Apple Cinnamon Blondies with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

The perfect segue from late summer into early fall. These apple cinnamon blondies with maple cream cheese frosting will absolutely blow your mind. A must-make for a fall themed dinner's dessert, or the perfect dessert for Thanksgiving

Recipe by megan sheley on September 19, 2023

Prep time: PT20M

Cook time: PT35M

Rating

4.62 stars (50 reviews)

Keywords

blondies, desserts, fall recipes

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter (melted and slightly browned (2 sticks))
290 grams all-purpose flour (2 1/3c)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 2/3 cup brown sugar ((330g))
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cup peeled and chopped apples (I used Honey Crisp)
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp butter
6 oz cream cheese (the block of cream cheese is 8oz) (softened and room temp (take out of the fridge a few hours before using))
1/2 stick butter, unsalted (softened - take out of the fridge a few hours before using)
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
3 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Cuisine

American

Steps

Pre heat your oven to 350 degrees. In a large pan on LOW heat, melt 1 cup of butter (2 sticks).
In a medium sized bowl, add the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk together until combined and set aside.
Once your butter is melted, turn the heat up slightly (low - medium) and get the butter slightly browned. This should just be a few minutes - stir frequently to avoid burning.
While your butter is browning, peel 2 apples and chop into small pieces. Saute in a large pan with 1 tbsp of butter for 10 minutes. This is to cook the apples slightly before baking. Add in 1/4 tsp of cinnamon and stir well. Remove from heat.
Add melted butter, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla to a large bowl and mix well with a hand mixer. It should be sort of a caramel consistency. Add in your dry ingredients and fold together with a spatula.
Add in your cinnamon apples and fold in. Line a 9x13 baking dish with parchment paper and bake for 35-45 minutes (keep an eye on this as every oven is different). Also, if you're using a metal pan, these will cook quicker than the 35-45 minutes. I'd recommend checking at 28/30 minutes for doneness if using a metal pan. The tops should be golden brown and the center should be firm (not jiggly).
While your blondies are baking, make your cream cheese frosting. In a large bowl add your SOFTENED cream cheese and butter. Use a hand mixer to fully combine. Add in your powdered sugar and maple syrup, mix again. Place in the fridge.
Remove pan from oven and let cool for 1 hour before removing. After 1 hour, lift from the parchment paper and transfer to a cooling rack, let cool for another 1-2 hours. You want this fully cooled because your frosting will melt (from the butter) if placed on too warm of blondies.
Spread your frosting on your blondies, top with cinnamon, and cut into squares and enjoy!

Reviews

Jacob C on 2023-12-12 (4 stars):
They tasted amazing but were just a little dry, any remedy for this?
Lala on 2023-12-10 (5 stars):
These were absolutely delicious. I subbed gluten free flour and knew that might change the outcome; however - they were perfection. Will be making these regularly for the family. The texture, flavor, icing, yum. And very easy to make with your directions. Thanks for the recipe!
Chris on 2023-11-29 (5 stars):
WOW! My family devoured these at Thanksgiving. Such a delicious recipe and not hard to make. I followed the recipe using my kitchen scale to measure out the ingredients as I find that the easiest way to bake. I used honeycrisp apples and the blondies came out moist and flavorful. The frosting was a bit runny so I added extra sugar and then ended up not using all the frosting. Anyway, this was fabulous and I will make it in the future for sure!
Olivia V on 2023-11-21 (5 stars):
These were so yummy & I added some chopped pecans and walnuts & used granny smith apples to balance the sweetness. So delish!
Devon on 2023-11-18 (3 stars):
I followed the recipe as is and ended up with blondies that were very dry, almost a scone like texture. But the flavor is delicious, so I’m going to try again. Do you think the reason for this consistency is I baked for too long or perhaps used too much flower? I used 2 & 1/3 cups, and did not pack it. It was a very dense consistency when I was pouring into my pan. I used a 9x13 glass pan. I’m open to suggestions!