PB & J Whole-Grain Blondies

This whole-grain peanut butter and jam blondie recipe has half the amount of brown sugar and butter as a traditional recipe and is made with 100% whole-wheat flour. The results: scrumptious toffee-flavored treats with fewer calories and less added sugars per serving.

Prep/Cook Time: 2 Hours 40 Minutes, Servings: 24

Ingredients

• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1½ cups white whole-wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• ¾ cup roasted salted peanuts, coarsely chopped
• ½ cup strawberry all-fruit preserves

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with parchment paper or foil, allowing it to slightly overhang opposite edges. Coat with cooking spray.
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook, swirling often, until fragrant and starting to brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Whisk in brown sugar; let cool for 15 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, whisk flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
4. Whisk eggs and vanilla into the cooled butter mixture until well combined. Add the flour mixture in two additions, gently folding until just combined. Reserve 2 tablespoons each peanuts and preserves; fold the remaining peanuts and preserves into the batter. Evenly spread the batter into the prepared pan. Dollop the reserved preserves evenly over the top; sprinkle with the reserved peanuts.
5. Bake the blondies until light brown around the edges, 18 to 22 minutes. They will appear slightly underbaked in the center; but will firm up as they cool. Let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack, about 2 hours. To cut, grab the overhanging parchment or foil and transfer the whole batch to a cutting board, then cut into 24 bars.

Nutritional Information

Per Serving: 145 calories; 6 g fat (3 g sat, 2 g mono); 26 mg cholesterol; 20 g carbohydrate; 12 g added sugars; 12 g total sugars; 3 g protein; 1 g fiber; 107 mg sodium; 62 mg potassium

© Dotdash Meredith. All rights reserved. Used with permission.