Vegan PB&J Blondies (Gluten-Free)

These Peanut Butter & Jelly Blondies are fudgy, creamy, and delicious! Made from only 9 healthy, vegan, & gluten-free ingredients for a perfect dessert.

Who knew I would ever want to eat something that resembled a classic lunchtime sandwich for dessert?! But hey, here we are…and I am 100% here for it. 

These Peanut Butter & Jelly Blondies are a total upgrade on the classic (kinda bland) blondie. They’re gooey, loaded with PB and swirled with homemade jam — need I say more? Oh yeah, and they happen to be Vegan & Gluten-Free.

INGREDIENTS FOR PB&J BLONDIES

You only need 9 wholesome ingredients to make this recipe – I’m willing to bet you have all of them in your pantry/fridge, too:

• Gluten-Free Flour: I used a combination of oat flour and brown rice flour for these blondies! Oat flour helps to bind everything together, while brown rice flour helps them have a nice crumb. If you don’t have brown rice flour, you can replace it with extra oat flour or a gluten free all-purpose flour blend.
• Peanut Butter: to but the P in PB&J! This deliciously nutty and creamy spread adds a buttery moisture to our blondies, and again, helps to bind everything together.
• Coconut Sugar: to add some subtle and caramel-y sweetness. Brown sugar or cane sugar will work as well!
• Non-Dairy Milk: to thin our batter out and add some creaminess,
• Vanilla Extract: for some floral sweetness,
• Fresh Berries: to make our homemade “jelly” to put on top of the bars 😉 I stuck with fresh strawberries for mine, but any combination of fresh or frozen berries will do. We’ll also sweeten our jam with a touch of coconut sugar and a squeeze of lemon juice for some acidity.

HOW TO MAKE PB&J BLONDIES

This recipe is yet again a win because guess what? These blondies are incredibly simple to make:

1. Make the “jelly” by blending the ingredients together, then simmer it on the stove until thickened.
2. Mix the peanut butter batter in a large bowl until smooth. Pour the batter into a lined 8×8″ pan, but set 1/2 cup of the batter aside for later.
3. Spread the jelly layer on top of the peanut butter with the spatula
4. Dollop the remainder of the peanut butter batter over the jelly layer, then use a toothpick to swirl everything together! This is the fun part 😉
5. Bake in the oven until set, then let cool completely, slice, and serve.

NOTE: IT’S IMPORTANT TO LET THE BARS COOL COMPLETELY BEFORE SLICING.

The jelly layer is naturally more “liquidy” than a traditional jelly, so it may not appear to be set in the center of the bars after baking. I know it’s hard to wait (believe me), but allowing the jelly layer to set will help the bars to form more of an even crumb. They may still appear to be slightly under-baked near the top of the jelly layer, but the peanut butter portion is cooked, I promise! That being said, these bars are definitely for the fudgy and gooey dessert lover, not the chewy corner brownie person….

These Peanut Butter & Jelly Blondies are the perfect anytime dessert. They’re satisfying, but not too sweet or rich. Plus they’re both kid and adult friendly! If you have little ones, I bet they would love swirling the jam and batter together.

If you’re looking for more sweet and peanut butter-y recipes, you’ll also love these Fudgy Peanut Butter Brownies, these One Bowl Peanut Butter Energy Bites, and this Baked Snickers Cheesecake!

Finally, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations 🙂

Vegan PB&J Blondies

Print Recipe

★★★★★

4.8 from 5 reviews

These Peanut Butter & Jelly Blondies are fudgy, creamy, and delicious! Made from only 9 healthy, vegan, & gluten-free ingredients for a perfect dessert.

• Author: Caitlin Shoemaker

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the Berry “Jelly” Layer:

• 2 cups (180 g) sliced strawberries*
• 2 tablespoons coconut sugar, plus more to taste
• Juice of 1/2 lemon

For the Peanut Butter Batter:

• 3/4 cup (75 g) oats, blended to make oat flour (or 3/4 cup pre-made oat flour)
• 3/4 cup (100 g) brown rice flour*
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt*
• 1 cup (235 ml) + 2 tablespoons non-dairy milk (homemade or store-bought)
• 3/4 cup (130g) coconut sugar
• 3/4 cup (200 g) natural, salted peanut butter
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Prep: preheat the oven to 350F and grease or line a 8×8″ baking dish with parchment paper.
2. Make the “Jelly”: add the berries, sugar, and lemon juice to a blender and blend until smooth. If your machine is having trouble blending, add 1-2 tablespoons of water to help assist – just know that if you do this, you will need to simmer the jelly down more. Pour the smooth mixture into a nonstick pan preheated to medium heat. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally with a spatula. Set aside to let cool slightly.
3. Make the PB Batter: add the oat flour, brown rice flour, baking powder, and salt to a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Form a well in the center of the bowl and pour in the milk, sugar, peanut butter, and vanilla extract. Use a spatula to mix the center of the bowl (wet ingredients) together first, then gradually fold in the dry flour mixture until you have a smooth, uniform batter. Set around 1/2 cup of the batter aside – this will be used to swirl the bars.
4. Assemble: Pour the peanut butter batter into the lined baking tin and use a spatula to smooth it out evenly. Then, pour the “jelly” layer over the peanut butter layer and do the same. Use the reserved batter to drop 1-tablespoon-sized dollops of batter sporadically throughout the tin, then use a toothpick or skewer to “swirl” the batter and jelly together.
5. Bake: bake in the middle rack of the oven for 30-35 minutes, until the dough portion looks set and the edges start to pull slightly away from the pan; the jelly layer may not look completely set in the middle. Let the blondies sit in the baking pan for 10-15 minutes, then carefully use the parchment paper to transfer the bars to a cooling rack and let cool completely. If you do not let the bars cool completely, their crumb structure will not form well.
6. Slice & Serve: use a serrated knife to cut the bars into 9 even squares; I recommend cleaning it off between each cut, as some of the jelly layer will stick to it. Serve as desired; leftovers will keep at room temperature for up to 3 days, or can be frozen for up to one month.

Notes

• Berries: I only used strawberries when making this recipe, but you can use any berry (or a combination of) that you’d like! You can also use frozen berries – just make sure to thaw them before blending. You may also need to simmer the jelly mixture for an additional 1-2 minutes due to extra liquid.
• Flour: if you do not have brown rice flour, replace it with equal parts oat flour or a gluten-free all-purpose blend
• Salt: if your peanut butter is unsalted, increase the salt in the batter to 1/2 of a teaspoon
• Other Substitutions: coconut sugar can be swapped for brown sugar or cane sugar. Peanut butter can also be replaced with any other nut or seed butter of your choosing!