Caramel Cashew Coconut Blondies
These Blondies combine white chocolate, caramel, cashews and toasted coconut for a chewy decadent sweet and salty treat.
“The best part about brownies or blondies is that the mix in options are endless”
I'm not one for unnecessary steps but toasting your coconut and cashews is a must! So much more flavor that way. I toasted both my coconut and cashews together on the same parchment lined pan. I spread them out on the pan and baked them for 15 minutes at 300 degrees F. I stirred them every 5 minutes and then kept a watchful eye on them for the last 5 minutes to make sure they reached the perfect brown toastyness and didn't burn.
These blondies are chock full of caramel, nuts, and coconut. The best part about brownies or blondies is that the mix in options are endless. If you're not a fan of coconut, why not add some toasted oats? If your not feeling nuts, why not try some dried fruit? If you don't like cashews you can substitute it with toasted pecans or peanuts.
Caramel Cashew Coconut Blondies
8 ounces of white chocolate, melted
1 stick (1/2 cup) of butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 tablespoon bourbon (you can substitute with 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste/extract)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup caramel sauce (plus more for topping)
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut; toasted (plus more for topping)
1/2 cup cashews; toasted and roughly chopped
flaked sea salt for topping
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare a 9-inch square pan with parchment and/or grease with butter. (I've found that a glass baking pan works best for me. A dark metal pan can lead to extra browning on the edges)
In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and sugar together until the butter is completely melted and the sugar begins to dissolve about 2 minutes. (do not boil) Remove from heat and then pour in 8 ounces of white chocolate. Stir gently until the chocolate melts and set aside to cool. You can use the residual heat from the butter and sugar to melt the white chocolate. Adding the white chocolate off the heat help lessen the chance of the white chocolate seizing up.
With an electric mixer, whisk the eggs for 2 minutes until they have lightened in color and become frothy. Then while still mixing gradually add in the bourbon and sugar/butter/white chocolate mixture.
In a separate bowl whisk together salt, flour, toasted coconut, and cashews.
With a spatula or wooden spoon fold in the flour mixture in 3 additions until all of the flour is moistened. The batter will be thick but spreadable. Drizzle the caramel on top and then using a knife or bamboo skewer swirl the caramel until marbled.
Add the batter to your prepared pan and bake for 20-25 minutes until just set. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before cutting.
I also drizzled a little more caramel sauce over the top of my blondies and sprinkled them with more toasted coconut for the finishing touch.
