Introduction

I adore a quick and easy dessert because I’m a busy mom and a self-taught baker with more than 25 years of experience in the kitchen.

This blondie bar is a classic, but it’s different because we’re preparing blondies without brown sugar. And much like my blueberry blondies, we’ll be using fresh strawberries for this fresh strawberry blondie recipe.

Blondie bars don’t get much easier than this: one bowl, seven ingredients, and a little prep time.

• Quick and easy: it takes around 5 minutes to get ready and 25 minutes to bake.
• Strawberry blondies are soft and chewy, with a dense, chewy, soft, and sensitive texture.
• No planning ahead when the butter melts!
• You don’t need a mixer; all you need is a whisk and a spatula.

Ingredients

◯ 80g of fresh strawberries, cut into little pieces
◯ 113g of melted unsalted butter
◯ 200g of granulated sugar in one cup
◯ ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt
◯ One big egg that is at room temperature
◯ 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
◯ 1 ¼ cups (157g) of all-purpose flour

For the entire list of ingredients and baking instructions, please scroll down to the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

Ingredient Details and Tips

Strawberries—fresh strawberries are the best. I haven’t tried it, but I think you could also use freeze-dried strawberries. Check see the recipe card’s notes for how to make the switch. I don’t think frozen strawberries are a good idea because they would make the food excessively wet.

You need melted, unsalted butter for the blondies.

Sugar: You need white or granulated sugar. This makes the new strawberry blondies taste even more like strawberries.

Egg: You need one large egg that is at room temperature.

Kosher salt helps to bring all the flavors together. Use half as much if you only have table salt.

Vanilla: I like pure vanilla extract better.

All-purpose flour gives the strawberry blondies their shape. Use a one-to-one flour substitution to make gluten-free blondies.

Pro tip: To fast get eggs to room temperature, put them in a dish of warm tap water for 5 to 10 minutes.

Instructions

1. Set the oven to 350°F and line an 8×8 baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Wash the fresh strawberries before using them. Then cut off the tops and chop them into small pieces that are easy to eat. Put two layers of paper towels on a flat surface and spread the chopped strawberries in a single layer on top of the towels. Put another paper towel over the berries and push down softly to help get rid of any extra moisture. Put aside.
3. Mix the melted butter (½ cup/113g), granulated sugar (1 cup/200g), and kosher salt (¼ teaspoon) together in a medium to large bowl until they are thoroughly mixed. When you mix the melted butter, sugar, and salt together, the mixture will be thick.
4. Then add the egg (1 large) and the vanilla (1 teaspoon). Whisk the ingredients together for approximately a minute, scraping the bowl up and down as needed.
5. Then add the all-purpose flour (1 ¼ cup/157g) and mix until there are still some big streaks of flour. Then, add the strawberries (½ cup/80g) and carefully fold them in.

6. Put the thick batter into the prepared baking pan and spread it out evenly.
7. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the sides are gently browned and a toothpick or knife inserted into the center comes out with only a few moist crumbs. Let it cool in the pan on a wire rack.
8. Then, use the parchment paper to remove the bars out of the pan and cut them into the sizes you want.

Additional Tips and FAQs

A kitchen scale will give you more exact measurements than measuring cups, especially for the flour and fresh strawberries.

Don’t smash the strawberries into the batter; just fold them in gently.

Don’t bake the fresh strawberry blondies for too long! A dry blondie is not good. It’s better to do less than too much. As they cool, the blondies will get firmer and keep cooking. This is how to make it soft and chewy.

Keep in mind that your oven is different from mine, therefore the baking time may be a little different. This thermometer for the oven helps me make sure that the temperature is what I think it is.

Put the pan in the fridge to cool all the way down if you need to speed up the cooling process. You can pick up the pan with your bare hands once the blondies have cooled enough.

My testers liked the strawberry blondies fresh from the fridge or freezer, but they tasted best at room temperature.

To get nice cuts, the blondie bars need to be absolutely cool. Chilling them will also assist. Use a sharp knife and clean it off after each cut.

Are blondies supposed to be sticky in the middle?

Yes and no. They should have a soft middle that makes them chewy. When you test them with a toothpick, they shouldn’t be runny in the middle, but they should have a few moist crumbs adhering to the toothpick.

Why are my strawberry blondies soggy?

There is a lot of moisture in fresh strawberries. If you don’t pat the strawberries dry enough before adding them to the batter, they will make the blondie recipe excessively wet.

Why are the middle of my blondies still raw?

The oven may not be set to the right temperature. I have an oven thermometer in my oven so I can check that it is the right temperature. If the oven is too hot, the edges will bake too long before the middle is fully cooked.

Glass pans can take up to twice as long to bake because glass conducts heat differently than metal.

The strawberry blondies might not have been baked long enough. When you poke them with a toothpick, a few wet crumbs are perfect. If the toothpick comes out with wet batter, bake your blondies for a little longer.

Is it okay to use brown sugar?

Yes, I would mix half brown sugar and half granulated sugar. You may find the measurements in the notes part of the recipe card below.

Flavor Variations

• Add the zest of one medium lemon to the blondie batter for strawberry lemon flavor.
• Strawberry jam blondies: Add spoonfuls of strawberry jam and mix it into the batter. I would use two tablespoons using the method I use in my raspberry brownies recipe.
• Lemon glaze ~ the strawberry blondies are already pretty sweet on their own. If you want to add a lemon glaze, I would use the one from my blackberry lemon scones.
• White chocolate: Mix in up to one cup of white chocolate chips or chopped chocolate with the chopped strawberries. My strawberry white chocolate biscuits immediately show that this flavor is a winner.
• Pink blondies: I also tried adding a strawberry lemon glaze, which made the strawberry blondies look quite pink. Some of my testers said the glaze was a little too sugary, but this is the recipe if you want to try it. Combine 2 tablespoons of strawberry jam with ½ to 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Then, add ½ cup of confectioners’ sugar and whisk until the mixture is thick enough to make a glaze.

Storage

Strawberry blondies will stay fresh for one day at room temperature in an airtight container, but they will last up to five days in the refrigerated in an airtight container. You can serve it cold or at room temperature.

They also freeze nicely for up to three months in a container that doesn’t let air in. Before serving, let them thaw.

Notes

*The 80g/½ cup of strawberries is what you get when you slice them up and take off the tops. I like strawberries that are fresh, washed, and dried. I haven’t tried it, but I imagine you could easily use freeze-dried strawberries instead. I would use a bag that weighs 1.2 ounces (34 grams) and cut the freeze-dried strawberries into small pieces. I don’t think you should use frozen strawberries because they would make the food overly wet.

My testers liked all granulated sugar better, but you can use a mix of white and brown sugar. For example, use ½ cup/100g of each.

Strawberry blondies will stay fresh for one day at room temperature in an airtight container. They will stay fresh for up to five days in an airtight container in the fridge. Serve cold or at room temperature. They can also be frozen for up to three months. Before serving, let them thaw.

I suggest using a metal baking pan because glass can take twice as long to bake.