This Friday, April 3rd, is Doris Day’s birthday!
She would be 98 years old.
My Doris Day Obsession!
As you may know, Doris is my very favorite star EVER. I’ve loved her since I was a little girl. Doris Day was the catalyst to my Classic Hollywood obsession, and my love for this amazing woman grows with each year!
You may also know that Andrew and I look forward to attending Doris’ Birthday Celebration in Carmel each year.
Doris Day 2020 Birthday Plans
Even with the passing of our beloved Doris last May, her legion of loyal fans, myself of course included, still couldn’t let a year go by without celebrating Doris, and an amazing week of birthday festivities in Los Angeles was planned by generous fans and The Doris Day Animal Foundation.
But with the current state of the world and the unquestionable importance of staying healthy in these difficult times, all the fun birthday events were understandably canceled.
Though of course all of us Doris fans are disappointed, this is without a doubt the right course of action.
But that doesn’t mean we all won’t be celebrating Doris this week in our own way!
How I'm Celebrating Doris: Doris Day Blondies
I’m celebrating Doris’ birthday this year with my Doris Day White Chocolate Lemon Blondies. Of course, my inspiration behind the development of this recipe was Doris herself!
These Doris Day White Chocolate Lemon Blondies are perfectly moist, fudgy, and lemony! They are reminiscent of the bright, sunshine-y presence that is Doris Day!
If ever there was a time that we all needed a little sunshine in our lives, it’s NOW.
And was there ever a greater ambassador of sunshine than Doris Day?
Doris Day Magic
Doris can brighten any day. She certainly brings a smile to my face whenever I hear her lovely voice, see her welcoming smile, or watch her buoyant and graceful stride in any one of her films.
So celebrate Doris with me this week! (I’ll have another tribute post to her on Friday, her birthday, so stay tuned!)
Celebrate Doris and Make These Blondies!
Let Doris lift your heart with On Moonlight Bay (1951), Calamity Jane (1953), Please Don’t Eat the Daisies (1960), The Thrill Of It All (1963), or The Glass Bottom Boat (1966), all particular favorite Doris films of mine! [aff. links]
And as you sit back and let Doris take you away with one of her films, maybe you’ll have one of my Doris Day White Chocolate Lemon Blondies to make Doris’ birthday week all the sweeter. 💛💗💛
A Few Things!
These white chocolate lemon blondies truly are blonde brownies, meaning they are moist and fudgy like a brownie…but they’re blonde, like Doris!
And that’s thanks to the white chocolate in the recipe, which acts the same way regular chocolate works in a brownie recipe. I really don’t find the white chocolate flavor here overly pronounced, so even if you aren’t a huge white chocolate fan, you’ll still love these blondies!
My Blondie Tips!
When you melt the butter and white chocolate together at the beginning of my recipe, you may find that they don’t immediately become one over the stovetop. That’s normal, all you have to do is take the butter/white chocolate mixture off the heat, and continue whisking until you get a smooth, creamy mixture, like in my picture above. Easy!
Also, you’ll notice that the recipe calls for 8 heaping Tbsps of flour. For reference, here’s what I call a heaping Tbsp for this recipe:
And if you’re tempted to just use ½ cup flour rather than measuring out 8 heaping Tbsps, see my note in the recipe card!
The White Chocolate and the Lemon Extract
If you don’t have white baking chocolate [aff. link] or lemon extract [aff. link], I’ve got my favorite brands and deals on Amazon pictured here.
Even when I’m making regular trips to the grocery store, I still buy my lemon extract and white baking chocolate on Amazon! These are both great deals for the quantity and quality you get.
My Favorite Ramekins For These Blondies
And one last thing! If you’re like me and can’t get enough cute little ramekins in fun colors, I love using these gorgeous Emile Henry ramekins for this recipe [aff. link].
I’ve also made these blondies with these adorable pink ramekins [aff. link] from my Audrey Hepburn Chocolate Cakelettes recipe, and both ramekin styles bake perfectly! You really can use whatever 7-8 oz ramekins you have on hand though! (See my recipe card and notes for ramekin size and bake times.)
Doris Day White Chocolate Lemon Blondies
Ingredients
For the wet ingredients:
- 1 cup butter
- 12 oz white baking chocolate
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 Tbsp lemon extract
- 4 Tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 Tbsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 eggs
For the dry ingredients
- 8 heaping Tbsps flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling
Instructions
Prepare the butter and white chocolate
- In a medium-sized saucepan, melt the butter and the white chocolate over medium heat.
- Once both the butter and white chocolate have melted, take the saucepan off the heat, and continue to whisk the butter and white chocolate together. Keep whisking until the butter and white chocolate fully incorporate into one smooth and creamy mixture. This could take a minute or two!
- One completely smooth and incorporated, let the mixture cool for 5 minutes.
Add the rest of the wet ingredients
- After the white chocolate/butter mixture has cooled for 5 minutes, add the sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, lemon extract, vanilla extract, and eggs to the saucepan. With a wire whisk, whisk until everything has incorporated into one smooth mixture.
Add the flour and salt
- Now add the flour and salt to the saucepan. (Make sure those Tbsps of flour are heaping, and use a Tbsp measuring spoon, not a measuring cup! See note below.)
- Whisk until the flour and salt have just combined into the rest of the mixture.
Pour the batter into the ramekins
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- Oil eight, seven to eight ounce ramekins very well (See my note about ramekins size below.) To make the ramekins easy to put in and take out of the oven, place them on a standard sized baking sheet. (That way you just have to slide the baking sheet in and out of the oven!)
- Now evenly distribute the blondie batter among the ramekins.
Bake the blondies
- Bake the blondies at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes, or until the top is firm, and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean. Don’t over bake!
Serve and think of Doris!
- Once the blondies have finished baking, sprinkle some turbinado sugar over the top of each blondie.
- Serve these white chocolate lemon blondies alone, and think of Doris with each bite!
This Post Has 6 Comments
You are totally right that we could all use some sunshine right now…both literally and figuratively. (It’s been rainy and grey here the past several days.) I see that we are both channeling lemon desserts this week…*virtual high five*! I love the Doris Day inspiration behind these blondies. It’s too bad that the celebrations had to get cancelled this year, but I know there will be more in future years. Everything is getting cancelled/closed, but ultimately it’s the right call…just sad since we’re cooped up here at home. (I get it, though. I’ve been preaching isolation for weeks now…it’s just getting old!) Happy (early) birthday to Doris! I think she would’ve been quite pleased with this delicious looking lemon blondies. 🙂 (Oh, and great tip on the white chocolate on Amazon – that is cheaper!)
Thanks David! Oh I so relate, we are missing the everyday adventures we used to take for granted! Lemon desserts are certainly a great way to bring some sunshine to these days at home, great minds think alike! 😃
Happy birthday, Doris Day! These blondies look and sound perfectly scrumptious, Shannon! I had no idea that there was a Doris Day birthday celebration in Carmel each year, that’s so sweet. I like that you are keeping up the tradition with these blondies – you’re really a true fan! Hope you’re well x
Thank you Katerina! Doris was such a special lady. ❤️ I look forward to her birthday celebration each year!
Wow, you really are a Doris Day fan! That’s cool. I had no idea that there were such massive celebrations honoring her. I’ve never had a blondie before, let alone a lemon one. Lemon is one of my favorite flavors, so this sounds really good to me.
Oh you will absolutely love blondies! Such a delicious treat, definitely a favorite of mine. Haha yes, I’m a huge fan of Doris! Had to do something special to celebrate her birthday this year. 💛😃❤️