These soft, chewy M&M Blonde Brownies are a fun snack any time of day. Try packing them into your kid's lunch boxes or snacking on them after school with a glass of milk.
Today I am slightly dragging a little. I have discovered that boys are much louder than girls. And by boys, I really mean grown men.
Last night my hubby had game night at our house. Seriously I think 5 grown men huddled around a board game are much louder than any group of women for sure. Loud voices and laughing do not make going to sleep very easy.
Usually they set up the game in the basement, but last night it was upstairs in the dining room. Of course, it was the room without carpet, so it just echoed through out the entire house. I did stay up for a bit doing some computer work in the office.
All I heard was laughing and talking about which army was going to destroy the rest. I finally waved the white flag and went to bed even though they were still going strong on their game at midnight. Thank goodness the closed door blocked some of the sound.
Next time I am baking more pans of M&M's Brownies and Peanut Butter Cup Cookies for them.
My thinking is that if they are busy shoving food in their mouth, they can't laugh and shout at the game plays.
Baking Blonde Brownies
These M&M's cookie bars are one of my family's favorite treats. I almost always under bake ours slightly because we like the soft, chewy, and sometimes gooey texture. 22 minutes is just the way we like them.
Feel free bake your bars a few minutes longer than that if you like blonde brownies that are a little more done. Just be careful and watch them closely as they bake. It is easy to over bake these bars.
These chewy blonde brownies WILL look undone when you pull them out of the oven, but they will set up as they cool. Just trust me on this! If you bake them too much, they will be hard when you cut into them later.
If you are making these cookie bars for a bake sale, I do recommend baking them the full 25 minutes. Gooey under baked treats are only good if you are eating them at home.
How to make M&M Blonde Brownies:
Make sure you set out your butter ahead of time. Soft room temperature butter is much easier to beat into the sugar.
Add the salt, vanilla, and eggs and beat the mixture again. Be careful not to over mix the batter at any point because that can make the top crunchy and crackly. Which is not really a bad thing, but it does change the texture slightly. I prefer the tops of my blonde brownies soft and chewy.
Stir in the baking powder and flour until you get a thick cookie dough.
Now comes for the fun part. It's time for adding your mix-ins. Obviously, this batch got loads of M&M candies. Feel free to use miniatures or regular M&M's. You could also do cookies, nuts, or sprinkles. Or a mixture of all the above.
Make sure you store the blondies in a sealed container. They will stay softer longer if you keep them from getting dried out. Of course, if your family is anything like mine, you will not have very many M&M Blonde Brownies to deal with.
Holiday Blonde Brownies
I love changing up the colors of the candies for different holidays. The rainbow of colors from the candies is so pretty when you cut into the M&M bars.
- Pink and red M&M's would make these so pretty for for Valentine's Day.
- Use mint M&M's for St. Patrick's Day.
- A bag of pastel M&M's would be perfect for Easter.
- Red, white, and blue M&M's would turn these into the best patriotic dessert.
- Use orange, brown, and white M&M's for a Halloween cookie bar.
- And of course, red, white, and green M&M's work great in these Christmas blondies!
See how easy it is to transform this easy recipe into a fun holiday dessert? You can also use any other candy in place of these M&M's. Reese's pieces are super yummy too!
More easy cookie bars that you may enjoy:
Gooey marshmallow and Reese's Pieces candies add a sweet goodness to these Marshmallow Reese's Blonde Brownies.
Lots of candy and pretzels makes a pan of these Caramel Pretzel Peanut Butter M&M Bars disappear in a hurry.
These Nutella M&M Bars are easy cookie bars that are made in one pan.
These soft and chewy chocolate filled Congo Bars are a great recipe to make the next time you have company over.
A pan of these S'mores Sugar Cookie Bars would never last long around me. I love a good chocolate, marshmallow, and graham treat!
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Recipe
M&M Blonde Brownies
These easy M&M Blonde Brownies are loaded with candy goodness. A batch of these cookie bars never last very long in our house.
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups packed brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups M&M candies, divided
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Beat the butter and brown sugar until creamy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat again.
- Sift together the salt, baking powder, and flour. Slowly beat into the butter mixture. Stir in 1 cup of the M&M candies by hand.
- Spread the batter in the prepared dish. Sprinkle the top with the extra ½ cup candies.
- Bake for 22-24 minutes for a glass pan or 18-19 minutes for a metal pan. Let the cookie bars cool completely (3-4 hours) before cutting into squares. Store in a sealed container.
Notes
*They will seem under done and under baked when you pull them out. Let them sit on the counter for at least 2-3 hours before cutting into them
**If you are making them for a bake sale, bake them 25 minutes.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 202Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 27mgSodium: 148mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 1gSugar: 23gProtein: 2g
Nutrition facts are an estimate and are not guaranteed to be accurate. If you need special diet advice, please see a registered dietician.
*This post for M&M Blonde Brownies was first published on March 11, 2014. It has been updated and republished on February 15, 2019.
Jocelyn (Grandbaby Cakes)
These blondies look amazing and so chewy!
Jocelyn Brubaker
Thanks Jocelyn! 🙂
Nancy P.@thebittersideofsweet
The best desserts I think come from when you just pull things out of the cabinet and go for it!
Karly
I love listening to grown men play games and shout and laugh. It's like a little glimpse of them as children. Big, hairy, overgrown children. 🙂
Love these bars! Perfectly gooey centers!
Jocelyn Brubaker
Haha, so true! Thanks Karly!
Mir
The inside looks so perfect, all chewy and delicious. I want to reach through the photo and grab one!
Jocelyn Brubaker
Thanks Mir!! 🙂
Chloe @ foodlikecake
Those look delicious! I love blondies and M&Ms!
katie
Umm yes please. It's not even 8am and I'm already craving brownies!!! Too funny about your hubby and his friends. At least they had a good time. I think your plan to bake more next time is a good one 🙂
Jocelyn Brubaker
Thanks Katie! 🙂
Tieghan
Always underbake for sure!! That is my favorite!
These look incredible! 🙂
Elizabeth @ Confessions of a Baking Queen
My family is like yours, no container necessary when baking irresistible treats like these! These are one of those desserts that is so easy and simple but can't stop going back for more, well when I envision making these anyways!! LOL
Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust
Underbaked is the best!! I love this recipe Jocelyn, SO GOOD.
Jocelyn Brubaker
Thanks girl! 🙂
Emily @ Life on Food
It always surprises me how loud my husband is with friends. Let me know if the more sweet treats trick works 🙂
Jocelyn Brubaker
I will put it to the test next game night, and see how it goes! Haha!
annie
I want to sink my teeth into these right now! I'm having some serious sugar cravings today. They look so good and gooey.
Chels R.
I love everything about these and I want them so badly right now. I'm addicted to a blonde brownie!
Jocelyn Brubaker
Thanks Chels!!
Kelly @ Life Made Sweeter
These blonde brownies are fabulous Jocelyn! Perfect for occupying the grown men from making too much noise 🙂 Always yes to underbaked bars - love the pretty M&M's in these - pinning 🙂
Mark Butler
I would love to see a blonde made with Sugar Babies candies and toasted pecans! Serve this with vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce! Decadent!
Jocelyn Brubaker
That sounds just lovely!!
Shannon @ Bake.Frost.Repeat
These bars look totally amazing! I think I will make some of these with the Easter M&Ms for an Easter treat!
Jess @ On Sugar Mountain
UNLESS they laugh and shout WITH brownies in their mouths, and then that could be problematic. I only say so cuz I know food has never stopped me from being awful and talking. >_< That's why I can't have nice things like these awesome brownies LOL.
Jocelyn Brubaker
Haha! Thanks Jess!
Lisa @ Garnish with Lemon
Isn't it funny how not getting enough sleep now makes us drag so much? But when the kids were little we were so used to it or maybe just delirious? I'm totally the same way! And I too love my blondies under baked!
Chelsea @ Gal on a Mission
I cannot agree with you anymore - grown men are a lot louder than women! I swear they are.
I LOVE the idea of making more of these awesome looking blondies to keep them quiet.
Looks great, Jocelyn! Pinned 🙂
Jocelyn Brubaker
Haha, thanks Chelsea! 🙂
Brenda @ SweetSimpleStuff
I agree ... brownies, blondies or any bars are the best when under cooked! Yours look wonderful ... what a way to clean out the cupboard 😉
You are right ... boys are noisier than girls!
LuAnn Braley
You need to have someone invent a replicator that can scan a picture of your desserts and make them appear when you open the device door. :O)
Jocelyn Brubaker
Now that sounds like a fun invention 😉
Alicia
Can you tell me how many this makes? Thank you!
Jocelyn
Well, that all depends on how big you cut it into squares. Sometimes I get 15 (if I'm cutting them bigger for a bake sale) and sometimes I get 24 (if I'm cutting them for us or to take to a party). I hope that helps and you enjoy the blonde brownies!
Carly
I made these today with my niece and they were so yummy! Thanks for such a great recipe!
Darya
Your recipes came out too dry and too sweet definitely need more butter less sugar
Jocelyn
I'm so sorry to hear you didn't like them. I'm wondering if you over baked the blondies. These are definitely not a dry brownie at all. We usually always underbake them so they are gooey and delicious.
Colm
I second this, the recipe appears wrong to me. 2 cups of brown sugar is way too much. I’ve ended up with a gooey, over sweet mess now.
Jocelyn
Actually, the recipe is correct as written. I make these blonde brownies all the time using that much sugar and they always turn out.