The Anti-Brownie

Ok, I already know - apparently, it is practically a sin not to LOVE chocolate. or cake. or mayo. I'm the ultimate offender. I don't like most regular cakes, or chocolate candy bars, or mayo-mush potato salad. Never have, never will. But I'm not that difficult -- I do like good bittersweet chocolate in small quantities, and some cakes (usually ones that I make!) and give me a good potato salad made with vinegar/oil/broth/herbs (instead of mayo) anyday!

Back to the point of my rant - so everyone likes chocolate and I'm often making desserts, snacks, or sweets that contain chocolate. I never eat them, so I end up making more than one thing to please everyone (including myself :). A few weeks ago, I came across a recipe for Glazed Vanilla Brownies on ThatSweetang - it seemed to good to be true - that there could be a brownie recipe that wasn't too cakey and didn't include "regular" chocolate as a component.

The recipe used by ThatSweetAng was originally from Betty Crocker (Triple-Vanilla Brownies) - I decided to edit it a tiny bit by adding in some toffee and give it a try. I burnt the bottom of my first batch, but they still tasted great, satisfying both the chocolate-lover in our house as well as myself. As a side note, I do make blondies often, but these have a different taste and look.

Vanilla Brownies (my edits are in orange)

Ingredients

Brownies
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 bag (10 oz) white vanilla baking chips (1 2/3 cups)
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1/3 cup toffee bits

Glaze
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 to 1 teaspoon vanilla
1 to 2 tablespoons warm water or milk
Handful, toffee bits

Steps

1. Heat oven to 350ºF. Grease and flour 13x9-inch pan. In 2-quart saucepan, heat butter and baking chips over low heat, stirring frequently, just until melted. (Mixture may appear curdled.) Remove from heat; cool.
2. Stir in remaining brownie ingredients until well blended. Spread evenly in pan.
3. Bake ~24 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely.
4. In medium bowl, mix all glaze ingredients until smooth and spreadable. Spread glaze over brownies. Add toffee bits to top (as much as is desired). Cut into squares.

Notes

1. I left out the butter in the frosting to save on the calories :) You can add a tablespoon or two back in and it will likely make the frosting smoother. I found that the brownies are so rich, you didn't miss it.
2. The original time frame recommended was 30-35 minutes. I burnt my first batch because I didn't check them before 28 minutes or so - the 2nd batch turned out perfectly in about 21 to 24 minutes. I would recommend watching your first batch to see how long they take in your oven (the usual stick test works fine).