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It’s not often I make things from the blog twice in one week. Because already in our house, we have a Coconut Lemon Tart, Seedy Quinoa Chocolate Bark, and 3 leftover savory dishes from photoshoots.
But these bars Alex and I could not get enough of. The consistency is f-l-a-w-l-e-s-s. They’re chewy and moist, but not too dense. The freshly ground cardamom tastes so springy and delicious, we quite literally could not stop eating them. So we made a second batch, just for fun.
Sometimes it’s the simplest of desserts that gets you. These bars are a testament to that fact. Every night for the last 4 nights, Alex has brought over the tupperware container they’ve been stored in and a big glass of milk. We’ve sat on the couch and noshed away at these babies, savoring every delicious bite.
Now, I strongly recommend making your own chai spice mix as outlined in the recipe below, but you can also buy chai spice mix from some specialty grocery stores. If you go this route, substitute in 1 tablespoon of chai spice mix.
Hope you all have a fantastic weekend making these bars (heheh). LOVES YOU GUYS!
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
In a standing mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the melted butter, vegetable oil, and light brown sugar on high speed for 30 seconds. Add in the egg and vanilla extract and mix for another 30 seconds.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, black pepper, baking powder, and salt. Fold dry ingredients into wet and place into prepared baking pan.
Mix together sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over bars. Bake for 25 minutes, then allow to cool completely before cutting into squares!
Super easy and so delicious! My friends and I devoured the whole pan in one night. Now I’m just counting down until I can make them again! Also – did a whole stick of butter instead of butter and oil because I was out of veg oil and they worked well!
Like the other reviews, I had great response from the people who tried these! Don’t skip the pepper! It’s not spicy, just adds depth. These are amazing warm with homemade vanilla ice cream. Perfect fall dessert.
omg these are so good. they were toe curling deliciousness. my mom was lecturing me so i left them in a bit too long but the edges were nice and crispy. anyways if you make these for someone they’ll probably marry you
Hi Annabel! I would be hesitant to swap it out for the chai concentrate because you’d be adding more liquid and sweetener to the batter so it would alter the texture of the blondies!
Leave a comment and rate this recipe!
Could I swap out the vegetable oil for coconut oil?
Hi Candice! Absolutely–the blondies will have a slightly coconut flavor though!
Super easy and so delicious! My friends and I devoured the whole pan in one night. Now I’m just counting down until I can make them again! Also – did a whole stick of butter instead of butter and oil because I was out of veg oil and they worked well!
Like the other reviews, I had great response from the people who tried these! Don’t skip the pepper! It’s not spicy, just adds depth. These are amazing warm with homemade vanilla ice cream. Perfect fall dessert.
omg these are so good. they were toe curling deliciousness. my mom was lecturing me so i left them in a bit too long but the edges were nice and crispy. anyways if you make these for someone they’ll probably marry you
Could I substitute out dry chai for a chai concentrate? If so, how much would you recommend I add?
Hi Annabel! I would be hesitant to swap it out for the chai concentrate because you’d be adding more liquid and sweetener to the batter so it would alter the texture of the blondies!