These sultry Cardamom Coffee Blondies with smokey undertones of espresso and the aromatic cardamom aren’t your mom’s chocolate chip blondie!
Don’t worry, cardamom coffee blondies still have the familiar brown sugar and butter crumb of a thick, slightly under baked cookie, the melted pockets of chocolate chips, and a crackled crust with that classic golden sheen. I’m just saying these aren’t your basic bake sale blondies…they’re definitely a little more worldly, which I think you’ll agree that isn’t a bad thing.
Cardamom coffee blondie ingredient notes
You already know I love the coffee plus cardamom combination. You’ve seen it in my Turkish coffee, truffles, and I use the combo in Turkish Coffee Shortbread, but there are so many other ways to enjoy these flavors that I’m always experimenting. (If you’re not familiar you can learn about Turkish coffee here.)
- THE SUGARS: Why use both? Brown sugar keeps blondies moist and chewy with deep caramel notes, while white sugar adds structure and gives them a lightly crisp edge.
- INSTANT ESPRESSO POWDER: Instant espresso powder is finely brewed espresso that’s been dried into concentrated granules. Instant coffee is weaker and won’t deliver enough flavor in these cardamom coffee blondies.
- CARDAMOM: The flavor is complex ~ bright and slightly floral at first, then mellowing into a cozy warmth with hints of eucalyptus and ginger. It’s decidedly less sharp than cinnamon.
- CHOCOLATE: I recommend dark or semi sweet in these chocolate chip blondies.
There’s just something about a blondie
My cardamom coffee blondies may be humble, but they deliver big ~ a paper-thin crackly top, chewy edges, and a rich, buttery center that’s pure brown-sugar comfort. I love those little Shar Pei–like wrinkles around the edges, and the way chocolate chips peek through the surface. Cardamom coffee blondies are simple dessert perfection.
tips and faqs for baking cardamom coffee blondies
Yes, if you don’t do coffee you can leave it out, cardamom chocolate chip blondies are delish!
Great question. Just like with brownies, our standard methods aren’t very useful. If you stick a toothpick into a perfectly done blondie, chances are you’ll come out covered with melted chocolate or brown sugary goo. With blondies there’s a little guesswork involved, but better to under-bake than to over-bake (and remember they really firm up as they cool.) My advice is to stick with the recipe directions, but check on the early side, and definitely make sure your oven temp is accurate with an inexpensive oven thermometer. It’s worth its weight in gold.
You might get different answers from different folks, but I want my blondies to be rich and dense, not at all cakey. My recipe includes a little bit of baking soda to give the batter a subtle lift, but the overall texture is moist and chewy.
Blondies freeze beautifully. Be sure to let them cool completely, then wrap in plastic, then in foil. They’ll keep for 3 months in the freezer.
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Cardamom Coffee Dirty Blondies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 Tbsp instant espresso powder, heaped
- 2 tsp ground cardamom
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract or paste
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, measure by spooning flour into your cup and leveling off with the side of a knife
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 10 oz semi-sweet, dark, or bittersweet chocolate chips, save a few to pop into the top of the blondies before baking
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease and flour your pan.
- Cream the 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature, 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1 Tbsp instant espresso powder and 2 tsp ground cardamom together until fluffy. About 2 to 3 minutes.
- Beat the 2 large eggs in, one at a time. Then the 1 tsp pure vanilla extract or paste.
- Whisk the 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp salt together and then add to the eggs and butter, mixing just until combined.
- Mix in the 10 oz semi-sweet, dark, or bittersweet chocolate chips.
- Spread the batter (it will be thick) into your prepared 9×13 pan. Pop a few extra chips into the top.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes. Don’t over bake. They’ll be wrinkled a bit around the edges, and a little bit of squooshyness inside is a good thing.
- Cool before cutting. (or don't.)
Nutrition
More blondie recipes to try
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Raspberry Lemon Blondies
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These look dangerous!! CC
They are.
Shar Pei rumples – oh that’s a perfect description & I agree they taste amazing, too! And the oozing chocolate even after they’ve cooled, another reason I love blondies! I bet the flavors in here are just dynamite! And I love the recipe title đŸ™‚ Dirty blondies…so good!
Thanks Averie đŸ™‚
Oh, sweet mercy. All I need is a glass a milk and life would be amazing. =)
thanks Sue for this recipe…and it came on my B’day !
oh such fun…
Happy Birthday! đŸ™‚
I’ve always have had a weakness for blondies too. These look especially delicious.
I’m surprised I don’t have more of them on my blog, and I think it’s because they are too dangerous for me to have around.
Ooey..gooey..magical! I love that cardamom/coffee combo, as well…and I have everything I need to make these {glory!).
Oh you know I love this! That soft gooey chocolate is calling me by name!
Tricia I was THIS close to making your bourbon brownies and then decided on these. I’ve been craving yours since you posted them!
These look great..my old favorite was from a Silver Palate book I think:-)
I don’t have my copy anymore…it got sacrificed in one of our recent moves. I’ll have to look it up!
Ah I need to work with this combination more. Cardamom is a spice I love but never actually cook or bake with! And in blondies… good move.
I’ve developed a real love of it. I guess every spice is unique, but this one seems especially complex. I’ve heard that its flavor is unusually fragile, and it really shines when you grind it fresh.
These sound fantastic. I’m crazy for cardamom. I’m glad you posted this recipe and also the reminder link about the cardamom coffee pound cake. I just may need to give that one a go (today!)
You just made me think I should gather all my cardamom recipes together…I have been on quite a binge lately!