Every family, I imagine, has a few food quirks. You know… something strange or different that you eat, that perhaps was passed down. Maybe you eat cinnamon rolls with chili. Perhaps you eat ketchup on your lima beans. Maybe it’s mayo with your peas or rice. Gravy on your macaroni and cheese. You see where I’m going here?
Well, we’ve got one, too. And while it’s not super crazy, it’s something that always gets a sideways glance when I mention it.
As a young kid, my mom taught me to mix peanut butter and jelly together and eat it on warm biscuits. And whether they’re traditional homemade buttermilk biscuits or those ones with the flaky layers from a can, it’s a great way to jazz up a biscuit. And in my personal opinion, it’s pretty dang delicious, too.
But then, I’ve always been a big fan of the PB&J combo. From this peanut butter and jelly spread on biscuits, to a classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich, to another favorite – a grilled peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Anybody else got that peanut butter jelly time song in their head right now? No? Just me? Ok.
All this gets us to today’s recipe… Peanut Butter And Jelly Blondies
These decadently delicious bars have a buttery blondie bottom based on my Pecan Chewy recipe that’s topped with swirls of peanut butter and jelly. The self-rising flour in the original recipe proved to be a little too much leavening, but with a little help from this delicious recipe from Bake from Scratch, I was able to alter my chewy recipe a touch to get these just perfect!
This recipe is super easy. The hardest part is getting the peanut butter and jelly swirled together. But even that’s pretty easy. The trick is to get your peanut butter and jelly slightly warm where it’s spoonable.
With them both, I recommend zapping them in the microwave for about 15 seconds to get them warm, then stirring until they’re smooth. You don’t want them too warm as they’ll get liquidy – especially the jelly, so use caution. But even if that happens, they’ll still taste delicious. They just might not be as pretty.
Simply drop spoonfuls of each of the peanut butter and jelly in an alternating pattern, then use a butter knife or a skewer to swirl them together.
As you swirl, you want to get a little of each in every eventual bite but not get them so swirled together that they no longer look like two separate thing – but that’s just about aesthetics. They’re going to taste great regardless!
For me, PB&J is only PB&J if it’s grape jelly, but feel free to use whatever jelly you prefer. I can say without a doubt that both grape and strawberry are delicious! ???? Y’all enjoy!
Recipe Card
Peanut Butter and Jelly Blondies
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter (1 ½ sticks), melted
- 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 eggs, well beaten
- ¾ cup peanut butter
- ¾ cup jelly (I prefer grape or strawberry)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, use a sturdy whisk to whisk together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Add the vanilla and mix well. Add the beaten eggs and whisk together.
- Add the flour mixture to sugar and butter mixture and stir with a spoon to combine. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared pan.
- Place the peanut butter and jelly in two separate bowls. Warm each of them in the microwave for 10 to 20 seconds until smooth and spoonable. Just be cautious not to heat it until it's liquidy. Stirring the jelly will help smooth it out.
- Drop tablespoons full of peanut butter and jelly alternating on the top of the blondie batter to cover the top. Use a butter knife or skewer to swirl through the peanut butter and jelly well.
- Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the center is set. Allow to cool completely before slicing and serving.
