Raspberry Brownies

Enjoy a classic flavor combination a new way with these easy chocolate raspberry brownies! Fudgy and rich with two types of chocolate in the base, they're bursting with raspberry flavor from concentrated pockets of jam to fresh berries throughout.

Brownies are one of my favorite desserts to get creative with. Once you have a base recipe down, it's pretty easy to mix and match flavors without worrying that your changes will result in a big fail.

My go-to base is this recipe for small batch brownies. Ultra fudgy with classic crackly tops, it fits the bill for my household of two as it's made in a loaf pan. The good news is that, if doubled, it fits perfectly into a 9-inch by 9-inch square pan for a standard yield recipe.

I went with the traditional yield in making these raspberry brownies. With a deep chocolate flavor (amplified by a special ingredient) and two raspberry ingredients, these will be a big hit with the chocolate raspberry lovers in your life.

Reasons to Love This Recipe

• Combining the batter ingredients in a specific order produces reliably fudgy (vs. cake-y) brownies every time.
• Double the raspberry, double the chocolate! Using jam and fresh raspberries provides a bold fruit flavor, with equal parts dark and semisweet chocolate acting as a rich, chocolate base.
• Brownies are simple to make as they don't use many dishes and are better off made by hand instead of with an electric mixer.

Recipe Ingredients

• Chocolate: Combining semisweet and dark chocolate provides a deeper richness to this raspberry brownie base. Since it's melted, bagged chocolate chips or chunks work, as do bars of chocolate that you chop up yourself.
• Espresso powder: This is the secret ingredient that works to enhance the chocolate flavor of a recipe without making it taste like coffee. It's kind of like the bay leaf of chocolate dessert baking.
• Raspberries: Blot the water from the berries after rinsing very well so excess moisture doesn't make its way into the recipe. If using frozen, do not thaw as they will be too wet.
• Raspberry jam: Whether you use raspberry jam or raspberry preserves, I highly recommend buying a seedless variety. This concentrated sweet raspberry flavor complements the fresh bursts of the berries very nicely.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Melt the chopped chocolate and butter together until smooth. You can do this in a heat-safe bowl in short spurts in the microwave, or you can set up a double boiler on the stove. **This is the step that sets the stage for fudgy raspberry brownies vs. cake-y ones, which often begin by creaming butter and sugar for an airier texture.**
2. Transfer the melted chocolate/butter to a mixing bowl, then whisk in the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Next add the flour, espresso powder, and salt.

3. By hand, whisk in the dry ingredients for about one minute, or until the batter has thickened up and begins to have a slight "shine" to it.
4. Cut up any extra-large raspberries into smaller pieces, then fold them in.

5. Transfer the batter into a parchment paper-lined 9-inch by 9-inch square pan, leveling off the top into an even layer with a spatula. Place teaspoon-sized dollops of jam evenly spread out over the surface, then swirl them into the batter.

6. Bake at 350°F (177°C) until the raspberry brownies have set up and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean (or with just a crumb or two clinging to it). Let them cool completely before slicing and storing.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

• This brownie batter will be very thick, so a little elbow grease is required when mixing. Still, do this by hand if you're able as an electric mixer can work in too much air. This can cause the brownies to rise while baking/fall while cooling, leading to a deflated, cracked surface.
• Try and swirl the raspberry jam evenly across the top surface of the brownies. This is easier to do by placing lots of smaller dollops vs. bigger ones.
• The reason for waiting until these raspberry brownies (and all brownies) have cooled before slicing is that they'd mush more easily and not slice cleanly if warm. You also do not want to store still-warm baked goods as the trapped condensation in the container can cause them to go bad quicker.
• Because of the fresh berries, I prefer to store these raspberry brownies in the refrigerator so they last longer rather than at room temperature. The rich and fudgy texture works quite nicely when served chilled, too.

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