These Apple Blondies are a perfect Autumn dessert that mixes apple pie and blondies. Yummy Apple Cake Bars with a large scoop of ice cream make for the most delicious fall treat! A requested recipe every time I make them.
In our home, Autumn is my favorite season. I love the cooler weather and the fewer mosquitoes. The smell of apple blossoms on the trees, and the leaves changing colors from green to vibrant reds, yellows and oranges.
I enjoy visiting apple orchards, picking pumpkins and eating apples that were picked just minutes before. Fresh ripe, crunchy apples are one of my greatest flavor experiences every year.
Autumn for us, means being outside, carving pumpkin and spending time appreciating this beautiful world in which we live.
The one thing I do every year, even though I tell myself I wont, is buy too many apples. I just can’t help myself when I’m at an apple orchard and find myself buying two 25 pound bags of apples. I always think we can eat them right away. And sometimes we can.
I’m always surprised when we down 50 pounds of apples in a week or two. And then other times, we just can’t seem to do it.
It’s these moments that I get to transform those juicy apples into beautiful, delicious treats like these Apple Blondies. The first time I made these they were like Apple Pie meets Blondie. The bar had the consistency of a cake like brownie but tasted like apple pie.
For the last many years this has been one of our must make Autumn treats! My kids look forward to the day that I make this fresh apple cake recipe with fresh apples and on occasion we like to share them too.
I once had a co-worker with a fun way of looking at fruit desserts. She believed that if you added fruit to any dessert, it suddenly made it “healthy”. Therefore, she could justify eating more of it because really she’s just getting her daily dose of fruit. Personally I’ve always enjoyed that theory.
I mean an Apple Blondie has to be better for you than say a triple chocolate fudge brownie, right? I’ve learned over time that some people spell these Apple Blonde, while others spell it Apple Blondies.
The way I’ve always looked at it, right or wrong, is that Apple Blonde is a color – a light apple blonde color. The Term Apple Blonde describes a wood color for wood flooring as you’ll find when doing a Google search. And Apple Blondie is a term used to describe a light colored brownie.
I’ve also heard people refer to these as Apple Brownies. Now that is a term that is A-OK in my book! This Apple Blondies Recipe – or Apple Brownie Recipe is always a winner. Though to be clear, these are cake like brownies, not fudge like brownies.
When I first published this recipe, many readers came back to say they didn’t turn out. They were hard or flat or lacked apple flavor. Other people came back and said they were fantastic and they loved the recipe. It was the strangest thing, why half my readers loved it and had great success with the recipe, and others didn’t.
It wasn’t until about a year later that it finally dawned on me why some people were having issues. Sadly, this Apple Blondie Recipe as a single batch wasn’t cutting it.
Those who had success with this apple walnut cake, always doubled or tripled the recipe. Those who had failures always made a single batch. No ones fault but my own as I always triple my batches. And so the recipe below reflects a triple batch.
This updated Apple Cinnamon Blondie Recipe is now a triple batch that will fit in a 9×13 casserole dish. It also has more apples than the original recipe called for and is hands down the best apple cake recipe out there. Or maybe I should say the best apple brownie recipe!
These Chewy Apple Blondies are packed with apple chunks, have a yummy cinnamon sugar topping and taste like apple pie.
Really what isn’t there to love?
Chewy Apple Brownies that taste like Autumn make a great Fall Harvest Recipe that everyone will like. These Apple Cinnamon Blondies make a great potluck, baby shower or party dish! These easy Apple Spice Cake Bars are a recipe that everyone should try once. Here are a few questions I’ve been asked about this Apple Cinnamon Blondie Recipe that might help you!
What is a Blondie?
A blondie is a blonde version of a brownie. You’ll find brown sugar is substituted for white sugar and vanilla for cocoa powder. However, similar to a brownie, they are a chewy, sweet, dessert bar.
Unlike a brownie, blondies do not usually contain chocolate or white chocolate. A blondie may however contain other types of chips like butterscotch chips. Blondies tend to be sweeter than a traditional brownie and are not frosted.
Why are mine more cake like than chewy brownie like?
When baking these, you want a brownie consistency. To achieve this you must slightly under bake them. However you’ll have more of a chewy brownie like consistency.
If your Apple Blondies turn out more cake like, that just means you over baked them, or baked them just right depending on if you want a cake or blondie consistency. Don’t worry though. They’ll still taste great! Just more of a cake like consistency!
The real trick is to know your oven. If your oven cooks hot, then lower the baking temperature or baking time. If your oven cooks cool, then lengthen the baking time. The time included in this recipe is what works best for my oven.
Can Apple Blondies be made in advance?
Yes they can! However because they have real fresh fruit in them, you’ll want to keep them in the fridge. Our Apple Blondies only last for a day or two at most before the entire pan is gone. However I would expect that they would be good for up to 5 days in the fridge. Possibly even longer.
However because you are dealing with fresh fruit, you do not want to make them too far in advance.
Can I use less sugar?
Yes you can! Several readers have stated that they felt these were too sweet. You can definitely cut your sugar down! I would go less than 1/2 the sugar amount though personally. Not only can you cut the sugar down in the recipe, but you can also completely go without the cinnamon sugar topping.
However I’m a fan of the added cinnamon sugar topping and suggest a light sprinkling of it if you are wanting to cut back on the sugar. I hope your family loves these as much as we do, because these are a MUST HAVE Autumn treat!
Apple Blondies
Apple Blondies - These Apple Bars are a perfect Autumn dessert that mixes apple pie and blondies. Yummy Apple blondies with a large scoop of vanilla ice cream is the perfect dessert {or snack!}
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter, melted
- 1 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cup white sugar
- 3 eggs
- 3 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 3 cups apples, diced (a tart baking apple is best like granny smith)
- 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
- 1 Tablespoon white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Spray a 9 x 13 casserole dish with cooking spray.
- In a bowl, mix together butter, brown sugar & 1 1/2 cup white sugar.
- Add eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, salt & baking powder, mix well.
- Add flour and mix again. Batter will be thick, don't worry!
- Add apples and walnuts (if desired) and mix well. Batter should begin to thin to more brownie like consistency.
- Spread mixture evenly into prepared pan.
- In a small dish, mix 1 Tablespoon sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. Sprinkle on top of apple mixture.
- Bake for 40 - 45 minutes or until brownie consistency then remove from oven.
- Allow to cool. Once cooled, cut into bars and devour immediately by itself or with a large scoop of ice cream!
Notes
This recipe is considered a "triple batch" but really it's the perfect amount! This recipe has been adjusted based on reader comments and reviews! So if a reader says DOUBLE or TRIPLE the recipe, DO NOT. The original recipe was in a 8 x 8 dish and this is much bigger (and more flavorful) in a 9 x 13 dish!
Nutritional information is estimated, not exact.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
20Amount Per Serving: Calories: 254Total Fat: 7.6gSaturated Fat: 4.6gCholesterol: 43mgSodium: 152mgCarbohydrates: 44.7gFiber: 1.5gSugar: 29.8gProtein: 2.8g
Originally Posted: November 14, 2013
Photos & Text Updated: September 4, 2018
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D. Gaf
Saturday 27th of January 2024
What type of mixer are you using?
Num's The Word
Friday 22nd of March 2024
I like the Bosch mixer!
Nora
Sunday 24th of December 2023
Would it be okay to used canned apple pie filling 🙃 in addition to regular apples.
Janelle
Tuesday 2nd of January 2024
Hi Nora! If you used apple pie filling in addition to the apples, you will probably end up with more of a cobbler bar, which sounds absolutely fantastic. I say go for it! I'd love if you came back and let us know how it turned out!
Shalain
Thursday 9th of November 2023
The batter taste amazing they are cooking as we speak and I can’t wait to eat them! Can you tell me if these freeze well ? Thank you
Amy
Friday 1st of September 2023
Such a fun fall dessert! We added some cinnamon chips as well and they were super yummy. Don't skip the walnuts!
Janelle
Thursday 28th of September 2023
Yum! I love your suggestions Amy. Thanks for sharing and so glad you liked them.
Kathleen
Monday 28th of August 2023
Oh my goodness, these were amazing! And I agree, I've made them several times and you need to underbake them if you want them more brownie like! I'm at high altitude and added 2 tablespoons of flour, reduced the sugar to 1 cup of each and baked it at 375 degrees for about 30-35 minutes.
Janelle
Saturday 30th of September 2023
I'm so glad you liked these Kathleen! Thanks for sharing this awesome comment.