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Chocolate Raspberry Cake

I haven’t been posting lately because it is the end of the school year (tomorrow is our last day!) and I have been trying to wrap things up at work so I can have a great summer full of cooking at the camp!

Last Friday, it was my turn to bring treats to work for the people that had birthdays in May and I chose to make these. I don’t remember if the recipe I tweaked came from Food and Wine or Cooking Pleasures magazine, however, the original recipe called for pistachios and fresh raspberries (which would also be good, but I didn’t have any). I also added espresso powder because I thought the chocolate flavor needed to be enhanced. These do not use any eggs and are quite fudgy and delicious.

Chocolate Almond Raspberry Bars Recipe

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cups sliced almonds
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup unsalted butter, cut up, softened
1 1/2 cups frozen raspberries (you could also use fresh)
2 oz. semi-sweet chocolate coarsely chopped
1/8 teaspoon vegetable oil

Preparation

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13×9 pan with cooking spray (or oil of your choice) or line the pan with foil or parchment and spray (if you care about being able to cut and get them out easily).

Toast the almonds for 5-10 minutes, until the are light golden brown.
In a large bowl, stir together flour, 1/3 cup toasted almonds, sugar, brown sugar, cocoa, 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder, and baking powder. With a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Reserve 1 1/4 cups of the mixture.

Press the remaining mixture into the pan. Arrange the frozen raspberries over the crust. Sprinkle with reserved 1 1/4 cups chocolate-flour mixture, then the remaining almonds. Press mixture down lightly.
Bake 20 -25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely.

Place chocolate and oil in a microwave safe dish. Microwave on high 30 – 50 seconds, stirring once. Drizzle chocolate over the cooled bars. Refrigerate until chocolate is set. Slice into 36 pieces. Store in the refrigerator.

Related : Raspberry
Related : Chocolate Raspberry Cake Recipe