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Skillet Blondie

Source of Recipe

From "Basic to Brilliant, Y'all" by Virginia Willis


Recipe Introduction

"The flavor of this cookie resembles the taste of a Snickers bar—even without the caramel, and especially so when you follow my chef-inspired Brilliant suggestion to refrigerate the dough. If you do want to use caramels, I suggest the old-fashioned Brach's caramels. Unwrapping the caramels is a perfect job for the kids while you are measuring out the ingredients. When I was a little girl, my grandfather always had a pocketful of caramels or peppermint candy. We played a game where he put one in his closed palm. Holding out both hands he said, 'Jack in the bush.' My sister and I squealed and giggled,'Cut 'em down!' He then asked 'How many licks?' I replied 'One,' tapping the hand I thought contained my sweet prize. Of course, my sweet, doting grandfather always gave his grandchildren the prize whether we guessed correctly, or not. My first forays into baking, like many aspiring young chefs, involved chocolate chip cookies. If you don't have a cast-iron skillet, run out and get one. No, seriously, you can use an 8-inch square pan, but you still do need to own a cast-iron skillet."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
â—¦ ½ teaspoon baking soda
â—¦ ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
â—¦ ¼ teaspoon baking powder
â—¦ ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
â—¦ 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
â—¦ 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
â—¦ 1 large egg, lightly beaten
â—¦ 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
â—¦ ½ cup unsalted peanuts, chopped
â—¦ 15 caramel candies, halved (optional)


Recipe

Preheat the oven to 350° F.

Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in a bowl.

Heat the butter in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over low heat. Add the brown sugar, stirring until dissolved.

Add the butter mixture to the flour mixture. Add the vanilla and egg. Fold in the chocolate chips, peanuts, and caramels. Transfer the batter to the buttery skillet, smoothing the surface with a spatula.

Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool. Slice while still slightly warm.

Makes 1 (10-inch) pan



• Brilliant Technique: Chill, Baby
This may seem ridiculous for a dump-and-stir chocolate chip bar cookie, but covering and chilling the dough in the refrigerator for a minimum of 24 hours, and preferably 36 hours, allows the dough and other ingredients to fully soak up the liquid of the eggs. A long hydration time is important for two reasons. Eggs, unlike water, are gelatinous and slow moving, and the butter coats the flour, deterring the absorption. Giving the cookie dough a resting time in the refrigerator solves those problems. The result is a cookie richer with the flavors of toffee and caramel.