peanut butter blondies

I Made Donna Kelce’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

/ Melissa (I Crashed the Web) / 3 Comments

Do you know who Donna Kelce is?

She’s Travis and Jason Kelce’s mom. Which brings me to ask … do you know who Travis and Jason Kelce are?

I understand you may not. If you’re not 1) From Cleveland OR 2) A fan of football OR 3) A fan of Taylor Swift, the Kelce boys may not be on your radar. (And if they’re not – they’re brothers from Cleveland Heights, Ohio who now are in the NFL. Travis Kelce is currently dating Taylor Swift).

But we’re talking about cookies! Not football. Anyway, these cookies went famous after Mama Kelce was seen giving her sons a container of them before last year’s Super Bowl, and also gave the Today Show anchors a sample when she was on air with them. But it wasn’t until my phone sent me a link with the headline to this recipe a week ago that I first heard of them.

My phone suggests links based on my click habits – and surprise surprise, most of the links are baking OR running related. I normally would’ve tossed this recipe aside – who needs another chocolate chip cookie recipe – but I had book club and realized that would be the perfect venue to taste them!

I pretty much made this recipe to the T with the exception of two areas – I didn’t have Ghiradelli chocolate chip cookies (I used a combination of Nestle, Trader Joe’s and Target, because that’s what I had) and I didn’t have cold cream butter – I used Costco unsalted butter. I admit that I was unsure if I’d like them – I’m more of a big doughy cookie fan, and also don’t love cinnamon mixed with chocolate.

What was the verdict from my taste testers – my family and book club ladies?

They were a hit! Some guessed the cinnamon, others couldn’t even tell it was in there. Likewise, I was surprised with how much I enjoyed the texture – they weren’t big doughy cookies but they were crispy and chewy in just the right way.

Would I make them again?

Maybe – they were good but there were a few extra steps and ingredients required that aren’t in my typical cookie recipe AND they require time to sit so they may not become my go-to cookie in a pinch. But they were good enough to share and my kids loved them!

Mama Kelce’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

(originally shared from the Today Show website)

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Peanut Butter Lovers Blondies

/ Melissa (I Crashed the Web) / 2 Comments

We had a few rainy days in Cleveland last week, and B was busy, which meant that I was trying to find ways to entertain 3 (!) kids inside our house. One of the things that we all love to do – well, except for GM, but we’ll find out about that soon enough! – is bake. And luckily, I’d been dreaming up these bars for a while, so when we had one rainy day and I asked the kids if they wanted to bake (and they said yes!), I knew exactly what we’d make.

I love the combination of chocolate and peanut butter. Especially when there’s not TOO much chocolate involved. Which is probably why I love Reese’s peanut butter cups and pieces. Thus, this recipe.

This recipe uses my standard blondie recipe, plus a few additional add-ins to make it perfect for peanut butter lovers! If you wanted to use a peanut butter cookie base, you could make this EXTRA peanut buttery! But this is perfect if you want a chocolate chip cookie with some added peanut butter candy.

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Peanut Butter Heath Bar Blondies

/ Melissa (I Crashed the Web) / 2 Comments

I must be on a peanut butter and chocolate baking kick lately. Or maybe I always have been? Anyway, if you’re a fan of peanut butter cookies, cookie bars, and chocolate, these bars are for you. That’s right – no fancy introduction needed for these bad boys. Just make them for the peanut butter cookie lover in your life and I promise he or she won’t be disappointed!

peanut butter heath bar blondies - icrashedtheweb

Peanut Butter Heath Bar Blondies (from my Magnolia cookbook)

Here’s what you need:

For the cookie bars: 

  • 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups smooth peanut butter
  • 2 3/4 cups sugar
  • 3 large eggs, room temp. (I used Egg Beaters because that’s what I had on hand and they came out fine!)
  • 2 Tbs vanilla
  • 3 cups self-rising flour

For the topping:

  • 1 1/2 cup peanut butter chips
  • 1/3 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup  coarsely Heath bar bites (they sell them with the chocolate chips)
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped unsalted peanuts

Here’s what you do:

  1. Preheat your oven to 325 and grease a 12 x 18 jelly roll pan.
  2. Beat butter and peanut butter until fluffy.  Add in the sugar & mix until smooth.
  3. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat thoroughly.
  4. Gradually add the flour, 1/2 cup at a time, and mixing well after each admission. Mix until well incorporated.
  5. Spread batter evenly in pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until edges start to brown.  Cool to room temp.
  6. Make the topping: In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the peanut butter chips and the cream until smooth.  Pour the mixture over cooled blondies.  Sprinkle with heath bar and peanuts.

Variations: I also made some with semi-sweetened chocolate chips melted (instead of peanut butter, as well as chopped up peanut butter cup (instead of Heath bar bites)

peanut butter heath bar blondies - i crashed the web

Some questions for you:

  • Are there any nut butters you don’t like? Which have you tried? I’ve never tried cashew butter! But I do like peanut butter, sunflower butter (or sunbutter) and almond butter. And cookie butter – does that count as a nut?
  • What other topping would you put on these bars besides peanut butter or chocolate? I’m wondering how white chocolate would taste. I know I would like them (I like white chocolate Reese’s!) but not sure how others may enjoy them.
  • What’s a new cookie bar recipe you’ve tried recently? I need some new ones to try!