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White Chocolate Orange Blondies

So, if I’ve never told you all about my undying devotion for white chocolate, I figure this is a good place to begin. And if you are a newbie to white chocolate, this is a great recipe to get you turned on to it.

Ever since I can remember, I have been a white chocolate fanatic. Many people don’t particularly care for the stuff. But me? Oh, I’ll do just about anything for it; this includes spending $6 per slab on sub-par waxy white forgery. Recently though, I decided to put an end to this madness and just make my own damn white chocolate bars.

For starters, I ordered about 20 oz of 100% food grade cocoa butter. Not exactly cheap, but worth every penny.  Once I received my order, I promptly whipped up a giant bar of white chocolate, using a recipe by the insanely talented Hannah Kaminsky. It was simple and blissful…

Even though dark chocolate- with its smooth ebony skin and robust coffee and red wine-like aromas- is very very enticing, there is just something so pure and honest about a delicate bar of white chocolate. It’s like a superb vanilla ice cream with nothing to hide. No cover ups, no mix ins- white chocolate delivers just pure sultry cocoa butter flavor.

I also happen to be quite a devoted blondie fan; like the candy bar mentioned above, I prefer my brownie sans chocolate. I know you all probably think I am crazy.  But seriously, try this blondie and tell me if it is not the most glorious gluten-free & vegan blondie your tastebuds have ever encountered.

Well, that may be stretching it a tad, but I sure think these babies are worth their weight in cocoa butter.

They are perfectly chewy and blanketed with a paper thin layer of crunch that collapses delicately with each and every bite.  A touch of orange rind adds a little zing.

White Chocolate Orange Blondies ~ Vegan & Gluten Free

Ingredients:

  • 2 tbsp flaxseed meal mixed with 4 tbsp water
  • 1/3 cup organic sugar
  • 1 tsp freshly grated orange zest
  • 2-3 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp orange extract (optional)
  • 3/4 cup sorghum flour
  • 1/4 cup almond flour
  • 1/4 cup potato starch
  • 1 tsp xanthan gum
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 6 ounces vegan white chocolate (about 1 1/2 cups worth- depending on how large the chunks are)
  • 1/2 cup vegan margarine

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 °F, and lightly grease a 9 inch or 8 x8 baking pan.

In a large mixing bowl, combine prepared flaxseed meal, sugar, orange zest, and vanilla extract.

In separate, smaller bowl, combine sorghum flour, almond flour, potato starch and xanthan gum and salt.

Break the white chocolate into small chunks, and using a double boiler, melt the white chocolate and the margarine over medium low heat. You will start with something like this:

And end up with something like this:

You’re white chocolate and cocoa butter may become slightly separated at this point… whisk ’em together to make them once again homogeneous.

Immediately combine melted white chocolate and margarine with the sugar and flaxseed mixture. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until all has been added.

Your batter will be thick! Spread into prepared pan and bake in preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes.

The edges will be golden brown when they are ready to leave the oven. Let cool on wire rack until completely cool, then cut into squares.

Enjoy.

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34 Responses to White Chocolate Orange Blondies

  1. Bella says:

    These look soooo great!

  2. Gauri Radha गौरी राध says:

    Never tried vegan white chocolate. And these look amazing!!

  3. Hannah says:

    What a decadent use of the white chocolate! I’m so glad you enjoyed it, and made it into something even better. I’ll have to try your recipe asap. :)

  4. Those look so incredibly delicious.

  5. I’ve never been a huge fan of white chocolate, but these do sound very enticing. Dark chocolate and orange is an amazing combination, so perhaps I could dig this. Someday I will try making that white chocolate and give this a whirl, you have me convinced :)

  6. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a recipe on this site that didn’t make me drool – and these are no exception! Thanks as always for sharing and making gluten-free vegan look so easy and delicious!

  7. This looks outstanding! I love brownies. Mine always come out like cake…. :(

  8. Chanterelle says:

    these look absolutely delightful! do you think I could substitute the GF flours with spelt?

    • allyson says:

      Hi Chanterelle,

      I’ve never used spelt flour before, but I would think you could sub out AP flour where the gf flours and xanthan gum are… so, if spelt works in a similar fashion as AP flour with baking, then it should be an appropriate substitute. :)

  9. lynne says:

    Oh! These sound great! Can’t wait to try these!

  10. Mihl says:

    I feel the same when it comes to white chocolate! I used to eat tons of it before I went vegan. This sounds like a perfect recipe to celebrate the awesomenes of white chocolate.

  11. Faith DuBois says:

    As a child I was allergic to milk chocolate but could (and did!) have the white stuff, so I wallowed in self-pity as my sisters downed their “real” chocolate. Now that I’m older I’ve outgrown the allergy but you’ve made me rethink the pity partying. Thanks for the yum!

  12. Sondi says:

    I love white chocolate and Hannah’s white chocolate recipe seems so simple. Did you use a special mold for the chocolate?

    • allyson says:

      no special mold for the white chocolate I used in the brownies. I used a silicon loaf pan and made a 9″ x 5″ x 1/2″ bar. :)

  13. Dawn says:

    Allyson, I don’t know what took me so long to find your site & blog, but it is amazing! Went vegan a little over a year ago and have now developed a SERIOUS problem with white chocolate, like serious cravings and I can’t find a vegan version. Also, btw, blondies over brownies every time for me :-).

    I am going to try to make the white chocolate per your link. Where did your order the cocoa butter from? Could you please post? Also, could you tell me what kind of store bought vegan white chocolate is good or that I could order? Thanks! Dawn. P.S. I am also a new vegan blogger! Will definitely post about making vegan white chocolate once I try it! http://veganfazool.blogspot.com

  14. wow, my eyes got wide when I saw this post! it looks so amazing

  15. Caitlin says:

    Making your own white chocolate?? That sounds ambitious!! And delicious…
    Love the orange and white chocolate combo… sounds great!

  16. This is a great vegan recipe to enjoy ! A blondie is always a great change from brownies! Great idea.

  17. Tiffany says:

    Wow, these look fantastic. I am dying to make my own white chocolate!

  18. Also, I don’t know if this is up here somewhere, but what kind of camera do you use on your photos? Do you use any extra lighting devices also?

    • allyson says:

      hi!

      I use a cannon rebel t1i. its a low to mid-range digital SLR, but man, it’s worth its weight in gold. I also don’t use any special lighting, except the good old sunshine. I make it a priority to only shoot during specific hours of the day, depending on the season. :)

      ~allyson

      (two cheers for white chocolate!)

  19. Katrina says:

    I love adding citrus to bars like this. These look fabulous!

  20. Wow! What a great idea – make your own white chocolate. If I had a nickel for every time I picked up a package of white chocolate chips and then immediately put them down because of the dairy in them…..I definitely have to try making it from scratch. Thank you for the inspiration!

  21. sweet road says:

    as a vegetarian and part time vegan, you make me want to be a full time vegan!

  22. Laurel says:

    I love blondies. Love them, I too prefer them to brownies. I’ve tried making them GF and Vegan a couple of times but have given up even trying to eat the gloopy slop piles that generally result. I’m not a white chocolate fan; however, home made white chocolate from cocoa butter is another matter. I’d been wondering (for about a year now) if it would be worth buying cocoa butter to add depth to some of these recipes and if homemade white chocolate would be edible where the nasty store bought kind just leaves my taste buds grossed out and wondering why people don’t just dump sugar into margarine and claim that’s a delicacy too.
    This looks like a perfect match up though. They do look perfect and probably taste like a touch of heaven. You are one amazing lady.

  23. Morgan says:

    I love blondiees…so yeah, these look delicious for sure!

  24. Everyone thinks I’m crazy because I prefer blondies over brownies, too! And white chocolate beats milk chocolate for me for sure.

  25. Vegyogini says:

    I wonder if the gross vegan white chocolate chips would melt properly to make this recipe. I have a bag that I haven’t used yet.

    • allyson says:

      I bet they would… or at least, I would give it a try without hesitation. :)

      – but if your blondies boil over in absolute disaster-state. I am sorry.

  26. […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by MAVEA Inspired Water, Allyson Kramer. Allyson Kramer said: white chocolate orange blondies! http://tinyurl.com/27q6g6w #vegan #glutenfree […]

  27. This is so my kind of thing, orange and any kind of chocolate together gets me every time.