September's guest star is raspberries, which was a bit tricky given that it's wild, wet spring outside here and fresh raspberries are a distant dream. But then I remembered an Ottolenghi recipe that I'd lovingly lingered over but never made. Could it be adapted to include chocolate?
The proof of the pudding, as they say, is in the eating. And, believe me, this little baby will knock your socks off. It's got nuts, chocolate, raspberry jam and rather a lot of unsalted New Zealand butter. But there are whole oats in there too, plus some milk. It's practically healthy!
Here's the recipe, taken from the first Ottolenghi cookbook and tampered with here and there. Wishing you a sweet, sweet Friday and a joyous weekend.
Raspberry Chocolate Nut Bars
A crunchy nut topping, a soft berry middle and a crisp, buttery bottom. Delish!
Base:
120g plain flour
1/3 tsp baking powder
60g caster sugar
pinch of salt
100g unsalted butter, diced
80g whole rolled oats (often called 'jumbo' oats)
Filling:
250g good quality raspberry jam
80g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
Topping:
70g flaked almonds
70g hazelnuts, roughly chopped
50g long thread coconut
100g unsalted butter
50g caster sugar
40ml milk
1 tsp vanilla essence (I actually used brandy - because that's the sort of woman I am, the sort that has plenty of brandy in the house but no vanilla)
Preheat the oven to 170C. Grease and line a 20cm square tin.
Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a large bowl, then rub in the butter with your fingertips until it forms crumbs. Stir in the oats to combine, then tip into the prepared tin. Don't press down too much, so the base stays light. Bake for 20 minutes or until light brown.
While the base is cooking, place the nuts and coconut in a large bowl. Put the butter, sugar, milk and vanilla into a small saucepan and heat gently, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Pour this mixture over the nuts and stir well.
When the base has had its 20 minute sojourn, remove it from the oven and spread with the jam - be gentle or the base will break up everywhere. Sprinkle on the chocolate chunks, then pack the nut mixture evenly over the top. Return to the oven for another 25-30 minutes, until it's golden brown.
Leave until cold to cut into bars. A little of this goes a long way...
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