Why choose between brownies and blondies when you can have the best of both? These Fudgy Swirled Brownie Blondies have all the thick, fudgy, cookie flavor of blondies plus the chocolatey bliss of brownies in every bite.
For me, when it comes to blondies vs brownies, I could never choose a clear winner! I love both (especially these Biscoff Blondies and these Condensed Milk Brownies!).
So, especially when I’m feeling indecisive, this easy blondie and brownie swirl recipe that’s half brownie and half blondie has quickly become one of my favorite desserts because they are quick to whip up and use simple ingredients with high visual and tasting impact.
As a time-pressed mom who loves to bake, I make sure to keep my recipes as easy and efficient as possible, while still being elevated.
That’s why we are going to whip up a base batter, divide it, keep some as blondie batter, and add cocoa powder to the rest to make brownie batter!
Brownies Vs Blondies
The biggest difference is the presence of cocoa powder! While brownies and blondies have the same texture, brownies contain cocoa powder and often chocolate chips, while blondies do not have any cocoa powder at all.
Blondies will often, but not always contain white chocolate chips, but you will rarely see a blondie with dark, milk, or semi-sweet chocolate chips.
Just like brownies, blondies can come in a multitude of different textures including, fudgy, chewy, gooey, and cake-like. These brownie blondies fall somewhere between fudgy and chewy!
The easiest way to describe a blondie is a brownie without chocolate. It has notes of caramel and vanilla and is the same texture as a brownie. If you’re a brownie lover like me, check out all of my brownie recipes!
Brownie Blondie Swirl Ingredient Highlights
I always use unsalted butter in my baking and add my own salt, but you can easily use salted butter and leave out the extra salt. Just make sure the butter is softened. For help, see How to Quickly and Easily Soften Butter.
Use unsweetened cocoa powder. I used dark. I also use dark chocolate chips, but milk and semi-sweet chocolate chips are great, too!
Brownie Blondie Swirl Tips and Tricks
How to Make Half Brownie Half Blondies
Creaming your fat (in this case your butter) and the brown and granulated sugar together doesn’t just combine these ingredients together smoothly, it actually aerates them.
Adding these little air pockets to the batter is an effective way to ensure you get that soft and chewy texture you expect from a fudgy brownie blondie swirl.
Use a hand mixer on high to get the butter and sugar mixture nice and smooth. Then, mix in your eggs and vanilla extract.
Next up, add your flour and salt. Use your hand mixer again to integrate. Use a spatula as needed to push any flour down from the sides of the bowl, to ensure there’s none left behind.
You’ll be left with a thick batter at this point.
Use a measuring cup to scoop out about 1 ½ cup of the batter and put it into a separate mixing bowl. This should split your batter roughly in half.
We will use half of this base batter to make the blondie batter and the other half to make the brownie batter.
ATTENTION BOWL LICKERS: If you enjoy licking the bowl even more than eating the baked brownies, check out this Edible Brownie Batter recipe!
To one bowl, add cocoa powder and chocolate chips to make the brownie batter. To the other, add the cornstarch to make the blondie batter.
Use your hand mixer in the blondie batter first to keep it free from chocolate. Make sure there are no lumps of cornstarch! The cornstarch is necessary to thicken the blondie batter and give it the right consistency but will hit you with a bitter taste if you bite into a clump.
Once your blondie batter is finished, you can then use your hand mixer to mix up your brownie batter. Again, make sure no clumps of cocoa powder are left behind.
Use a lined or greased 9 x 9-inch square baking pan to bake your brownie blondies in.
Add your blondie batter first and use a spatula to smooth it out.
Then, scoop your brownie batter on top. I find it easiest to use a cookie scoop! Use your spatula again to smooth it out. You can also choose to use your spatula to swirl it around and make a pretty design!
Storing Your Brownie Blondies
Keep your brownie blondies in an airtight container or cover them to keep them fresh. At room temperature, these treats will keep for 3-4 days.
If you want to extend the life of your brownie blondies, freeze them! They will last up to 4 months in the freezer in an airtight container. Just allow them to thaw at room temperature to enjoy them.
Fudgy Swirled Brownie Blondies
SAVE RECIPE TO COLLECTION PIN PRINT RATEEquipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter (1 cup usually = 2 sticks)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ cup chocolate chips (dark or semi-sweet)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and line or spray a 9 x 9-inch square pan.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and both sugars with a hand mixer on high until the mixture is smooth.1 cup unsalted butter, 1 cup brown sugar, ½ cup granulated sugar
- Add vanilla extract and eggs and mix again until combined.3 large eggs, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Next, add your flour and salt and mix again until well-combined and no clumps remain. Your batter should be pretty thick at this point.1 ½ cup all-purpose flour, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Use a measuring cup to scoop out about 1 and 1/2 cups of your batter and place it in a separate mixing bowl, leaving you with two roughly equal bowls of batter.
- Add the cocoa powder and chocolate chips to one bowl to make brownie batter and the cornstarch to the other bowl to make blondie batter. Use your hand mixer to combine the blondie batter first, then the brownie batter, so as to not get any chocolate in the blondie batter.½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, ½ cup chocolate chips (dark or semi-sweet), 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- Add the blondie batter to the prepped pan first and use a spatula to smooth it out. Then, add the chocolate brownie batter on top sporadically, and use a spatula to smooth it out, swirling the two batters together.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
Pro Tips
- To quickly soften butter, microwave it in 15-second intervals until your finger leaves an imprint in the butter when you poke it.
- Make sure there are no clumps of cornstarch or cocoa powder left behind—they will leave you with a bitter taste!
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