I had a recommendation to make some Strawberry Lemon Blondies. I looked at several recipes. They were all similar though with differing volumes of ingredients. So some would make a lighter cake and other a denser one. One recipe which I saw on The View From Great Island looked very promising. So I decided to use that as the base for mine, but with a couple of minor variations, such as including some lemon zest.
It promised to be a nice dense blondie. It also was sure to be full of flavour. As with all blondies this is a simple to make recipe. It doesn’t take much effort at all. There is some waiting time but it is worth it.
The flavour is provided by diced strawberries and lemon juice, as well as the additional zest. Extra sweetness is also added by spreading a simple icing on the top. That icing can be flavoured with strawberries, and/or lemon or just made with sugar and water.
As I mentioned blondies are easy to make. Simply mix the ingredients together and place them in a pan. Level the batter and then bake the blondies. Then cool the blondies completely. Once that has happened it is time to make the icing. Then spread icing over the top of the blondies. Allow it to set for a while. Then you are ready to serve as a snack or as a dessert.
This recipe fits well in a 9 inch/23 cm square baking pan. It is best to line the pan with parchment paper to make it easier to remove the blondies. If you only have an 8 inch square pan that will work, though you should be prepared to increase the baking time.
My Bake
I baked my blondies for 33 minutes. I knew that would give a moist and dense texture. That was exactly what I wanted. If you want a firmer and drier texture you can bake for longer.
Then, once the blondies had cooled completely I made my icing. That is very simple, using just icing sugar and water/strawberry puree or lemon juice.
Of course you don’t have to ice the blondies. That is a matter of personal preference.
Once I had set the icing I cut 16 blondies. The taste was wonderful, so fresh and fruity. The icing was tangy and sweet too. For me they were just perfect.
I also enjoyed some as a dessert with some cream.
Another simple recipe that is full of flavour is Easy Raspberry Brownie Bars. Do try them.
Strawberry Lemon Blondies
Course: CakesDifficulty: Easy16
servings20
minutes35
minutesIngredients
- Blondie mix
227g(2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
150g(3/4 cup) caster sugar
310g(1 cup + 1 tbsp, based on scooping packed flour into a 250ml cup) plain flour
2g(1/2 tsp) baking powder
3g(1/2 tsp) salt
1 medium egg(large in USA)
60ml(1/4 cup) lemon juice
zest from one lemon
140g(1 cup, after dicing) diced strawberries
- Icing
110g(1/2 cup) icing sugar
about 15ml(1 tbsp) strawberry juice(push a strawberry or two through a strainer) – see note below
about 15ml (1 tbsp) lemon juice – see not below
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/350F.
- Grease and line a 9 inch/23cm) square cake pan.
- Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and whisk until combined.
- Add the zest and the lemon juice and whisk again until combined.
- Mix the baking powder and salt into the flour.
- Pour the flour onto the wet mixture and fold it in until just about combined.
- Gently fold in the strawberry pieces.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread all over, levelling the top.
- Bake in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until firm on top, and a skewer poked into the cake comes out clean. It should just be pulling away from the sides of the pan too.
- Allow the blondies to cool in the pan.
- Add a tablespoon of strawberry juice to the icing sugar and stir until the sugar starts thickening.
- Spoon a little lemon juice, about a teaspoon into the mixture and stir again. Keep adding a little more lemon juice until the mixture flows off the spoon but is still quite thick. If the icing is too thin add more sugar. Add more liquid if it is too thick.
- Spread the icing, in a thin layer, over the top of the blondies. Then leave it to set up.
- Cut the blondies into 16 equally sized squares.
Notes
- How much of each liquid you use is personal preference. Just use enough of one or both, to create a thick but flowing icing. You can use just water too, of course.