raspberry cheesecake brownies

I used to be a frozen raspberry snob, I thought they were only good for smoothie making. Then after a customer asked for raspberry brownies in January I stood in the fresh food section of my local supermarket and  the idea of using the bright red tasteless berries from a far off land seemed a crazier option than heading to the freezer section.

Frozen berries taste amazing. They don’t look quite so good. Once they defrost they can be a little mooshie and wet which can be a disadvantage in a cake so I mixed them with a cheesecake mixture. When they are very frozen raspberries can be broken into tiny little nuggets by pressing them between your thumb and forefinger. As soon as they are slightly defrosted they are more likely to implode so be quick and squash them as soon as you take them out the freezer. Then when you stir them into the cheesecake mixture it stays mostly white rather than turning pink. I think this makes the brownies look prettier.

The cheesecake mixture is mixed with the little flavour powerhouse nuggets then piped onto the brownie mixture and artfully dragged to make a pretty pattern, then studded with berries and baked to perfection.

Ingredients

Brownies

400 grams 55% cocoa solids chocolate

350 grams butter

550 grams caster sugar

6 large eggs

160 grams plain flour

80 grams cocoa powder

Cheesecake mixture

300 grams cream cheese

100 grams caster sugar

1 egg yolk

50 grams plain flour

40 frozen raspberries (28 whole and 12 crushed)

Method

Preheat your oven to 170 degrees centigrade.

Line a 9 by 13 inch rectangular baking tin with greaseproof paper.

Melt the chocolate and butter together in a bowl over a pan of simmering water.

While the chocolate is melting mix the caster sugar and eggs until pale and obviously looks as though it has increased in volume. Add the melted chocolate mixture, the flour and cocoa and mix really well until it is a uniform colour. Pour it immediately into the lined tin.

Tip the cream cheese into a bowl, add the caster sugar, egg yolk and plain flour and mix until there are no lumps or clumps of flour.

Take the raspberries out the freezer and crush twelve of them into little nuggets and then immediately stir them really gently through the cream cheese mixture. I use a piping bag to pipe lines of cream cheese mixture across the top of the brownie mixture but if you don’t have a piping bag just spoon dollops on in any way that takes your fancy and then use a knife to drag the cream cheese into a pretty pattern. Stud the brownies with the whole raspberries and then place in the oven and bake for forty five minutes.

Allow the brownies to cool completely before slicing. I usually leave them overnight so they are perfectly set and easy to cut.