Chocolate Chip and Pecan Almond Butter Blondies
chocolate, pecans, blondies, gluten free, sponsored
These Almond Butter Blondies are easy to make, healthy, and gluten-free. They are fudgy, soft & chewy with just the right amount of almond butter and chocolatey goodness with a bit of crunch from the pecans. They will easily become your new favorite dessert!
How to make Almond butter Blondies
These blondies whip up in no time and are made with just a handful of ingredients that you most likely have stocked in your kitchen. It’s a bowl and whisk recipe - once you have your batter mixed up, all you need to do is pour it into a pan, pop them in the oven and wait as as you let the sweet smell of almond butter fill your kitchen. They are hands done my go to healthy sweet treat, and I think they will quickly become yours too. When baking healthier treats many times you end up losing flavour or texture - not with these. They are as fudgy as any other blondie and just sweet enough. I love them loaded with chocolate chips and pecans but you can definitely keep them on the plainer side with no add-ins or toppings.
I partnered up with Bob’s Red Mill to feature a recipe using their Gluten Free Almond Protein Powder. The almond protein like almond flour, not only helps the blondies hold together without making them cakey in texture but it also adds loads of extra protein to these blondies. It’s made with the highest quality blanched almonds, finely ground to a creamy powder that blends perfectly into smoothies, baked goods, sauces, salad dressings and more. It gives you 20 grams of protein per serving, made with 1 simple ingredient. No added flavors, colors or sweeteners and non-GMO Verified, vegan, and gluten free. It’s so easy to add to baked goods and was perfect on these blondies.
Notes and Substitutions
The almond butter I usually use to make these with is natural, sugar free and smooth - although you can use a crunchy version of it for a little extra texture. You can make these with any natural nut butter like peanut butter, cashew butter or pecan butter or you can use any seed butter too. Just a caution when using seed butters - they can give a green tinge to your baked goods - this is normal and can be prevented by adding a splash of lemon juice to the recipe. I love to use honey in baked goods but feel free to replace it with maple syrup or agave. Or if you wanted to use coconut sugar I would do a combo of it and a liquid sweetener - so ½ cup of coconut sugar or brown sugar and ¼ cup of liquid sweetener. Making these vegan is easy by using any egg replacement of your choice. I added the coffee to these because it always plays well with chocolate but it also gives these blondies a caramel like flavour to them. It’s optional but I recommend it.
We couldn’t get enough of these and pretty sure you will love them too! These do the trick when you are craving something sweet and chocolatey - and are made with all the good stuff and good for you stuff. Enjoy!
I have partnered up with Bob’s Red Mill to bring you this fabulous recipe, but all opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting Olive & Mango.
Recipe
Ingredients
For the brownie batter
- 1 cup of almond butter
- ½ cup of honey (or maple syrup/agave)
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons strong coffee or espresso, room temperature (optional)
- ¼ cup Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Almond Protein Powder*
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup dark chocolate chips (dairy free or regular)
For over the batter
- ¼ cup chopped raw pecans
- 2 tablespoons dark chocolate chips (dairy free or regular)
- Flaky sea salt for sprinkling
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line an 8x8 inch baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the almond protein powder with the baking soda and salt.
- Place the almond butter in a large bowl along with honey, eggs, vanilla and coffee if using and whisk together until smooth.
- Fold in the powder mixture until fully incorporated and then fold in the chocolate chips.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and then sprinkle over the remaining chocolate chips and chopped pecans.
- Bake for 20-27 minutes or until they are golden brown around the edges with a very slight jiggle in the middle - this will ensure nice and fudgey brownies.
- Once out of the oven allow them to cool in pan on a cooling rack for at least 20 minutes before removing and slicing into 9-12 pieces. Sprinkle with a little flaky sea salt and enjoy
Recipe Notes
- If you don’t have the almond protein powder you can use regular almond or other ground nut flour or oat flour. AP flour or GF AP flour is fine too.
- These can be left covered at room temperature for 2 days but they store better in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.
- Freeze them in a ziploc bag for up to 3 months to enjoy as a treat when you are craving something sweet.
Inspired by Ambitious Kitchen
