MIni Gluten Free Blondies

This recipe for puffy, chewy two bite gluten free blondies is a cross between a blond brownie and a chocolate chip muffin.

What's a blondie, you ask?

Blondie, short for “blonde brownie,” has the texture of a brownie with the flavor of a classic cookie with brown sugar in it. Unlike a brownie, a blondie has no cocoa powder at all for chocolate flavoring.

Remember our two-bite gluten free brownies? They're the perfect cross between deep, rich chocolate cake and a chocolate muffin.

Readers will often ask if they can just, say, leave out the cocoa powder from a chocolate recipe and make it vanilla. I’m afraid that basically never works for baking recipes. But that’s why we need this entirely separate recipe for rich and chewy blondies shaped like mini cupcakes.

One more exciting thing about two-bite blonde brownies: I don’t think you'll even find them for sale with gluten or anything. So … if that’s true, it means that we are way ahead of the gluten-eaters. Don’t you just love it when that happens?

The only mini gluten free blondies recipe you need

Made with basic ingredients in a single mixing bowl, these gf blondies are fast and easy to make. With even just a modest amount of ingredients, including only 1 1/8 cups of all purpose gluten free flour, you still get 24 little 2-bite goodies.

Plus, since they're made in a mini muffin pan instead of in a square baking pan, you don't have to wait until they're cool enough to slice. But if you'd rather make more classic blonde brownies, we have a recipe for gluten free blondies in bar form, too.

GF blondies ingredient notes

• All purpose gluten free flour blend and cornstarch – A combination of 158 grams Better Batter all purpose gluten free flour and 36 grams cornstarch provides just the right balance of sturdier rice and potato flours with plenty of starch for softness. If you'd rather use Cup4Cup, which is already a high-starch blend, replace the cornstarch with more Cup4Cup for a total of 1 3/8 cup (or 193 grams) Cup4Cup.
• Salt – Brings out the flavors and balances the sweetness. I always use kosher salt since the coarser grain is harder to overmeasure than table salt.
• Baking powder and baking soda – These are the chemical leaveners that give your blondies their rise in the oven, but you don't need much; the extra bit of baking soda helps neutralize the acid in the brown sugar.
• Granulated sugar – Granulated sugar is a tenderizer, but also helps the outside of your blondie bites crisp in the oven.
• Light brown sugar – The touch of molasses in light brown sugar gives your blondies the butterscotch-type flavor of blondies, which stands in for chocolate here.
• Unsalted butter – Butter adds rich flavor and moisture, and serves as a flavor delivery system and tenderizer here.
• Eggs – The eggs add richness and rise in the oven. They also bind the other ingredients together.
• Pure vanilla extract – For flavor, we use plenty of pure vanilla extract here.
• Semi-sweet chocolate chips – The chocolate chips are just for some extra flavor and texture; you can replace them with your favorite gf flavor chip.

Equipment you'll need to make these easy gluten free blondies

To make the blondie batter, all you'll need is a mixing bowl, a whisk, and a mixing spoon. To bake them, you'll need a cast aluminum miniature muffin tin, ideally one that's nonstick.

I really like the USA Pans brand miniature muffin tin, since it's good quality so it won't warp in the oven, and light in color. Light-coloring is important to keep your blondies from burning on the outside. If your pan is dark in color, lower the oven temperature at least 25°F.

Even a nonstick muffin tin will tend to gain texture over time as you use it, so if you know that your pan is on the older side, grease it more generously with nonstick spray. I find that using cooking oil spray to grease the pan is better than brushing butter or oil, since the spray will get into all the crevices.

Miniature muffin tins also tend to vary in well size quite dramatically, where some have much wider wells, others much deeper wells. You want to fill as many prepared wells as you can fully with the blondie batter, and then place the pan in the oven. To ensure even baking, fill the empty wells halfway with warm water.

Tips for making the best gluten free blondie brownies

Here's how to measure gluten free flour

The only reliable way to measure the proper amount of gluten free flour is with a simple digital kitchen scale. Dry measuring cup sizes are not standardized, and human error is unavoidable, regardless of kitchen experience and skill.

Make sure your ingredients are at room temperature

Ingredients like butter and eggs that are normally stored in the refrigerator must be left out to come to room temperature before you add them to the blondie batter, or they'll clump and won't incorporate fully with the other ingredients. A fingertip pressed into the butter should leave an indentation, but shouldn't feel oily afterward.

Begin with a hotter oven, and then reduce the temperature

Beginning with your oven temperature at 400°F is the best way to get your blondies to rise to a beautiful dome. After only a few minutes, reduce the oven temperature for the remainder of the baking time, so the blondies don't burn on the outside before the inside is fully baked.

Gluten free blondies storage instructions

If you're only going to be storing them for a couple of days, you can store these blondies at room temperature. Just keep them covered with a dome so they don't dry out.

Can I freeze blondies?

Yes! These two bite blondies freeze really well. Once they're completely cool, just pile them into a freezer-safe zip-top storage bag, squeeze out the air, and store for at least a month in the freezer.

Gluten free blondies: substitutions

Gluten free, dairy free blondies

The main source of dairy in these blondies is the butter. You can try replacing it with vegan butter; my favorite brands are Melt and Miyoko's Kitchen. If you need to be dairy-free, be sure your semi-sweet chocolate chips don't contain any dairy.

Gluten free, egg free blondies

To make these blondies egg-free you can try replacing each egg with one “chia egg,” made by combining 1 tablespoon ground white chia seeds and 1 tablespoon lukewarm water, mixed and allowed to gel.

Vegan, gluten free blondies

To make these vegan, use the dairy and egg replacement suggestions above, and be sure your sugar is vegan, as granulated and brown sugars may be made with bone char.

Can you make these into gluten free, sugar free blondies?

It can be very tricky to replace sugar with an alternative, but if you'd like to try, I recommend Lankato brand monkfruit granulated sugar alternatives. Alternative sugars tend to be very drying, so you may need to add some lukewarm water to achieve the proper blondie batter texture, as seen in the photos and recipe video in this post.

Chocolate chips alternatives

The semi-sweet chocolate chips add some texture and some rich, chocolate taste to these blondies, but they can be easily replaced. Here are some suggestions:

• white chocolate chips, if you're not dairy-free
• butterscotch chips, but be sure your brand of chips is gluten free, as some contain gluten
• chopped raw nuts, like walnuts or pecans

FAQs

What's the difference between gluten free blondies vs. brownies?

Gluten free brownies are dense cookie-like bars with rich chocolate flavor baked into the bar; blondies are have a plain, non-chocolate flavor, although they can have chocolate chips mixed in.

What does a gluten free blondie taste like?

A gluten free blondie, like gf chocolate chip cookies, have the rich taste of butterscotch because of the brown sugar, but they're denser and have a heartier chew.

Is a blondie like a chocolate chip cookie?

Yes! A blondie is somewhat like a chocolate chip cookie, as both have those delicious vanilla and molasses flavors. But blondies are denser.

What's the best gluten free flour for this blondies recipe?

My favorite gluten free flour blend for these blondies is Better Batter, mixed with cornstarch. Or, in place of Better Batter and the cornstarch as an ingredient, these work well with Cup4Cup, which is a high starch gf flour blend.

What if my blondie batter seems too dry?

This blondie batter is very thick, but it should come together readily as long as your ingredients were measured properly (overmeasured gf flour will make your batter too dry) and your butter and eggs are at room temperature.

If the batter seems difficult to stir, try pressing down with the underside of the spoon to incorporate the butter, and maybe allow the batter to sit at room temperature a bit so it softens up and mixes more readily.

What kind of chocolate chips can I use in this gluten free blondie recipe?

I usually use Nestlé semi-sweet chocolate morsels since they're widely available, often on sale, and gluten free (in the U.S. at least). But you can use your favorite chips. Scroll up for some alternatives!

How do I know when my gluten free blondie brownies are done?

When they're done, the top of these blondies will be puffed and golden brown all over, and a cake tester like a toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean.

Are gluten free blondies supposed to be gooey?

These are two-bite mini cupcake blondies, which are made in a muffin tin, so they bake in individual portions which are not at all gooey when they're done baking.

Why did my gf blonde brownies sink in the middle?

If your blondies sunk as they cooled, they were removed from the oven before they were done baking. The center of didn't have the structure needed to support the rise, so they caved in as they cooled and the air escaped.

Why are my gf blondies dry inside?

If your blondies are dry in the center, unfortunately they were overbaked.

How to make two bite gluten free blondies