Strawberry and white chocolate blondies

Wonderfully fudgy (and dangerously addictive), these blondies are studded with white chocolate and swirled with a fresh strawberry compote – equally delicious with a cup of tea or served warm with ice cream.

MAKES 16 SQUARES PREP 25min, plus cooling COOK about 1hr FOR THE COMPOTE

• 225g strawberries, hulled

• 50g granulated sugar

FOR THE BLONDIES

• 175g unsalted butter, plus extra to grease

• 275g light brown soft sugar

• 2 large eggs, beaten

• 1tbsp vanilla extract

• 200g plain flour

• 1tsp baking powder

• 175g white chocolate chunks

1 Make the strawberry compote: chop 175g strawberries into 2cm pieces and put into a pan with the granulated sugar and 1½tbsp water. Bring to the boil, then simmer uncovered for 12-15min, stirring occasionally, until strawberries have a thick, jam-like consistency. Chop the remaining strawberries into 1cm pieces and stir into compote, then simmer for a further 2min. Set aside to cool slightly while you make the blondie.

2 Grease and line a 20.5cm square cake tin with baking parchment. Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4. Melt the butter in a medium pan, remove from heat and whisk in the brown sugar

(it won’t completely emulsify). Set aside for 10-15min, until cool. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla. Fold in the flour and baking powder until just combined, then mix in the chocolate chunks.

3 Spread the mix into the tin, spoon the compote over and use a skewer to marble it through. Bake for 35-40min, until the top is shiny and slightly cracked, and the blondie doesn’t wobble when you shake the tin. Cool in the tin before removing and cutting into squares.

TO STORE Store in an airtight container at cool room temperature for up to 3 days. PER SQUARE: CALS 280; FAT 13G;

SAT FAT 8G; CARBS 36G