*National Almond Day may have been two days ago but there’s still time to enter to win an almond prize pack.*

I get asked a lot whether almond flour can be used in a recipe in place of almond meal and vice versa. I’ve never found much of a difference when baking with either one. Almond flour is lighter and finer than almond meal and generally better for light and airy baked goods.

I used a very fine almond flour for these and couldn’t believe how much they melted in your mouth for something that’s grain-free. The almond butter and almond flour together make a great flavor that’s more than your average blondie has.

These are definitely on the cakier side of blondies. I would love to figure out how to make them more fudgy, but still had no complaints with this recipe. Next time I would consider making a buttercream frosting to put on top of them.

White Chocolate Almond Blondies

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almond flour or almond meal
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup natural almond butter
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
2. In a large bowl, mix together the almond flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.
3. Beat in the eggs and almond butter until fully incorporated.
4. Slowly mix in the melted butter and vanilla extract until evenly mixed.
5. Pour the batter into a greased 8 x 8 baking pan.
6. Sprinkle the white chocolate chips over the batter and gently press them in.
7. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the center of the blondies has set.
8. Let them cool before cutting.

There are few things better than fudge or candy, except maybe fudge that tastes like candy.

Coconut tends to be one of those touchy flavors; people either love it or hate it. Alone I think it’s pretty good—nothing special. Combine it with chocolate and sugar, though, and you’ve got a clear winner. This fudge has a standard chocolate base but with a layer of coconut-white chocolate fudge on top, topped with an almond. If you omit the almonds it’ll taste just like a Mounds bar.

The best part about this dessert? It can all be made in the microwave so you can enjoy it any time. OK, maybe that’s not such great news…

Almond Joy Fudge

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 0 minutes

Ingredients(Makes 16 servings):

• 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons semi-sweet or bitter-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons coconut milk
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup shredded coconut, sweetened or unsweetened
• 16 almonds

Method:

1. Melt the chocolate chips in a microwave or over the stove.
2. Mix into the melted chocolate 2 Tablespoons of butter, 3 Tablespoons of coconut milk, and 1/4 cup of sifted powdered sugar until the chocolate is smooth.
3. Pour the fudge into the bottom of a non-stick 6×6 pan. Put the pan in a refrigerator temporarily to cool the chocolate.
4. Melt the white chocolate using the same method, keeping an eye on it making sure that it doesn’t burn.
5. Mix in the remaining butter, coconut milk, powdered sugar, and coconut until smooth.
6. Take the pan out of the refrigerator and spread the coconut layer on evenly(It won’t be runny but shouldn’t be too solid to spread either).
7. Place each almond about an inch apart in a 4×4 square pattern.
8. Refrigerate the fudge for 20-30 minutes until it’s solid. Cut into 16 squares with an almond at the center of every square and serve cold.

By itself the top layer tastes too much of white chocolate(I wasn’t aware that was even possible) to be like the coconut center of a Mounds Bar. But eaten together the chocolate and coconut fudge taste eerily similar to the candy joy. You might want to use an even larger pan such as 8×8 for flat rectangular pieces of fudge.

And as long as we’re on the topic of coconut and chocolate, recently I updated the recipe page for Homemade Mounds Bars with better pictures and easier to read steps. It’s one of the most pinned dessert recipes I have so I can’t be the only one who thinks they’re amazing.

I usually don’t like to make the same recipe too often; the flavors get old fast with me. So making the same brownie recipe twice in one month is unheard of for me.

But before I knew it I was craving something chocolaty and nutty. These brownies instantly popped into my mind. I only had 1/4 cup of Justin’s chocolate hazelnut butter left so I improvised the other half with Justin’s chocolate almond butter. The result was a fun mix of nutty flavor.

I ended up adding too much liquid without measuring(see, measuring is important!) and they came out more cakey than I usually like. But they were still satisfyingly rich and practically melted in my mouth.

Try them with a glass of chocolate almond milk and you will never look back.