What about this?

What makes one brownie chewy, another one cakey and yet another one fudgy? Scanning the list of ingredients for Chewy White Chocolate Brownies and noting that it only required 1/2 cup of flour, I contemplated the different textures of brownies. Since most brownie recipes list similar basic ingredients, I figured the difference must lie in their proportions.

After some online research, I found this matter discussed in a post on Diana’s Desserts:

FUDGY BROWNIES (which purists often claim are the only real brownies) have a minimum of flour–about half a cup–and no leavening such as baking powder at all. Melting the butter rather than creaming it with sugar yields a denser, fudgier outcome.

CAKELIKE BROWNIES are really … well, little cakes! They contain less butter and more flour than fudgy brownies, as well as a bit of baking powder to make them softer and lighter. Often the softened butter is creamed with the sugar rather than melted with the chocolate. (Creaming incorporates air into the mixture, which causes the brownies to rise higher.) Many cakelike recipes also call for a bit of milk to add tenderness.

CHEWY BROWNIES usually get their texture from two factors: an extra egg (or even two) and a combination of different types of chocolate. Of all the chocolate types, unsweetened chocolate has the highest proportion of starches, which create a stiffer-textured brownie. Semisweet chocolate produces a creamier texture. Put the two together, often with a few tablespoons of cocoa powder to round out the flavor and thicken the texture, and you get a rich, satisfyingly chewy result.

BLONDIES are really butterscotch bars, made with brown sugar, butter, and eggs (and usually nuts as well), but no chocolate. Typically, blondies have a cakelike texture.

There you have it! By definition this Chewy White Chocolate recipe, with it’s 1/2 cup of flour and melted butter, should fall into the fudgy and not chewy category. But wait, because it has no chocolate (dark, semi, or milk), it’s essentially a blondie. Shouldn’t this sweet little recipe, clipped out of my local newspaper years ago, really be called Fudgy White Chocolate Blondies? Doesn’t sound right, does it?

Chewy White Chocolate Brownies

Ingredients:
1-1/3 cups white chocolate baking chips, divided use
6 tbsp. (3/4 stick) butter or margarine
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup butter brickle baking bits (optional)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.

2. Melt 1 cup of the white chocolate chips and the butter over low heat. Set aside to cool slightly.

3. Beat together the eggs and sugar until frothy. Add the vanilla extract.

4. Slowly mix in the chocolate mixture.

5. Gradually add the flour and beat until smooth.

6. Spread the batter in the prepared pan. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/3 cup white chocolate chips and brickle bits, if desired.

7. Bake for 30-35 minutes.

8. Place the pan on a wire rack and allow to cool completely before cutting into squares.

Makes 16 servings.

Linnell’s Notes:
1. Don’t leave out the brickle bits – it’s the combination of white chocolate and butter brickle that make this recipe delicious!
2. Don’t over bake the brownies or else they will lose their fudgy/chewy texture.
3. Don’t leave them on the kitchen counter unguarded or else you may return to discover that “someone” has eaten one whole row of edges!

Enjoy!