RASPBERRY CREAM CHEESE BROWNIES

There is something really satisfying about making baked goods from scratch—especially those that come from prepackaged mixes at the grocery store, like brownies. It reminds me of the scene in the movie “Castaway” where Tom Hanks’ character finally succeeds in building himself a fire, and he shouts out majestically, “LOOK WHAT I HAVE CREATED!!!”
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I had never made from-scratch brownies before. When I saw this recipe, with the cream cheese filling sandwiched in the middle of two layers of brownie, I was intrigued. And the fact that there are no added chemicals (with the exception of what might be in the store-bought jam) made me happy, too. Not even bleach, because the recipe calls for unbleached AP flour.
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I thought it was a good sign when the brownie batter tasted delicious. I am writing this blog post before I have even tasted the end product…the brownies are baking as I type. But they smell delicious. I suppose I’ll delete the post if they don’t turn out :)
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RASPBERRY CREAM CHEESE BROWNIES
from the Summer 2011 Cook’s Illustrated “Entertaining” magazine:
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Makes 25 (small) brownies
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FILLING:
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
¼ cup sugar
1 large egg yolk
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
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BROWNIES:
2/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon table salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped (I used Ghiradelli baking squares)
½ cup raspberry jam, divided (I used Smucker’s Red Raspberry Preserves)
1 ¼ cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
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1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 8-inch square baking pan with foil, allowing excess to hang over edges. Grease foil.
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2. Process cream cheese, sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla in food processor until smooth. Note: I used a handmixer…didn’t feel like dirtying up the food processor.
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3. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl. Microwave butter and chocolate in a large bowl, stirring occasionally, until smooth, about 1 minute. Whisk in ¼ cup jam and let cool slightly.
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4. Add sugar, eggs, and vanilla to chocolate mixture, stirring until combined. Whisk in flour mixture until incorporated.
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5. Microwave remaining ¼ cup jam until warm—15 to 30 seconds.
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6. Scrape half of brownie batter into prepared pan. Spread into even layer. Dollop cream cheese filling over brownie batter and spread into even layer. Dollop jam over filling and using tip of knife, gently swirl jam through filling. Spread remaining brownie batter evenly over filling.
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7. Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out with a few dry crumbs attached, 50 to 60 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for at least 2 hours. Using foil overhang, lift brownies from pan and cut into 1 ½ inch squares. Serve.

Italian Vinaigrette

I bought some baby lettuce at the farmers market this weekend. What better occasion to make a homemade vinaigrette? At Christmas time, Santa placed a new vinaigrette holder from Williams-Sonoma in my stocking. It has a little whirly-gig that supposedly emulsifies the settled dressing. I still shook it. I'm less impressed with the fact that it has the whirly-gig and more impressed that the bottle has four different recipes printed right on it. Haaaaaaaaaaandy. This was my new bottle's debut.

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Now, the key to a good vinaigrette is really just one thing, in my opinion: good quality extra-virgin olive oil. Lucky for me I now have a subscription to "Cooks Illustrated." Lucky for me there are literally hundreds of products taste-and-quality tested by the people who run Cooks Illustrated. Lucky for you that I will share my learning with you for free. So, at Meijer, I purchased a big bottle of one of their "recommended" brands of olive oils: Colavita. Had I remembered the "highly recommended" winner-of-the-taste-test brand: Columela, I would have looked to see if they carry it.

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ANYWAY, back to the vinaigrette. It turned out LOVELY. And all the salad consisted of was baby lettuce & vinaigrette. In addition to flavor, this is what is so great about this recipe: I know exactly what is in it (as in NO preservatives or gloopy, gloppy, "stuff"); the recipe does not make an enormous amount that will eventually end up in the garbage; the ingredients are all items I typically have on hand. I thought the vinaigrette was excellent last night, and I thought it was even better this evening after the minced garlic had the chance to swim around in the oil for awhile.

Italian Vinaigrette
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1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/8 cup red wine vinegar

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 to 1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon dry italian herb blend (I used Penzey's of course)

1 teaspoon dijon mustard (optional...but I love this addition)

salt & pepper to taste