Chocolate Chip Marble Square Blondies

Chocolate chip marble square blondies are made with browned butter, two kinds of chocolate chips, as well as bread flour to help them be both soft and chewy. 

These marble squares are inspired by King Arthur Baking's recipe of the year, a big chocolate chip cookie. In fact, in their catalog, the name is Supersized, Super-Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies. 

I was totally intrigued by this recipe because it included a tangzhong, which is one of my favorite ingredients in sandwich breads and dinner rolls because of the magical properties it brings. 

Plus, the original recipe includes a 24 to 72 hour rest of the dough in the refrigerator before baking to develop flavor. This warms my bread baker's heart. 

These bars are also an homage to Nestle's Toll House Marble Squares, where the creators of the Toll House Cookie turned their recipe into bars. I'm pretty sure that I first made them in my seventh grade home economics class. 

I understand that marble squares were first introduced in the 1960s. To make them, you put the cookie dough batter in a cake pan and sprinkle the top of the batter with semi-sweet chocolate chips, bake them for a minute, and then swirl the melted chips into the batter and then finish baking the squares. 

They're basically blondies with a swirl of melty chocolate throughout. 

These marble squares, with a tangzhong, two kinds of chocolate, and browned butter, take the concept to another level. 

For these bars, I included a cup of bittersweet chocolate chunks in the batter and a cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips for the swirl. 

P.S. The browned butter adds an amazing nutty and caramel flavor and color to these bars. 

How to Make These Chocolate Chip Marble Squares:

First, mix brown sugar and a bit of salt in a large bowl and set it aside while you brown the butter. 

The next step is to make the browned butter. You melt the butter in a pan over medium high heat and cook it until browned bits begin to appear at the bottom. Be sure to swirl the pan and stir the butter regularly and watch it very closely. When you have some golden brown bits at the bottom of your pan, pour the hot butter into the brown sugar and stir. 

Next, make the tangzhong by cooking three tablespoons of bread flour with milk until the mixture has thickened like pudding and then stir it into the sugar and butter mixture. Whisk in the eggs and some vanilla and then stir in the flour and leavening (baking powder and baking soda). 

After that, chill the dough for about 15 minutes in the refrigerator. Next, stir in a cup of bittersweet chocolate chunks. 

Pour the batter into a parchment-lined 13 inch by 9 inch cake pan, cover, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours. 

When you are ready to bake the bars, remove the pan from the refrigerator and sprinkle the top with a cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips. Let the pan sit for about an hour to take off some of the chill. In the meantime, heat your oven to 350 degrees F. 

Place the pan in the oven for five minutes and then remove the pan to swirl the chips into the bars. You can use an offset spatula or a knife. Place the pan back into the oven and bake for an additional 30 to 35 minutes. 

Finally, cool the bars completely in the pan before cutting. 

These bars are marbled on the top with semi-sweet chocolate and also filled throughout with bittersweet chocolate. They pretty much call your name from the kitchen. They are beyond compelling. 

Tips:

• The baking time will depend on the temperature of the dough/batter when you place it in the oven. If your bars fall a bit in the middle after removing them from the oven, don't worry. They will still be delicious... especially the next day. 

• For the bittersweet chocolate chunks, I purchased premade chunks from the chocolate chip section and then chopped them a little bit more with a chef's knife. 

• If the parchment paper for the sling curls over onto the batter, you can use metal binder clips to hold it up over the edges of the pan. 

• To make the browned butter, be sure to use a light colored stainless steel pan, not a dark nonstick pan. You want to watch the butter closely. For more information and a visual on browned butter, be sure to visit my post on browned butter chocolate chip banana bread. 

Storage and Freezing Tip:

Store the baked bars at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days. 

There are also several options for using your freezer for making these blondies in advance. You can freeze the dough in the cake pan and then either bake it from frozen or thaw it before baking. Baking time will vary based on the temperature of the dough. 

You can also freeze the bars after baking, individually wrapped, for up to six weeks. 

More Recipes Using a Tangzhong:

Sourdough Hokkaido Milk Bread

Tangzhong Whole Wheat and Rye Bread

Checkerboard Tangzhong Rolls

Tangzhong Whole Wheat Rolls

Scallion and Sesame Rolls

If you're intrigued, I also have quite a few recipes that include browned butter. 

Best Blondie Recipes

• Brown Butter Blondies from Hezzi-D's Recipe Box
• Butterscotch Chip Blondies from Palatable Pastime
• Chocolate Chip Cookie Blondies with M&M’s from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Chocolate Chip Marble Squares from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Oatmeal M&M Blondies from Art of Natural Living
• White Chocolate Macadamia Blondies from That Recipe

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Chocolate Chip Marble Square Blondies

Yield: 24 Squares

Author: Karen's Kitchen Stories

Prep time: 45 MinCook time: 35 MinInactive time: 24 HourTotal time: 25 H & 20 M

Chocolate chip marble square blondies are made with browned butter, two kinds of chocolate chips, as well as bread flour to help them be both soft and chewy.

Ingredients

• 426 grams (2 cups) packed light brown sugar
• 12 grams (2 teaspoons) salt
• 226 grams (2 sticks/16 tablespoons) unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 330 grams (2 3/4 cups) bread flour, divided
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup (170 grams) dark chocolate chunks (62 to 70 percent cacao)
• 1 cup (170 grams) semi sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Whisk together the brown sugar and salt in a large bowl. Set the bowl aside while you brown the butter.
2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium high heat. Swirl the pan and stir the butter regularly. When you have golden brown bits at the bottom of your pan, immediately pour the hot butter into the brown sugar and stir.
3. In the same pan, whisk the flour and milk over low heat to make the tangzhong. Switch to a wooden spoon or rubber spatula and stir constantly until the mixture has thickened like pudding, about 3 minutes. Immediately stir the tangzhong into the sugar and butter mixture. Let the mixture cool slightly.
4. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla into the sugar mixture and then stir in the rest of flour, the baking powder, and the baking soda.
5. Chill the dough in the bowl, uncovered, for about 15 minutes in the refrigerator and then stir in the bittersweet chocolate chunks.
6. Prepare a 13 inch by 9 inch cake pan with a parchment sling (enough overhang to pull the baked bars out of the pan).
7. Pour the batter into the pan, spread it evenly, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours.
8. When ready to bake, remove the pan from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature for an hour. Heat your oven to 350 degrees F.
9. Sprinkle the top of the dough with the semi-sweet chocolate chips. Place the pan in the oven for five minutes. Remove it from the oven and, using an offset spatula, cut and swirl the melted chips into the top layer of the dough.
10. Place the pan back into the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes more, until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs.
11. Cool in the pan completely and then cut into bars.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

280

Fat (grams)

14 g

Sat. Fat (grams)

8 g

Carbs (grams)

35 g

Fiber (grams)

2 g

Net carbs

34 g

Sugar (grams)

23 g

Protein (grams)

3 g

Cholesterol (grams)

37 mg

https://www.karenskitchenstories.com/2024/01/chocolate-chip-marble-square-blondies.html

Karen's Kitchen Stories

marble squares, blondies

dessert

American

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