AS FEATURED IN THE PROPA EATS MAGAZINE IN THE GUARDIAN NEWSPAPER.

When we talk about a Trinidad Christmas, Ponche de Crème usually comes to mind. And these blondies are infused with the quintessential flavours that are present in this milk-based drink.

Christmas is in the air! And one of the drinks I MUST have for this Christmas is my mom’s Ponche de Creme. She makes it with eggs, evaporated milk, condensed milk and lots of puncheon rum. Some spices go in there as well where the main spice used is fresh nutmeg. Others are added as well, but Ponche de creme is not ponche de creme without nutmeg. So while brain storming about christmas themed recipes, I thought why not have a Ponche de Creme inspired Blondie! I love baking goodies, so why not pair the 2 together, and maybe you can even leave these out for Santa this year. I’m sure he will appreciate them over the typical chocolate chip cookies.

Before going to the recipe, I must first address the daunting question of what is a Blondie? A blondie is the non-chocolate version of a brownie and aspires to a more vanilla flavor. Just like a brownie, it can be fudgy or cakey; depending on your preference. I trialed 3 recipes before settling on this one because I was not getting exactly what I wanted to achieve when it came to the main flavours depicted in Ponche de Creme. I even tried it with chocolate chips, but the chocolate took over everything….lol. Instead I wanted to make sure the nutmeg shone through.

Yield: 16 squares. Recipe can be double or tripled.

Ingredients

For the Blondie:

1 cup flour plus 1 tablespoon

3/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup white rum- if you want it strong then you can use Puncheon Rum.

For the Glaze:

1/2 cup powdered sugar (icing sugar)

1 tsp milk

1 tsp rum

1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

If you have ponche de crème on hand, just add 2 teaspoons of this instead of the milk, rum and nutmeg.

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350 degF. Line an 8x8 pan with foil or parchment paper.

Make the Blondie: Melt the butter and allow to cool. Meanwhile, combine all the dry ingredients and set aside. Add the sugar to the butter and whisk until fully combined. Add the egg, vanilla and rum, and whisk until incorporated. Fold in the dry ingredients and pour into your prepared pan. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Make the glaze- Add the icing sugar, milk, rum and nutmeg to a small bowl and whisk until smooth.
Make sure the blondies are completely cooled before applying the glaze. Use a spoon and drizzle the glaze over the top of the blondies. Allow the glaze to dry, cut into squares and enjoy!