raspberry

Desserts

Raspberry Brownies

Claudia's Cookbook - Raspberry Brownies cover

I’ve been meaning to blog these decadent brownies for a couple years now. Basically, ever since a bunch of us went out to my friends cabin and we devoured an entire pan in 2 hours. Yeah, they’re that good.  They’re also incredibly simple and quick to make, which is perfect for my life these days.

One of the reasons I love the ladies on my ice hockey team is that they allow me to experiment on them with recipes. I brought a pan of these brownies to our game today and I was reassured they were blog worthy. They are rich, fudgy chocolate brownies with a tart layer of raspberry jam. Not to mention the sweet glaze on top. This recipe makes a lot of brownies (approximately 32 small squares). Because they are so rich, you can easily cut them into smaller pieces.

You can also use your homemade raspberry jam, or your favourite store bought brand. You really cannot go wrong. I highly recommend you make these for your next BBQ or picnic. They are delicious!

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Desserts

Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins

Claudia's Cookbook - Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins 14I don’t think there is anything worse than the summer cold. I am suffering from a nasty one right now. Sore throat, congestion and fatigue. It’s a good thing the weather here has been rainy or else I would seriously be feeling ripped off. We only experience super warm weather here in Winnipeg approximately 3-4 months out of the year. The rest of the year the weather fluctuates between mediocre and freezing cold. You may recall that even when I tried to escape the freezing cold this past winter and escaped to Arizona to visit Claudia, I was hit by a nasty flu bug and was bedridden for the entire vacation. I guess I’m simply not meant to bask the the glorious sun while being poolside and healthy.

Speaking of Claudia, she’s back in town after a few weeks in Saskatchewan. Of course, she brought me back a plethora of freshly-picked berries – Strawberries and Saskatoon Berries to be exact (Saskatoon Berry recipe coming soon!). Since I have inherited my body weight in berries, I decided to get rid of the current ones in my fridge. Enter these delicious Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins. I absolutely love them. LOVE THEM. They are delicious! The perfect balance of juicy tart raspberries combined with the sweet/bitter dark chocolate and cinnamon baked goodness. They are a hit here in my house. The other bonus about this recipe is that you don’t need an electric mixer. It is highly recommended that you mix all the ingredients by hand to prevent over-mixing and, in turn, dry muffins.

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Side Dish

Raspberry Jam

I had the opportunity to spend some time at our family house in Saskatchewan this past long weekend. Since Claudia is newly retired, she has been out there for almost a month and has left me fending for myself when it comes to blog recipes. When she greeted me at the door with a pail of freshly picked raspberries I knew we could easily make up for lost blog time.

Although I prefer Claudia’s Strawberry Freezer Jam, I still have a craving every now and then for raspberry jam. Again, this recipe is from the Certo box! Besides being raspberry, the main difference is that this jam is cooked. But don’t let that intimidate you. It’s actually very easy. Plus, the great thing about cooked jam is that it can be stored up to a year on the shelf unopened.

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Desserts

Raspberry Lemon Meringue Cake

Although my love of baking started at home with Claudia at a very young age, it was reinforced when Food Network Canada was part of our cable TV package. I was in university and still living with my parents when I discovered how wonderful the channel is. I remember watching Rachael Ray with Claudia and us both loving the food she would make and her energetic charm. When Rachael wasn’t on, we would turn the channel and eagerly watch the Queen – Martha Stewart. To this day, I love Martha. She defines everything that is classic and elegant in food and home.

I subscribe to Rachael Ray’s e-newsletter. This recipe that we are featuring in this post is adapted from one that Rachael featured a few weeks ago. I didn’t really like the idea of using jarred lemon curd, so I decided to make my own. With a little help from Martha of course. This cake is delightful. It’s full of bright lemon flavour, with a hint of sweetness from the raspberries. The cake is dense yet soft.

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