Raspberry Chocolate Pocket Brownies with Balsamic Mascarpone

I don’t think you’re ready for this jelly.

Picture this: a world where the once-humble chocolate brownie is now soft and gooey, littered with tart raspberries and filled with big pockets of warm, melty chocolate, and accompanied by a soft, slightly tangy dollop of creamy mascarpone.

Got it?

I’m here to take you to that place. I say this in advance; you are welcome.

I received a fairly awesome chocolate brownie recipe from a friend for my bridal shower back in 2008. Regretfully I don’t know who passed this recipe onto me; my only clue is a scrawled note that says “Yum – very rich”. Over the years this has been my standby baked good – I kind of hated baking up until recently, but this was easy enough and rewarding enough that it was worth rolling up my sleeves and getting batter smeared all over my hands for. Then I started tweaking it here and there, and things got real. These days, chocolate brownies have become less of a baked good and more of a decadent dessert in our house.

When I was wondering which recipe I should share for the blog launch party, it was a no-brainer. I love these brownies to death, and I hope you do too!

Raspberry Chocolate Pocket Brownies with Balsamic Mascarpone

Ingredients:

Brownies
250g unsalted butter, melted
1.5 cups white sugar
2 tsp vanilla essence
4 eggs
1 cup flour
2/3 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
100g dark chocolate, broken into squares
1/2 – 2/3 cup frozen raspberries
Handful of fresh raspberries, to serve

Balsamic Mascarpone
250g mascarpone
2-3 tbs raspberry chocolate balsamic vinegar, to taste (mine is from here)

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a 25cm square baking tin with baking paper.
2. Mix the butter, sugar and vanilla essence until combined. Whisk in eggs until just combined.
3. Sift flour and cocoa into butter mixture. Add baking powder and salt. Fold until just combined. Add frozen raspberries, and again fold to combine. Be careful not to over-mix your batter.
4. Spread mixture into baking tin and scatter the chocolate evenly over the top.
5. Bake for 35-40 minutes, depending on your preferred done-ness. I prefer my brownies a little bit gooey, so I take them out of the oven when the edges are firm but the middle is still a bit soft. Cool in tin for 10 minutes, then remove and cut into squares. Serve warm with balsamic mascarpone and fresh raspberries.

Balsamic Mascarpone

Place mascarpone and raspberry chocolate balsamic vinegar in a medium bowl. Stir until combined.