Magnolia Bakery Peanut Butter Heath Bar Blondies

***Susan's Note: On Tuesday, I visited The Magnolia Bakery at 69th and Columbus in New York City. It was my first visit, and it was "out of this world" - I had heard of their cookbooks, and they were mentioned in the movie The Devil Wears Prada. I sampled their yellow cake with yellow icing (yum) and cupcakes, and the blondies below. Wow.

Magnolia Bakery Peanut Butter Heath Bar Blondies

Blondies:
1 1/2 C. unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 C. smooth peanut butter
2 1/2 C. granulated sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 T. vanilla extract
3 C. self-rising flour

Topping:
1 C. peanut butter chips
3 T. heavy cream
4 coarsely chopped Health bars or chocolate covered toffee bars (about 1 cup)
1/2 C. finely chopped unsalted peanuts

Preheat oven to 325° F. Grease and flour a 12 x 18-inch jellyroll pan.

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and the peanut butter until fluffy. Add the sugar and beat until smooth. Add the eggs and the vanilla extract and mix well. Add the flour and beat until well incorporated. Spread the batter evenly into prepared pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into center of pan comes out with moist crumbs attached. Cool to room temperature.

To prepare the topping: In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the peanut butter chips and the cream, stirring until smooth. Drizzle the peanut butter mixture decoratively over the cooled blondies. Sprinkle the Heath Bars and the peanuts on top.

Allow to cool to room temperature, or overnight, before cutting and serving. Makes 24 three-inch blondies.

Source: The Magnolia Bakery