Fudgy raspberry brownies

In Veganomicon there's a recipe for "Fudgy wudgy blueberry brownies" that has intrigued me for awhile. Blueberries and chocolate? Why? Why not? Well, I decide to make these for dessert last night, kind of at the last minute, and our local grocery store didn't have any fruit-sweetened blueberry jam- only some with high fructose corn syrup. So, I opted for Isa's raspberry alternative instead. I picked up some fresh raspberries and a jar of fruit-sweetened raspberry jam and then started making this version of the recipe. They are wonderful and perfect with raspberries but I'm looking forward to trying them with blueberries. The brownies come out chewy and fudgy in the middle and crisp on the edges- in my opinion, how a perfect brownie should be. Here's my take on the recipe:

Michael, playing Angry Birds while he waits.

Ingredients:

2/3 cup plus 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

10 ounces raspberry spreadable fruit

1/4 cup almond milk

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup canola oil

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup fresh raspberries

1. Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking pan.

2. Melt the 2/3 cup chocolate chips, reserving the 1/2 cup as whole chips. You can do this in a double broiler on the stove or in the microwave. I chose the micro because it's pretty easy. Just nuke it for about a minute and stir until the chips are melted. Heat and again if they're still not melted.

3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the raspberry spreadable fruit, almond milk, sugar, canola oil and extracts. Mix with a whisk until no large clumps of the spreadable fruit remain- it might take a few minutes.

4. Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir until well mixed- use a fork because the batter gets pretty thick and can clump up the whisk. Mix in the melted chocolate.

5. Fold in the remaining chocolate chips and the fresh raspberries. Spread the batter in the baking pan (don't worry if it doesn't come to the very corners of the pan because the batter will spread while baking and it will all work out).

6. Bake for 45 minutes. You can't really do a toothpick test here because the chocolate chips will make the toothpick look wet and the top will appear soft and crinkly and not done when, we promise you, it is done.

7. Remove from the oven and let cool. Slice into sixteen squares (or whatever size you want). If you want to serve it warm wait about 30 minutes, so it is still warm but not hot.