How to Make Delicious Sourdough PB&J Blondies
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Funny enough, sourdough started trending a year ago. Here we are still going strong but still looking for new ways to use that sourdough discard. Today, I submit for your stress-baking experience: sourdough PB&J blondies.
Obviously, nothing goes better together than classic peanut butter and jelly, right? But what would send that flavor duo just over the top? You know it’s the tangy, fruity flavor of good sourdough discard.
Consider that a sandwich needs bread, so to truly push that school-day lunch flavor to nostalgic levels, enhance your dough with natural yeasty flavor.
So, let’s talk about how we make these sourdough PB&J bars!
What to Expect from Sourdough Blondies
These blondies are a different from my butterscotch blondies in a lot of ways – mainly, the texture. You’ll bite into a light, fluffy, cakey crumb with gooey stripes of strawberry jam running through and little pops of peanut butter chips here and there.
It’s very reminiscent of a white bread peanut butter and jelly. So much so, you’ll definitely want a glass of milk, and curiously, some carrot sticks.
I’ve chosen to glaze the top with more strawberry jam when it comes out of the oven. This extra little step, while optional, pushes the fruit right to the front. It also gives your dessert a pretty red sheen.
Using Sourdough Discard in Blondies
This batter is pretty wet thanks to the addition of sourdough discard. But how else does the discard affect things?
First of all, you’ll definitely want to skip licking the spoon. The raw sourdough flavor is not that good. It will bake up beautifully. However, it’s not advisable to eat raw dough to start with. And then eating sourdough starter raw is just extra unsafe. Save your belly.
Second of all, be prepared for the chew of gluten. Usually, you avoid this by not over-mixing. However, your discard will have a bit of gluten build-up just due to its nature. You might even see a little stretch in your batter, and that’s fine. Don’t worry about it, but also do not overmix.
Finally, it might smell strange. Sourdough is unique to each baker, and that includes its fragrance. Yours might smell like Playdoh or it might smell fruity. You can learn more about your starter in my beginner’s post here.
Peanut Butter Chips for the Win!
If you’re like me, you probably want to add peanut butter chips. Not only do they add a little bit of texture to each bite, they also really drive home that peanut butter flavor.
Of course, you could use crunchy PB instead, or even just add in some chopped nuts. I urge you to make this recipe your own. It’s your stress-bake, after all. But I also highly recommend splurging and getting some peanut butter chips for this recipe.
If you happen to eat a bar while it’s warm, you’ll end up with little gooey bites of PB. Or, if you enjoy your blondies room temperature, they reharden for just that little bit of resistance. I don’t know about you, but I love biting into a chip in a blondie!
Adding Jelly to Your Sourdough PB&J Blondies
The batter itself is pretty easy. You cream the peanut butter, butter, and sugar first, and then mix everything else in: wet stuff first, followed by dry. Then, you make it pretty with a jelly swish.
I recommend using strawberry jelly because it’s sweet and the red color is extra pretty. However, feel free to use your favorite raspberry jam or even grape jelly if the spirit moves you.
All you have to do is dollop your favorite jelly over the top of your blondies and swirl it in with a knife before they go into the oven. If you’re using a fruit preserve, you can look forward to little nibbles of fruit!
And, as I mentioned before, you’ll have the option of glazing the top with more jam for a shiny finish and an extra push of fruit flavor. I don’t recommend skipping this step!
Decorating and Serving
Feel free to grab some extra peanut butter chips and sprinkle those over the top just before the pan goes in the oven. If you happen to have peanuts available, you might even chop some up and sprinkle those on for some crunch.
Remember to let your bars cool completely before you cut into them. This will help you get nice clean cuts and even bars. It also helps the jelly set again. Even better, put your blondies in the fridge overnight.
Note that the jelly might sink while baking depending on what you’re using. If this happens you can water down a little more and glaze it on top for a shiny finish and a little more glamour.
Tools You’ll Need for Your Sourdough PB&J Blondies!
We’re almost ready to bake! Here’s the equipment you need to gather to get started:
Comment below if you have questions, concerns, or opinions. And tag me @ellejayathome on Instagram or Twitter if you share pictures from any of my recipes. I love to hear from you!
Sourdough Peanut Butter and Jelly Blondies
Equipment
- Stand mixer with paddle attachment
- 9×9 pan
- Parchment paper
Ingredients
- ¼ cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
- ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup sourdough discard room temperature
- ½ cup peanut butter chips
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cups all purpose flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp pink himalayan sea salt
- ½ cup strawberry jam plus 2 Tbsp for glazing
- 1 Tbsp water for glazing
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and line a 9×9 pan.
- In your stand mixer, cream together the room temperature butter and peanut butter with the light brown sugar. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Mix for 2 minutes on high. Scrape down the sides.
- Mix in the sourdough discard until just combined.
- Fold in the flour, baking soda, and sea salt.
- Fold in the chips and then spread the batter into the prepared pan.
- Dollop strawberry jam evenly over the top and swirl it in with a knife or rubber spatula. Optionally top with additional peanut butter chips or peanuts.
- Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out crumby but not coated in raw batter.
- Stir together 2 Tbsp of jam with 1 Tbsp of water, and use a pastry brush to glaze the top of your bars while they're still warm.
- Allow them to cool completely so the center sets. Then, cut into 9 bars.
