Caught Red, White, and Blue Handed

These cake batter blondies are really good. So good that someone – who will go unnamed – ate more than half the pan between the hours of 12am and 7am when everyone else was sleeping. In all fairness, this someone did warn me that I better hide them or he would do just that. Growing up, I was often asked to hide the desserts. We’d stash them in the fireplace, in the garage, resting above the VCR. And on more than one occasion I caught the same unnamed person’s hand reaching into the fireplace, opening the door to the garage, and sitting in front of the entertainment center.

This July 4th, just go for it. Enjoy. These blondies will make that pretty easy.

Funfetti Blondies
Slightly adapted from Lovin the Oven

• 1 1/4 cup funfetti cake mix
• 3/4 cup AP flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 5 heaping tablespoons sprinkles of your choice (I used red, white, and blue stars)
• chocolate chips (optional) (i did not use chocolate chips, but mom wished i had)

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8 x 8 inch pan.
2. Cream both sugars, butter, vanilla, egg, and egg yolk.
3. Gradually mix in flour, cake mix, and baking soda until just mixed. Stir in sprinkles, reserving half tablespoon.
4. Spread batter evenly into greased pan. Top with remaining sprinkles.
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes until top is lightly browned and middle still jiggles slightly (slightly jiggly is important – don’t overcook it or they will be dry). Cool completely before cutting.