. Use a serrated bread knife to carefully cut the almond in half. The almond has a natural break-point so it should split easily once you start to cut it. No need for a mixer for this recipe, all you need is a whisk and a strong spoon. You can easily double this recipe.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup butter (1 stick, 112 g), melted, plus butter for greasing the pan
  • 1 cup tightly packed light brown sugar
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 tablespoon of almond extract
  • 1 cup (128 g) all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1/3 cup toasted, blanched almonds, chopped
  • Whole almond halves for decoration
  • One 8x8-inch baking pan

Method

  1. Preheat oven, prep pan, toast almonds:

    Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease an 8x8-inch baking pan with butter. Toast blanched almonds if you have not already done so, and when cool, roughly chop them.

  2. Mix wet ingredients:

    In a mixing bowl, whisk together the melted butter and brown sugar until there are no more lumps of brown sugar. Whisk in the beaten egg and almond extract.

  3. Whisk dry ingredients:

    In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and pinch of salt.

  4. Make batter:

    Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and mix until smooth. Stir in the chopped almonds.

  5. Pour into baking pan, add almond halves:

    Pour into the prepared baking pan and smooth the surface. You can "cut" the surface with a knife to make it easier to see where you will want to make cuts once the squares are done. Place an almond half, cut side down, in the middle of each square.

    spread batter for almond blondies
    Elise Bauer
    cut pattern into uncooked batter for almond blondies
    Elise Bauer
  6. Bake:

    Bake at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

    baked almond blondies
    Elise Bauer
almond blondies
Elise Bauer