Dorie's Chewy Chunky Blondies

Last night we had some friends over for dessert. It was our first "party" at our new place. I know, I don't live there yet, but it is already starting to feel like home:)

Anyways, Josh volunteered to make Dorie's Blondies because he got off work early. I was a little nervous to let him use my Kitchenaid and to trust him with my favorite recipe...but he did a fabulous job! The blondies were a hit! Dorie would be proud.

As many of you know, I am obsessed with Dorie recipes. I think she is amazing! We made her lemon tarts for my brother's wedding and I have been hooked ever since. I actually won an autographed copy of her book, Baking From My Home to Yours, from a blog contest. It is my prize possession. Dorie and I also email from time to time. She is great! To see for yourself, visit her blog: www.doriegreenspan.com

I hope you try all of her recipes, you won't be disappointed. But to start you off right, here is the recipe for Chewy Chunky Blondies, one of my favorites from Baking From My Home to Yours. They are great with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream! ENJOY!

Chewy, Chunky Blondies

(Adapted from Baking: From My Home to Yours)
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups (light) brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup bittersweet/semi sweet chocolate chips
1 cup butterscotch chips or toffee bits ( I chop up 3 Heath candy bars)
1 cup chopped pecans ( I leave the nuts out)
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 325F. Grease a 9x13-inch baking pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, waiting until each is fully incorporated to add the next, then beat in the vanilla. With the mixer on low, gradually add in the flour mixture, stirring only until no streaks of flour remain. Stir in the chips, nuts and coconut by hand.
Spread batter into prepared pan, using a lightly greased spatula to even it out.
Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a tester comes out with only a few crumbs.
Cool blondies in the pan, but turn them out (and then reinvert them so the top is facing up) before slicing into 32 bars.

Parry's Visit and Our Trip
to the Farm

Parry came to visit and we had a great time! We spent a lot of time with Crissy, Kevin, Aubrey and Connor. Aubrey loved Josh's beard, too bad it didn't last long. When Josh turned the beard into a handlebar mustache I told him to shave it:)

We drove up to Idaho on Saturday to celebrate Grandpa Dixon's 93rd birthday.
We stopped at the Snake River Canyon right outside of Twin Falls.

Grandpa was excited to have some company. We made him a gourmet feast for lunch. Josh made his famous mango salmon! It was quite tasty. We also enjoyed apple cake for dessert, a Dixon family favorite.
It was a great day at the farm! Even the road trip in the van was fun:)

Sunday was Connor's baby blessing. Parry did the honors. It was fun having him around, we wish he could visit more often.