On a rainy afternoon, in dire need of comfort and hungry for a snack, I headed for chocolatetcaetera.fr, one of my favorite baking blogs. I've never been disappointed by Guillemette's recipes, and anyone who's had the chance to try her brookies and mega-cookie knows that you quickly become addicted! This time, it was the chocolate and pistachio dried apricot blondie that caught my eye. A quick trip to my cupboards and yes! I had everything I needed on hand (I must say, my drawer is starting to look like a branch of a raw materials boutique...). The original recipe is apparently by Martha Stewart, the papess of American decorating, cooking and savoir-vivre.We often talk about its cousin the brownie, but much less about the "light" version, the blondie. This is a mistake, however, as it will delight lovers of moist cakes who aren't fans of the sometimes nauseating side of chocolate (yes, it's a concept I find hard to grasp, but some people like desserts that are light and not too heavy on the chocolate!) The dried apricot/chocolate combination is a real success: it's moist, rich, a little tangy and so comforting with its little taste of home!
Tips for a successful blondie
There's nothing too complicated about the recipe: just mix all the ingredients together and pour into a square tin for 20 minutes in the oven! As someone who likes big nuggets, I cut my chunks with a knife directly from the wafer (it's also much cheaper than expensive nuggets by the kilo). However, lazy eaters can follow the original recipe and opt for traditional nuggets.Baking blondie with dried apricots, chocolate and pistachios
To avoid the hassle of unmolding, I now use Christophe Michalak's technique, using a 20 x 20 cm pastry frame lined with aluminum foil. The pastry is thick enough not to run down the sides, and unmolding is perfect!Dried apricot, chocolate and pistachio blondie
Recipe for a chocolate blondie with dried apricots and pistachios!
- 110 g room-temperature butter ((or microwaved for a few seconds))
- 190 g brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 130 g flour
- 150 g dark chocolate (nuggets or cut into large chunks with a knife)
- 100 g crushed pistachios
- A dozen dried apricots, finely diced
- Mix the sugar and butter until creamy, then add the egg and stir until smooth.
- Add the flour, pistachios and diced apricots and mix well.
- Pour into a buttered square baking tin or aluminum-lined pastry frame.
- Bake for 20 minutes at 180°; the center should still be soft when removed from the oven.
