Butterscotch blondies

The first time I ever heard of anything butterscotch was after I started blogging – I used to make caramel all the time for this dessert, but it was always the simple kind, the one made with sugar and water only: the caramel made with sugar, butter and cream was a revelation to me.

After that, I saw many recipes with butterscotch in their names, but it meant that they called for butterscotch chips, something one cannot find here. I can’t remember how many recipes for butterscotch blondies and cookies I’ve seen so far and most of them called for the chips, that is why I was really eager to make these blondies for they did not call for any chips at all: the caramel was part of the batter, and that sounded too good not to try.

Another thing that having a food blog has taught me is to trust my feelings: the recipe sounded good, indeed, but the amounts of sugar and flour looked way too much – I would end up having a sugar high or baking a stodge (or both). So I baked the blondies my way and they turned out not tooth achingly sweet, gooey and soft, the way I wanted them to be, and with a strong caramel flavor – delicious.

Butterscotch blondies
slightly adapted from the beautiful Home Baked Comfort (Williams-Sonoma) (revised): Featuring Mouthwatering Recipes and Tales of the Sweet Life with Favorites from Bakers Across the Country

½ cup (113g/1 stick) unsalted butter
300g light brown sugar
1 cup (240ml) heavy cream
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons dark rum
½ teaspoon table salt
250g all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
2 large eggs

In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Using a heatproof rubber spatula, stir in the brown sugar and cook until the sugar starts bubbling like molten lava, about 4 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low, stir in the cream, and let it bubble away, stirring with a big whisk, until smooth and slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir in the vanilla, rum, and salt. Let cool to room temperature.

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 180°C/350°F. Butter a 20cm (8in) square baking pan, line it with foil leaving two overhangs on opposite sides and butter it as well.
In a bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. Stir the butterscotch mixture into dry ingredients, then whisk the eggs in, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Spread the batter into the prepared dish and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out relatively clean, 20-25 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan, then cut into squares.

Makes 16