Cinnamon Apple Brownies AKA Apple Blondies
These Cinnamon Apple Brownies are sweet and tender with caramel undertones. Plus, they’re super easy to whip together. For a quick fix for your sweet tooth, these Apple Blondies cannot be rivaled.
Chock full of seasonal fruit and spiced with cinnamon, these Apple Bars are irresistible and a divine way to celebrate autumn.
Why You Must Make
- It’s an easy recipe made with mostly pantry ingredients!
- They are a wonderful autumn treat when local apples are at their prime, but they are delicious all year long.
- Brown sugar and butter provide caramel undertones, and the combination of cinnamon and apples is an irresistible pairing!
When thinking about fall desserts, this old favorite recipe for Cinnamon Apple Brownies came to mind. I needed a snack to bring to my knitting group this past Friday. Apple pie wasn’t going to cut it. I needed something portable. Finger food to be exact.
I remembered this old recipe for apple brownies, which are actually more like apple blondies since there’s no chocolate involved. It took some hunting through my scads of brownie recipes until I finally located the sheet of paper I’d printed off in 2003. If you haven’t made blondies before, check out this fabulous roundup of over 100 Blondie Recipes. Or maybe you’re looking for The Best Apple Crisp?
Expert Tips
These apple brownies come together as quick as a wink. The most time-consuming step is peeling and chopping two apples.
- PRO-Tip: Use two different baking apples to give your bar a lovely depth of flavor. The rest is just dumping and mixing. Within an hour, your house will be filled with the incredible aroma of baking apples and cinnamon.
- Make sure not to add too many apples, or your bars could become too moist. I’m always tempted to add a few more.
- PRO-Tip: Since Baking Powder (affiliate link) isn’t used as frequently as baking soda, it often expires and loses its leavening capabilities as it sits in your pantry. Check the expiration date before making these apple blondies.
- PRO-Tip: To test your baking powder, put a teaspoon in ⅓ cup of very hot water. If it bubbles vigorously, it’s good to go! If it doesn’t, purchase a new tin before starting this recipe.
The results are a moist bar cookie with chunks of apple and an underlying caramel flavor from the brown sugar. They are impossible to resist!!
Frequently Asked Questions
How can these be brownies? There are two schools of thought. One is that blondies are a subcategory of brownies, and the other is that they are two separate kinds of desserts. The former makes sense for these apple bars to be called brownies, as they’re a “blonde” version of brownies.
On the other hand, there is enough differentiation for brownies to be only those bars flavored with chocolate or cocoa, and blondies to be vanilla-flavored bars with brown sugar. So call them apple brownies, apple blondies, or even apple bars! They’re so tasty, I don’t think anyone will argue.
Like brownies, blondies are done when they pull away from the sides of the pan. They should also be lightly browned across the surface. You can also check by inserting a toothpick into the middle. When the blondies are done, there will be no batter on the toothpick after it’s removed.
Do not overbake your blondies, or they will be dry.
You May Also Like:
- Turtle Shortbread Bars from Pint Sized Baker
- How to Cut Perfect Cookie Bars
- Homemade Samoa Bars
- Best Lemon Bars Recipe
- Caramel Apple Toffee Bars
- More of my Delicious Bar Cookies.
Apple Brownies Recipe
A blondie chock full of apples and spiced with cinnamon.
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking powder (make sure it's not expired)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½-2 large apples, peeled and diced, (use two different varieties. I used a Granny Smith and a Golden Delicious)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º. Butter an 8 x 8-inch baking dish and set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar, then mix in the egg. Add dry ingredients, then stir in apples.
- Spread into your prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the brownies comes out clean and apples are tender.
- The baking time varies from 20 to 45 minutes, depending on the size of the apple chunks and the variety of apples used.
Notes
Make sure your baking powder is fresh before starting the recipe. It often expires before it's used up. Baking soda has a much longer shelf life. Both are used in this recipe. PRO-Tip: Check the expiration date before starting this recipe. To test if it's almost expired, place a spoonful in some very hot water (I use my teapot to heat it). If it bubbles vigorously when added, it's fresh/active. If it doesn't, replace before starting this recipe.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
9Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 167Total Fat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 21mgSodium: 226mgCarbohydrates: 39gFiber: 2gSugar: 26gProtein: 2g
59 Comments on “Cinnamon Apple Brownies AKA Apple Blondies”
Cinnamon and apple simply belong together. These blondies look fantastic, Liz!
angiesrecipes
http://angiesrecipes.blogspot.com
Love this recipe I made it gluten free and it turned out great. Thank you for sharing.
Oh, I’m so glad Irene!! I appreciate you taking the time to let me know. Have a wonderful weekend!
i mad these mine came out hard as a rock another time i used a 13by 9 an ddidnt cook completely so ona cookie sheet what should i do how do i avoid burning or coming out hard thanks
Oh, boy, that’s no good. I’m thinking your oven could run hot. Plus, a 9 x 13 pan is way too big for a single batch—they’ll be thin and overcooked. See if you can borrow an 8 x 8 pan and watch the video in the post to see what the batter should look like. Usually, the apples make these super moist and they’re almost too moist! Hope that helps, Robert.
So if I use a cookie sheet sheet 10 by 14 or 10 by 17 I have double and 2 types apples
An 8 x 8-inch pan has 64 square inches (128 if you double the recipe). A 10 x 14 has 140 and a 10 x 17 has 170. So both of your options will still be too big even if you double the batch. The bars will be thinner so won’t take as long to cook and may get dark around the edges. If you do decide to go this route, cook at 25 degrees less than the recipe calls for and maybe not as long. I still think your best bet is to find the proper sized pan or else buy a disposable (foil) 8 x 8-inch pan. Hope that helps!
Just made these today and they are amazing! I doubled the recipe and baked in a 9×13 pan. Good thing I made extra because I think half the pan is already gone. Also added vanilla extract
I’ve added a cup of oatmeal. Will let you know how they turn out! ????
I just put this in the oven. I’m a little worried about the wide baking range but I will check at 30 minutes.
Hope you enjoy, Helene! Let me know how it goes!! My fingers are crossed.
Literally making this recipe now, at 8:43 pm cuz I’ve got nothing better to do and I love a good apple dessert! Hoping these come out amazing, will comment on this post the results!
There were AMAZING! My husband absolutely loves them! Will be putting this recipe in the box for sure!
Oh, I’m so glad, Ashlee! I can never resist an apple dessert 🙂
I made these several months ago for a game night at a friend’s house. She had brought some apple blondies to a party once and I loved them and the idea. I did a search and came across your recipe, among others. I decided on yours and they were terrific! I got lots of compliments on them and the husband of the friend that made something similar said that mine were better :). Great recipe!!
I’m so glad, Vicky! Thanks for taking the time to let me know!!!
I made this recipe with Fuji apple and it was AMAZING!!
My daughter doesn’t like cinnamon but she also loved them.
Oh, I’m so pleased!! Thanks for letting me know, Judy, and happy baking!!
They look amazing! I’m sure they make the whole house smell like fall.
These are total winners!!
Perfect easy dessert! Just got lots of apples while apple picking to use for this.
I certainly love a good apple recipe this time of year! These look fantastic!
I’m not sure why but my dough didn’t rise and turned out to be all flat and burnt… what did I do wrong?:(
But I still loved the flavor and can not wait to give it a try again!
Hi, Ms. Piggy,
My first thought is that your baking powder has lost it’s oomph. It does expire quickly and it’s not used as often as baking soda. You can check it’s potency by putting about a teaspoon in 1/3 cup very hot water. You should see some vigorous bubbling. Oven temperature could be an issue, too, but if you’ve baked other desserts lately without any problems, it’s probably OK. I hope that helps and your next batch is perfect!
Anyone ever try this with chunky applesauce instead of chopped apples? I’m going to give it a try!
Let me know how it goes, Anne. I’d be a little worried that the batter could be too wet. You may want to add a little more flour if you find that’s the case. Good luck!
A friend of mine made these and shared the information recipe afterwards because they were SO good!!! thank you for sharing ????
Thanks for letting me know, Mindy! That made my day 🙂
Sounds yummy! Pinned! Thank you for sharing on Merry Monday! Hope to see ya next week!
Kim
I did everything according to the recipe, but a cake not turned. too much sugar in the recipe, in my opinion. I was upset with the result((
Hi, Olga, I’m sorry you weren’t happy with the results. My family loves these as is—but you can certainly reduce the sugar a bit. I know Americans prefer sweeter desserts than both Europeans and Australians. Thanks for your feedback.
Hi! And you have a cake it turns out like the photo? I have it’s really not cooked, although in the oven stood for about an hour(
Yes, they did! I’ve made them more than once using this recipe. I wonder if you added too many apples? Or if you’re apples were extra juicy?
No, it was 2 apples, not big.
May be I take not the same proportions.. Can you write me this recipe in gramms?
And aboute butter. Does it need to melt?
The butter should be at room temperature, soft but not melted. I’m not an expert with changing the recipe to grams, but here’s what I figured by looking at a few charts. If something seems off, it just might be 🙂
113 g butter, 100 g sugar, 110 g brown sugar, 1 egg, 128 g flour, 2.6 g cinnamon, 2.5 g baking powder, 2.5 g baking soda, 2.5 g salt, 2 apples. Hope that helps!!
Thank you very much) And is it impossible that the cake didn’t baked because the butter was melted?
I think melting the butter might change the texture a bit, but I still think it should have baked up. Another couple thoughts, was your baking powder and baking soda fresh? Is your oven temperature accurate? Have a great day, Olga!
Yes, everything was fresh. The temperature was a little more than 350, about 380 F. I will try to bake again, I hope I will succeed. Thank You and have a nice day, too)
Really appreciate you sharing this recipe, but it did come out a little bland. Maybe simple isn’t always better? I wonder if adding a little more cinnamon would give it a little more flavor? Or perhaps the recipe requires a specific type of apple – I used Gala.
All in all, I don’t think these have a right to be called brownies.
It could be the apples you chose–I often do a mixture to give a depth of flavor. Gala wouldn’t be my first choice. I’d try a Golden delicious and a Granny Smith. Sorry, they weren’t a hit! Extra cinnamon might help, too.
P.S. I didn’t name them. A friend shared her recipe with me 🙂
Wow! I love the sound of apple brownies. Recipe looks very easy Liz 🙂