When I came up with the recipe for my version of the best chocolate chip cookies, my goal was to have a recipe that can easily be tweaked to modify it. This blueberry oatmeal cookies recipe is just one of many creative ways you can adapt that recipe with chunks of white chocolate and fresh or frozen blueberries.

Baking cookies in ring moulds or a muffin pan is a great way to stop cookie dough from spreading without making any other changes to your recipe, like in this thick oatmeal cookie recipe. For these cookies, I wanted a recipe that didn't require a ring mould to stay thick when the dough bakes in the oven.

If you want to bake cookies that are thicker, without having to use a muffin pan or ring moulds, the simplest solution is to add more flour to the cookie dough, which yields a thicker dough that doesn't spread.

The higher the proportion of flour you have in your recipe, relative to the butter, sugar, and eggs, the less the cookies will spread.

These cookies are a variation on the classic chocolate chip cookie recipe, adding oats and replacing the dark chocolate with white chocolate, while also incorporating blueberries into the cookie dough. Make sure to take the time to properly measure your ingredients before mixing the dough: a little extra butter or a little more oats may drastically change the texture, resulting in thinner or dryer cookies if you aren't careful. The French baking term for this is called mise-en-place.

What You Need To Make Oatmeal Blueberry Cookies

• butter—I bake with unsalted butter. If using salted butter, you may want to adjust the amount of salt you add to the cookie dough
• sugar—I baked these cookies with a combination of white and brown sugar. Both work, and you can replace one with the other. Brown sugar adds more flavour than white sugar
• eggs—I bake with large eggs. If you use smaller or larger eggs, the texture of the cookies may end up different
• flour—I bake with bleached all-purpose flour, but unbleached flours should work here
• oats—use large flake oats, also called rolled oats or old-fashioned oats. These are not to be confused with minute oats or instant oats, which have a finer texture, or with steel cut oats, which are more coarse and crunchy
• blueberries—use wild blueberries, which are smaller in size. You can use fresh or frozen. If using fresh, you will freeze them before incorporating them into the cookie dough to avoid smushing the berries as you stir them in
• white chocolate—you can use white chocolate chips or chopped white chocolate. Personally, I prefer chopped white chocolate because the flavour is better. I also enjoy cream cheese chips, which have a really nice flavour that pairs well with blueberries
• salt—I bake with Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount to avoid making the cookies too salty
• leavening—this oatmeal cookie recipe calls for baking soda, not baking powder. Read about the difference between baking powder and baking soda if you aren't sure.

Please see the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.

How To Make Oatmeal Cookies With Blueberries

Step 1—Start by combining the butter and sugars in your stand mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment (image 1), mixing them together until creamy and light. Then, add the egg, maple syrup, and vanilla (image 2), whipping these ingredients together really well until light and creamy. Meanwhile, whisk the dry ingredients separately in a small bowl (image 3) before adding them to the mixer bowl (image 4).

Step 2—Add the chopped white chocolate or white chocolate chips first (image 5) and stir them in with the mixer before folding in the frozen blueberries by hand using a big spatula (image 6)

Step 3—Portion out the cookie dough using a ¾-ounce scoop before baking them (image 8), eight cookies at a time on a parchment paper-lined half sheet pan (image 9). Bake the cookies until the edges are set and golden brown (image 10).

Tip: Let the cookies cool completely before moving them as the berries make them especially delicate. Use a mini offset spatula to lift them off the parchment paper.

I like to store these blueberry oatmeal cookies in an open container in a cool, dry place. This way, they don't become overly soft or moist from the fresh berries. A closed container will lead to soft cookies that will perish more quickly!

Top Tip

When you want to add berries to cake batters and doughs, especially when they are very thick, it can be helpful to freeze the berries so that, when you mix them in, they don't burst open, adding too much water to your mixture. This is a trick I learned for the honey blueberry muffins, and it works well, even in the dough for these blueberry white chocolate cookies!

Other Amazing Oatmeal Cookies

If blueberries aren't your thing, you can always try these other oatmeal cookie recipes:

• thick chewy oatmeal cookies with chunks of milk chocolate and peanuts. Other options if you are big on oatmeal
• plain thick oatmeal cookies baked in a muffin pan so that they all have a round, uniform shape and to limit the spread of the cookie dough as they bake
• the best crunchy oatmeal raisin cookies, which are made with Sultana raisins and cinnamon—there's also soft and chewy oatmeal raisin cookies if you prefer!
• apple oatmeal cookies—the perfect cookie for fall that you can make with dried apple or chopped fresh apple!

If you tried this recipe for the best blueberry oatmeal cookies (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

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Blueberry Oatmeal Cookies with White Chocolate and Rosemary

These blueberry oatmeal cookies with white chocolate and rosemary are as easy to make as a regular chocolate chip cookie. They are the perfect summer cookie made with frozen blueberries (or fresh local berries that were frozen prior to mixing).

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 12 minutes minutes

Total Time 32 minutes minutes

Servings 30 cookies

Calories 114kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• 5-quart KitchenAid Artisan mixer
• OXO balloon whisk
• GIR spatula
• Sheet pan

Ingredients

• 150 grams fresh blueberries preferably wild blueberries which are smaller and sweeter
• 188 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 95 grams rolled oats (or large flake oats) also called old fashioned oats
• 2.5 mL baking soda
• 2.5 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
• 10 mL finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 115 grams unsalted butter softened
• 100 grams granulated sugar
• 100 grams light brown sugar
• 1 large egg(s)
• 5 mL pure vanilla extract
• 45 mL pure maple syrup
• 90 grams white chocolate or white chocolate chips

Metric - US

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C). Line a couple of sheet pans with parchment paper.
• Place the blueberries on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet and freeze while you make the cookie dough.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking soda, salt, and fresh rosemary. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter with the two sugars until they are well mixed with a wooden spoon (or in the mixer if you prefer).
• In a small cup, whisk together the egg, vanilla, and maple syrup.
• Drop this mixture into the bowl with the creamed butter, a little at a time, stirring well with each addition.
• When the egg mixture has been incorporated, pour the dry ingredients into the bowl. Stir to combine.
• Dump in the white chocolate chunks and the frozen blueberries, folding them in carefully.
• Scoop heaped tablespoons of the cookie dough onto a big parchment-lined sheet. Chill the cookies for 15 minutes.
• Bake the cookies for 12 to 16 minutes in the oven or until the edges are beginning to brown. Note the baking time is entirely dependent on your oven and how cold the cookie dough is.
• Let cool before transferring to a rack. I stored these on the wire rack, uncovered, overnight, so that the cookies dried out a little. The next day you will have perfectly chewy blueberry cookies, whereas fresh from the oven, they were a little moist and cakey.

Notes

• This recipe calls for Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty!
• Please note that I bake with uncoated aluminum sheet pans that are light in colour. If you are baking this recipe with darker bakeware, you may have to drop the oven temperature to 325 °F (165 °C) to prevent your baked goods from browning too quickly.
• For the chocolate, I prefer to use chopped white chocolate because it tastes better than white chocolate chips. You can also use cream cheese chips, which I find pair really well with berries.
• For the berries, use wild blueberries, fresh or frozen. If using fresh, freeze them on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan.

Nutrition

Calories: 114kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 62mg | Potassium: 43mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 116IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 16mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Blueberry Oatmeal Cookies with White Chocolate appeared first on The Bake School.

Upside-down cakes are traditionally made with rings of canned pineapple and pink maraschino cherries to add a pop of colour and sweetness to the retro, classic fruit dessert. That makes it particularly easy to bake this type of cake year-round because you can always find canned pineapple at the grocery stores, and maraschino cherries, too, regardless of the season.

The fruit is baked on the bottom of the cake pan, underneath the cake batter. Once baked, the cake is flipped onto a serving plate to reveal the fruit layer that was hidden under the cake. This is how this dessert gets its name.

Upside-down cakes are known for being very decorative because you can take time to arrange the fruit in a pattern which bakes into the cake, anchoring the fruit in place.

The upside-down cake recipe is a perfect example of a classic recipe that you can tweak to suit the seasons with the fresh local fruit at the market. You can imagine using summer berries mid-summer, or sliced peaches or nectarines in the late summer months. And in the spring and early summer, replacing the canned pineapple with flavourful stalks of rhubarb is ideal!

What You Need To Make An Upside-Down Cake With Rhubarb

The vanilla cake batter is a variation on a pound cake recipe, also called a quatre-quarts (which is the French baking term for pound cake). The pound cake is made with roughly equal weights of flour, butter, sugar, and eggs.

The original rhubarb upside-down cake recipe first appeared in the New York Times, and I started baking this rhubarb raspberry version in 2011. I've since converted it to metric weights and done a little tweaking based on my experience. Here's what you need to make my version:

• butter—use unsalted butter or cut back on the salt if you are using salted
• sugar—we are using white sugar in the cake batter so that the vanilla flavour shines and brown sugar in the quick caramel sauce for flavour
• flour—instead of using cake flour, we are using a combination of all-purpose flour plus ground almonds to reduce the gluten and create a moist, tender cake
• leavening—the cake layer is made with baking powder not baking soda. Read about baking soda versus baking powder if you are unsure the difference.
• salt—I always bake with Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using table salt, add half the amount to avoid making the cake too salty
• fruit—I used a combination of rhubarb and raspberries to create a more vibrant pink fruit layer that is bright in colour and flavour and that can stand up against the sweet vanilla sour cream cake layer
• cornstarch—there's a little cornstarch added to the fruit to help the juices gel so that the fruit topping is not so liquid because both rhubarb and raspberries have a lot of water in them
• sour cream—always use full-fat sour cream if you can for the best cake texture
• eggs—I bake with large eggs. Using smaller or larger eggs may affect the texture of the cake

Please see the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions And Variations

How To Make The Best Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake

Step 1—Combine the sugar and cornstarch first (image 1) and mix it really well with a whisk to eliminate any clumps of cornstarch (image 2) before adding in your fruit (image 3). Let the fruit sit to macerate and draw out some of the juices.

Step 2—Combine the butter and brown sugar (image 4) in a small saucepan and heat them until bubbly and boiling (image 5) before transferring to your cake pan (image 6).

Note: you can either use a 9-inch springform pan that is buttered and lined with parchment or you can use a 9-inch round cake pan with 3-inch straight sides

Step 3—Whip the butter and sugar for several minutes until really light and fluffy (image 7) before adding the eggs, one at a time, and the vanilla (image 8). Whip the mixture really well to incorporate air (image 9).

Step 4—In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, ground almonds, leavening, and salt (image 10), then add one third of it to the mixer at a time (image 11), alternating with the sour cream, half at a time (image 12). You will end up with a thick, fluffy cake batter (image 13).

Step 5—Arrange the macerated fruit over the caramel layer in a decorative pattern in your springform (image 14). Dollop the batter over top and spread it from edge to edge with a mini offset spatula (image 15). Bake the cake until the top is an even, deep golden-brown and a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean (image 16).

How To Flip An Upside-Down Cake

You can't cool the cake completely in the springform because we need to be able to unmould it: otherwise, the cake will adhere to the sides of the pan, and the fruit syrup will set and stick to the parchment if the cake gets too cold.

For this reason, you can only cool the cake briefly in the pan, just long enough to be able to handle it. Fifteen to thirty minutes is all you need to wait before flipping it onto a serving plate:

• Run a knife around the edges between the cake and the pan to ensure the cake isn't stuck to the edges
• Place a large plate over the pan
• Place your left palm flat under the cake pan, and place your right palm flat on top of the plate to hold them together (or vice-versa)
• Flip swiftly, maintaining the pressure of your palms on the plate and the pan. Don't hesitate. Just do it!
• Set the plate down on your counter
• Lift the pan upwards slowly with both hands, gently, to release it (or unlock the buckle of the springform to release the sides, then carefully release the springform base and parchment off the fruit layer)
• If any fruit sticks to the parchment, don't panic! Just transfer them back where they belong!

With upside-down cakes, it's important to take the time to melt the sugar for the fruit layer, which helps reduce sugar crystallization when the cake is baked. The thing to note is that your brown sugar quick caramel may crystallize in the pan while you prepare the rest of the cake. If this happens, don't panic. The cake takes so long to bake, and with the fruit juices, the caramel will dissolve because both the rhubarb and the raspberries contain a lot of water.

On the other hand, for a pineapple upside-down cake, you may have to take extra steps to prevent crystallization because the fruit isn't as juicy. A squeeze of lemon juice added to the brown sugar mixture when it's on the stove can help, as can a spoonful of honey, both of which help prevent crystallization of sugar syrups.

Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake Baking FAQs

Other Rhubarb Recipes

Rhubarb is such an interesting ingredient because it is so sour. If you've got some, here are some more great rhubarb recipes to bake this spring:

If you tried this recipe for the best rhubarb upside-down cake with raspberries (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

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Rhubarb Raspberry Upside-down Cake

This moist rhubarb raspberry upside-down cake is made with ground almonds to lighten the cake layer and raspberries to add colour to the fruit layer.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 45 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 10 minutes minutes

Servings 12

Calories 452kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• OXO balloon whisk
• 9-in springform
• Braun mixer
• GIR spatula

Ingredients

For the quick caramel sauce

• 58 grams unsalted butter
• 100 grams light brown sugar

For the fruit layer

• 450 grams fresh rhubarb cut into pieces to help them fit the springform from about ½ to 4 inches
• 170 grams fresh raspberries or frozen
• 100 grams granulated sugar
• 10 mL cornstarch

For the cake layer

• 190 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 50 grams ground almonds
• 6.25 mL baking powder
• 0.625 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
• 230 grams unsalted butter room temperature
• 250 grams granulated sugar
• 5 mL pure vanilla extract
• 4 large egg(s) room temperature
• 80 mL sour cream (14% fat) or full-fat Greek yogurt

Metric - US

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 325°F (165 °C).
• Prepare a 9-inch springform pan by lining the bottom with parchment (I basically cut a large square of paper, place it on the base, then clip the sides over so that the paper runs right through the springform). Butter the paper and the sides of the springform pan. Wrap the outside of the pan with 2 large sheets of aluminum foil (in case your springform is as leaky as mine is). Set aside.

Make the quick caramel sauce

• In a small saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar until it gets bubbly. Let it bubble for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Pull the pan off the heat and pour the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Smooth it out so that it forms an even layer. Set aside.

Prepare the fruit

• In a medium bowl, combine the fruit with the granulated sugar and cornstarch. Mix it carefully to not damage the raspberries too much, and let it sit. Stir the fruit every few minutes to evenly distribute the starch and sugar.

Make the cake batter

• Whisk together the flour, ground almonds, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set them aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and the granulated sugar.
• Add the vanilla, and then the eggs, one at a time, beating well, and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Don’t worry if the batter looks curdled at this point.
• Alternately, add the dry ingredients (one-third at a time) and the sour cream (half at a time), beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Be sure to scrape down the sides and the bottom of the bowl occasionally.

Assemble the upside-down cake and bake

• Arrange the fruits evenly on top of the sugar layer (either decoratively or just neatly arrange them to fit snuggly). Pour the juices over the fruit.
• Dollop the cake batter carefully over the fruit being sure to smooth the top without disturbing the fruit layer. Bang the pan on the counter so as to remove any air pockets (you could also swirl a knife through carefully to remove any air pockets, just be sure to avoid the fruits at the bottom).
• Bake for 1 hour 40 minutes to 1 hour 50 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Because the cake is tall, it takes a long time to bake the middle so make sure you bake it for long enough!
• Let the cake cool for 15 minutes in the pan, then place your serving plate over top, and flip it very carefully because the fruit juices are boiling hot! Set the plate on a wire rack to cool completely. Do not let the cake cool in the pan because the fruits and juices will stick to the bottom, and you’ll have a hard time getting it out after.

Notes

• You can either use a 9-inch springform pan that is buttered and lined with parchment or you can use a 9-inch round cake pan with 3-inch straight sides
• Substitutions and variations:
  • This recipe calls for Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty!
  • Yogurt—If you don't have sour cream, a baking substitution you can try is to replace it with the same volume of full-fat Greek yogurt (around 10 % fat if possible). Low-fat works too, but reducing the fat may lead to a drier cake or affect the texture.
  • Strawberries—I love to combine raspberries with rhubarb, but if you prefer, strawberries will work too. Try to stick to the total weight of fruit for your rhubarb and strawberries. Otherwise, you may run into trouble getting the cake properly baked.
  • Plain rhubarb—I have baked this recipe without the raspberries with 1 pound (454 grams) of fresh rhubarb, and it worked perfectly. The fruit layer was a bit more beige and lacked the vibrancy of the pink raspberries, but the flavour was still great!
  • Pistachio or hazelnut—you can replace the ground almonds with ground pistachios or hazelnuts. For a nut-free version, try ground pumpkin seeds (like in this moist rhubarb cake made with pumpkin seeds!) or even sunflower seeds.
  • Cake flour—you can replace the weight of nuts plus all-purpose flour with the same weight of cake flour, as in the original recipe. Cake flour is a softer, finer flour that has more starch and less protein than all-purpose. 

Nutrition

Calories: 452kcal | Carbohydrates: 55g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 110mg | Sodium: 54mg | Potassium: 244mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 39g | Vitamin A: 763IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 98mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Rhubarb Raspberry Upside-Down Cake appeared first on The Bake School.

The French sometimes call this tart a "tarte jardinière" because it is garnished with fruit and berries from the garden. Typically, they are made with a sweet tart crust and crème pâtissière (pastry cream) filling. Pastry cream thickened with cornstarch doesn't need any gelatin to set properly, so this fruit tart recipe does not have gelatin.

Fruit Tart Components

The classic fruit tart you see in pastry shops is usually a custard tart made up of three components:

1. crust or tart shell, traditionally made from a pâte sucrée or sweet shortcrust pastry, which is basically like a sweet cookie crust.
2. custard filling, usually vanilla pastry cream (French baking term for pastry cream is crème pâtissière), though it could also be a mousseline filling, combining pastry cream with more butter (the same filling that is in the classic framboisier cake)
3. fruits, generally lots of berries, but you'll also see other fruits like segments of citrus fruit, grapes, kiwis, etc.
4. glaze, which is optional, but if your fruit isn't as fresh and sweet as you were hoping, sometimes a transparent glaze (you could even use honey or maple syrup) will add shine to the fruit garnish and also some sweetness. Powdered sugar is an alternative to the glaze.

Ingredients

There are three major components to plan for when you are making a fruit tart, and each requires its own set of ingredients.

• butter, specifically unsalted butter, though salted would also work here. You can either skip the salt in the pastry recipe if you use salted, or lean into the salt because a little extra salt in the crust will bring out the flavours
• sugar—you will need both granulated and icing sugar. The granulated sugar is for the pastry cream while the icing sugar is in the crust, leading to a more tender cookie crust
• ground almonds, which also make the dough more tender and less hard
• eggs—egg yolks for the pastry cream to help thicken and enrich it ,and for the crust too to help bind it together
• milk—for a creamier custard filling, use whole milk with 3.25 % or 2 % fat milk. I don't recommend using skim milk here because the filling needs a little fat to make it rich and creamy.
• flour and cornstarch to hold the tart dough together and give it structure, just like a rolled sugar cookie dough and to thicken the pastry cream so that it is firmer when chilled.
• vanilla—you can use vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste, adding either of these to the pastry cream after it has cooked, or you can use a vanilla bean, added to the milk before you heat it up to temper the eggs
• fruit garnish—I like to garnish fruit tarts with a variety of fruit, picking what's in season, but also what fruits would look nice together on a tart. Think of contrasting colours, but also think of picking fruits that vary in shades of the same colour for an ombré effect. You can easily use canned fruit. Choose fruit canned in sugar-based syrup or fruit juice because they taste better than any fruit canned in water (which is sweetened with sucralose!).

Please see the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions And Variations

The classic fruit tart served in most French pastry shops is filled with pastry cream, usually flavoured with vanilla extract, vanilla bean paste or a vanilla bean.

• Alternate sugars—You could consider using a mixture of sugar and honey or maple syrup in the pastry cream, and that would bring a lot of flavour to this dessert.
• Flavouring pastry cream—The beauty of pastry cream is that you can infuse the milk with a lot of flavours, and it's a sweet creamy blank canvas that balances out the acidity of the fruit garnish. Try infusing the hot milk with tea or coffee (you can strain out the leaves or coffee grinds later), or a little tonka bean. Cardamom works beautifully here, or in the fall, consider warm spices to pair with a fruit topping of poached pears or poached quince.
• Alternate fillings—Just because most people make fruit tarts with pastry cream doesn't mean you don't have options. You can also consider filling the baked tart shell with:
  • chocolate ganache, like this raspberry chocolate tart or this rhubarb chocolate tart
  • panna cotta, like for these Earl Grey panna cotta tarts
  • fruit curd, like lemon curd, like these matcha tarts filled with passion fruit curd

Special Tools

Aside from the usual baking tools you already have on hand, to make a fruit tart, or any tart, you will need a few tools:

• a tart pan with a removable bottom—this type of tart pan will make it easier for you to unmould the tart. If you are in a hurry, you can even unmould the blind-baked shell when it's still warm. This will also speed up the cooling process.
• a sheet pan—because we bake tarts in tart pans with a removable bottom, there is a big risk that, if you aren't paying attention when loading it into and out of the oven, you may grab the pan in the wrong way, un-moulding or breaking the tart shell, especially if it's still hot and fragile. To avoid this, always place your tart pan on a sheet pan. This way you are moving the sheet pan from fridge-to-counter-to-oven, thus protecting your tart shell.
• a rolling pin—some bakers prefer straight rolling pins, but I am most comfortable using a French rolling pin, with tapered ends. Regardless of the shape, I highly recommend investing in a rolling pin made of wood. I much prefer it to silicone rolling pins.
• a pastry brush—not only will you use this to brush off any excess flour from rolling out the pastry dough, you will also use it to brush melted chocolate inside the baked tart shell to seal it to help keep it dry from the moisture of the filling.

How To Make A Tart With Pastry Cream And Fruit

Fruit tarts make stunning desserts. But because they are so pretty to look at, bakers may feel intimidated, thinking that the dessert is complicated to make. I'm here to tell you it's not. Break it down and you'll see that to make a fruit tart at home, you will rely on basic baking techniques you've probably already mastered:

1. The creaming method is a mixing method commonly used to make cookie dough starting from softened butter which is combined with sugar until well mixed with a lighter texture. The tart shell is made from cookie dough that is rolled out. If you can make rolled sugar cookies, you should be able to make this!
2. Blind-baking, where you bake the tart shell until it is completely baked and golden-brown delicious. You use this technique for tarts where the filling is prepared/cooked separately. The tart shell must be baked through and completely cooled before filling, as a rule.
3. Tempering eggs, which is a method to gently warm up eggs before cooking them on the stove, either to make a custard sauce (crème anglaise) or a pastry cream, like in the recipe below.
4. Chabloner is a technique that pastry chefs use. Professionals will brush the inside of blind-baked tart shells with melted chocolate. When the chocolate sets, this creates a barrier between the filling and the crust. The tart shell will not soften or absorb moisture from the filling, allowing you to store the tarts for longer without compromising texture or flavour.

Step 1—Start by making the tart dough because you will have to chill it. Combine the butter, icing sugar and ground almond in a large bowl (image 1) and mix it until it is very cream before adding the egg yolk (image 2). Then stir in the flour (image 3) and the milk to bind it together (image 4)

Step 2—Wrap the dough in plastic wrap to chill it until firm. Shape the dough into a disk because you will roll it out to fit a round tart pan. Once the dough has chilled enough, roll it out and line the tart pan with the rolled-out dough, docking it with a fork to prevent air pockets from forming (image 6) and bake it until it is baked through. The edges will be golden brown and recede a little from the pan (image 7).

Step 3—While the tart shell is chilling and baking, make the pastry cream by whisking together the egg yolks and sugar (image 8) before incorporating the cornstarch (image 9). This is to ensure there are no lumps. Pour the hot milk over the egg mixture to temper the yolks (image 10) before transferring the mixture back to the saucepan to cook on the stove and thicken the custard filling (image 11).

Step 4—Add the butter to the cooked custard off the heat (image 12). Add the vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract (image 13), and then strain the mixture to remove any lumps or hard-cooked egg bits (image 14). Wrap tightly with plastic wrap, ensuring the wrap is in contact with the custard so that it doesn't form a skin (image 15).

Step 5—Once the tart shell has cooled, you can brush the inside of the shell with melted white chocolate to seal it and prevent the crust from getting soggy (image 17), and then fill with pastry cream (image 17) and garnish with berries (images 18 and 19).

Tart Baking Tips: How To Get The Tart Out Of The Pan

It's no secret that unmoulding a tart from a tart pan can be stressful. But tart pans with removable bottoms take some of that stress away. Here's how to remove a tart from a tart pan:

1. Place the pan carefully over an inverted bowl, or anything with a smaller diameter than the tart pan
2. Let the tart ring slide down
3. Lift the tart up
4. Lift the tart off the disk base or slide it off the disk base onto your serving plate.

If the tart is stuck to the bottom piece of the pan, you may have to use an offset spatula, gliding it gently between the flat metal base and the tart shell to unstick it. But really, that's it! Once the tart shell has cooled down, it should be sturdy enough to manipulate without worrying that it will fall apart.

Storage

This fruit tart should be refrigerated, but I can say, if you take it out to serve it, it can easily sit out for a few hours at room temperature. You will still be able to slice it cleanly, and the filling won't soften too much. This is yet another reason why I opted for cornstarch in this recipe, not flour. The filling is more stable to temperature fluctuations, yet still creamy and smooth.

Tart FAQs

More Baking With Berries

Make the most of berry season with these desserts baked with berries, from a simple blueberry crumb cake to a more complex blueberry lattice pie:

If you tried this recipe for the best fruit tart (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

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Fruit Tart

Learn how to make a fruit tart with this easy recipe. It's made with a sweet shortcrust (pâte sucrée) and topped with pastry cream and fresh fruit.

Course Dessert

Cuisine French

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Chill time 1 day day

Total Time 1 day day 1 hour hour 40 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Calories 469kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• OXO balloon whisk
• Tart pan
• Rolling pin

Ingredients

Pâte sucrée (sweet shortcrust)

• 84 grams unsalted butter room temperature
• 63 grams icing sugar
• 33 grams ground almonds
• 1 large egg yolk(s)
• 156 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 1.25 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
• 15 mL whole milk (3.25 % fat) or 2 % fat

Pastry cream

• 500 mL whole milk (3.25 % fat) or 2 % fat
• 100 grams granulated sugar
• 5 large egg yolk(s)
• 40 grams cornstarch
• 10 mL vanilla bean paste
• 58 grams unsalted butter cold, cut into cubes

Assembly and Finishing

• 58 grams white chocolate melted
• 300 grams Fresh berries raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, and red currants
• 150 grams mandarine segments fresh or canned

Metric - US

Instructions

Make the pâte sucrée

• Cream the butter with the icing sugar and the ground almond.
• Add the egg and mix until smooth.
• Add the flour and mix until the flour is blended in but don't overmix.
• Pat the dough into a disk, wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Place a 9-inch (23 cm) tart pan with removable bottom on a sheet pan. Set aside.
• Using a rolling pin, roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface until it's 11.5–12 inches (29.2–30.5 cm) in diameter. Work fast so the dough doesn't get too warm. The dough will become more delicate the warmer it gets.
• Fold the dough in half and carefully transfer to the tart pan to line it with the dough. If the dough breaks, don't worry. You can just press any cracks or breaks back together. Trim the edges using a knife or your rolling pin.
• Dock the pastry using a fork to poke holes over the entire surface. Chill the unbaked shell for 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C). Bake the tart shell for 20 to 25 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the pastry looks dry and baked through. Keep an eye on the tart shell and be sure to press down any areas that may bubble up during baking before the crust sets and dries.
• Let cool completely, then unmold from tart pans.

Pastry cream

• Place the milk in a medium saucepan with half the sugar. Set it to heat on the stove on medium–high.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the sugar untiil light and fluffy and pale in colour. Whisk in the cornstarch until the mixture looks thick and creamy.
• When the milk is just about to boil, take the pan off the heat and pour the milk over the whipped yolk mixture. Whisk everything together really well to temper the eggs.
• Transfer the mixture back to the saucepan and heat on medium heat until the pastry cream comes to a boil, whisking constantly.
• Boil the pastry cream for 3 minutes.
• Take the pan off the heat and add the butter, a piece at a time, whisking constantly. You can decide at this point if you want to strain it or not.
• Transfer the cooked pastry cream to a bowl, cover in plastic wrap, and chill for at least 1 hour.

Assembly and finishing

• When the baked tart shell has cooled completely and the pastry cream is cold, you are ready to assemble the tart.
• Place the unmoulded tart shell on your serving plate. Brush the inside of the tart shell with the melted white chocolate to coat the entire surface and protect it from moisture. Coat it with a thin layer. You may not use all the chocolate for this!
• Place the tart shell in the fridge for 5 minutes to set the chocolate if it's warm in your kitchen.
• Take the pastry cream out of the fridge, unwrap it, then using a whisk, whip the pastry cream until it is smooth and creamy. This will take a few minutes because it will be quite firm but it will smooth out the more you work it.
• Spread the pastry cream in the tart shell and smooth it out so that it's even.
• Top the pastry cream with lots of fresh berries and sliced fruits, arranging them in a pattern or haphazardly, as you like. Cover the pastry cream completely with fruit so that none is exposed.
• Store the fruit tart in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve it.

Notes

• We use a combination of flour and cornstarch to create a stable filling that holds its shape so you can slice the tart cleanly to serve it.
• Salt—This recipe calls for Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty!
• Alternate sugars—Consider using a mixture of sugar and honey or maple syrup in the pastry cream, and that would bring a lot of flavour to this dessert.
• Flavouring pastry cream—The beauty of pastry cream is that you can infuse the milk with a lot of flavours, and it's a sweet, creamy blank canvas that balances out the acidity of the fruit garnish. Try infusing the hot milk with tea or coffee (you can strain out the leaves or coffee grinds later), or a little tonka bean. Cardamom works beautifully here, or in the fall, consider warm spices to pair with a fruit topping of poached pears or poached quince.
• Alternate fillings—Just because most people make fruit tarts with pastry cream doesn't mean you don't have options. You can also consider filling the baked tart shell
  • chocolate ganache, like this raspberry milk chocolate tart or this rhubarb dark chocolate tart
  • panna cotta, like for these Earl Grey panna cotta tarts
  • fruit curd, like lemon curd, like these matcha tarts filled with passion fruit curd

Nutrition

Calories: 469kcal | Carbohydrates: 56g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 180mg | Sodium: 105mg | Potassium: 191mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 33g | Vitamin A: 992IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 125mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Fruit Tart (Tarte Jardinière) appeared first on The Bake School.

Fraisier and framboisier cakes are my favourite type of cake. Growing up, they were the cake we always got from the local French bakery to celebrate any and all occasions, mostly birthdays and baptisms.

Sadly, the local bakery we used to order them from shut down, so here is my version of the classic fraisier made with raspberries, mousseline cream, and layers of my mom's hot milk sponge cake recipe.

The recipe may seem overwhelming with many components, but you can actually make it in an afternoon, so don't panic! This cake is worth the time spent!

Meaning Of The Name

The framboisier cake is the raspberry variation of the fraisier cake, a traditional French layer cake made with strawberries. The fraisier is named after the French word for strawberry, which is "fraise." Similarly, the framboisier is named after the word "framboise," which is the French word for raspberry.

This French dessert is designed to showcase summer's most popular berry because the sides of this layer cake are not frosted, allowing you to see the strawberries that are layered inside.

Framboisier is also the French word for a raspberry bush, as the word fraisier can also refer to a strawberry plant. So, if you look up either of these words, you might get mixed results, some articles about gardening and others about baking!

Components Of Framboisier And Fraisier Cakes

The fraisier is made from two layers of sponge cake (often thin layers of génoise), brushed with a simple syrup, and filled with mousseline cream and fresh strawberries. The framboisier cake, on the other hand, is made with raspberries. Both are topped with either a dusting of powdered sugar or with a thin layer of marzipan.

As you can see, the fraisier and framboisier cakes are the French equivalent of the Victoria sponge cake recipe, which is a British layer cake made from two layers of sponge cake, filled with whipped cream, jam, and fresh berries.

To make a framboisier (or a fraisier), you will need:

• two layers of sponge cake or vanilla cake (traditionally, the recipe would be made with a génoise or even a biscuit joconde)—I like to use a hot milk cake because it's easy!
• soaking syrup that is made from 2 parts water and 1 part granulated sugar, by weight—you can leave the syrup plain or flavour it with a little spiced rum, Chambord, or another sweet fruity liqueur.
• vanilla mousseline cream, which is a French baking term for a filling made from pastry cream lightened with butter—alternatives for it include Italian meringue buttercream or a diplomat cream, which is a pastry cream lightened with whipped cream and stabilized with gelatin
• fresh raspberries if you are making a framboisier (or strawberries if you are making a fraisier)
• marzipan or icing sugar (I like to use German marzipan that is clearly labelled with the quantity of almonds so that you know you are using the good kind)

What You Need To Make Homemade Fraisier

• milk—ideally, use whole milk (3.25 % fat) or 2 % fat milk. Fat-free milk could work, but the texture of the cake may be drier, and the mousseline cream won't be as rich.
• flour—you will need both bleached all-purpose flour (for both the sponge cake and pastry cream) and a little cornstarch (to thicken the pastry cream)
• leavening—you will need baking powder for the sponge cake for the lightest texture. Read about baking soda versus baking powder if you aren't sure of the difference
• salt—I always bake with Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt. If using table salt, add half the amount to avoid the cake being too salty
• eggs—I bake with large eggs. Smaller or larger eggs will affect the texture of this dessert.
• sugar—I made all the components with granulated sugar to avoid adding any unwanted molasses flavour to the cake and filling.
• butter—I bake with unsalted butter, but if using salted butter, you may want to adjust the salt content in the cake
• flavour—I used pure vanilla extract for the sponge cake and the syrup, and vanilla bean paste for the pastry cream (a vanilla bean would also work). I also added a splash of spiced rum to the syrup for extra flavour
• marzipan—preferably a marzipan that is high in almonds
• berries—since I opted for raspberries, I used fresh raspberries for the filling and topping and freeze-dried raspberries to colour the top of the marzipan. Strawberries are the classic option (pair with freeze-dried strawberries for decor).

Please see the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.

Special Baking Tools

The beauty of framboisier and fraisier cakes is that they are "naked cakes" with unfrosted sides that reveal the layering. To create the neatest naked cakes, without any stress, you will need to invest in a few special tools:

• cake ring—I use 6-inch cake rings for the Milk Bar cakes and for framboisier cakes and fraisier cakes, I like to make them in 8-inch cake rings
• acetate—the cake ring is lined with acetate to make unmoulding easy and completely stress-free. The acetate prevents the cake from sticking to the mould and it also creates a perfect, smooth edge.

Using a cake ring and acetate allows you to build a "naked" cake with perfectly smooth, straight edges. It's the same technique that is used for the Milk Bar recipes, like the Milk Bar birthday cake, the blackberry almond cake, and the banana split cake.

How To Make Fraisier Cakes

The beauty of fraisier and framboisier cakes is that the edges of the layer cake are not frosted. The cut berries are lined up all the way around the edge of the cake to feature them, otherwise, the mousseline cream would hide them.

A classic génoise cake works perfectly well here, but I'm a big fan of the hot milk cake, which is what we use for most of our summer cakes and desserts, like berry trifle.

The hot milk cake is lighter than a génoise because it's leavened with both whipped eggs and baking powder. It's also more tender because of the higher sugar content in the cake batter and the milk, which yields a softer cake with a more open crumb.

Step 1—Start by making the hot milk sponge cake by whipping the eggs and sugar until thick and fluffy (image 1), then fold in the flour alternating with the hot milk mixture (image 2). Bake until the cake is golden brown in a tall cake pan (image 3). Once the cake has cooled completely, you can split it into two equal layers (image 4).

Tip: Don't confuse baking soda and baking powder in this recipe. If you are unsure, read this comparison of baking soda versus baking powder.

Step 2—Heat the water and sugar (image 5) in a small saucepan until the sugar has dissolved, then add flavourings (rum and/or vanilla extract) off the heat to flavour the syrup and the cake (image 6).

Note: Layer cakes made from sponge cakes often feature a soaking syrup or a simple syrup made from water and sugar (in a 2:1 ratio, by weight). The liquid is brushed onto each layer of cake, sometimes on both sides, to lock in moisture and to add a little flavour. Of course, you don't have to add alcohol to the syrup.

Step 3—Make the pastry cream by whisking the eggs and sugar (image 7). Then, pour the hot milk over the eggs to temper them (image 8). Cook the mixture on the stove until it boils and thickens. Pass the pastry cream through a sieve to remove any lumps (image 9), then mix in the butter and vanilla (image 10). The pastry cream should be thick and emulsified.

Step 5—Rewhip the pastry cream after it has cooled to room temperature until creamy and smooth (image 11). Meanwhile, whip the butter until creamy and soft (image 13) before adding in the pastry cream slowly (image 13). Whip the mixture until fluffy, smooth, and light (image 14).

Tip: If the pastry cream was chilled in the fridge, let it come to room temperature before attempting to make the mousseline filling. If not, the mixture will end up lumpy and curdled, and you will have to use heat to melt a portion and adjust the texture (see the next section).

Step 6—Assemble the fraisier cake in a cake ring, set on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and with a piece of acetate fitted inside the walls of the ring (image 15). Start with a bottom layer of cake brushed with ⅓ of the syrup, then line up raspberries along the perimeter (image 16). Fill with most of the mousseline cream and more fresh berries (image 17), smoothing any leftover mousseline cream on top to hide the berries inside (image 18).

Step 7—Place the last layer of sponge cake on top, being sure to brush both sides generously with the remaining syrup (image 19). Meanwhile, roll out the marzipan into a 9-inch round (image 20) and place it on top of the last layer of sponge cake. Chill the cake as is for at least 4 hours to set the filling before unmoulding the cake onto a cake plate and removing the acetate.

You can colour some marzipan a pastel pink with food dye, kneading marzipan and working the colour in by hand. I prefer to leave the marzipan uncoloured, and then to sprinkle the top of the cake with freeze-dried raspberry (or strawberry) powder to add a pop of colour. You can use a mini strainer to evenly sprinkle the ground berries on top.

Tip: Many bakeries mix the marzipan with a small amount of gel food colouring to dye it a pale pink or pale green. I prefer to leave the marzipan the way it is, a pale beige. For colour, I like to sprinkle (or grate with a Microplane) some freeze-dried raspberries.

The key to the marzipan layer is to roll it out and cut it to exactly the size of the cake. In fact, you can use the cake ring you build the cake in as a giant cutter for the marzipan layer. Just make sure to do this step before you start building the layer cake!

Tips For Perfect Mousseline Cream Filling

Mousseline cream is a pastry cream that is whipped with a generous amount of butter. Ironically, the extra butter gives this filling a lighter texture than straight pastry cream!

In order to successfully make a mousseline cream, like with other real buttercreams, it's important that the butter and the pastry cream are similar temperatures:

• If the pastry cream is too cold (like if you chilled it in the refrigerator for hours), the softened butter will harden as you whip the two together. This lead to a grainy frosting with tiny chunks of butter.
  • To fix this, you will have to warm the mixing bowl with a hair dryer or a heat gun to warm the filling and whip the mixture a lot (images 22-23).
• If the butter is too warm (and if your kitchen is too warm), the emulsion in the filling will break, and the fat may separate out of the filling, leading to an overly shiny, greasy texture.
  • To fix this, you may have to chill the filling in the refrigerator for 20–30 minutes to cool it down and then whip the mixture a lot.

Either way, the filling needs to be whipped/whisked extensively to emulsify it and achieve a lighter, more airy texture and taste.

Storage

Given this raspberry cake is made with fresh berries and a mousseline cream, it's best to store it in the fridge. If you've cut into the cake, just cover the cut edges with pieces of parchment to prevent them from drying out. Cover the whole thing loosely with aluminum foil. You can store this cake for up to a week in the refrigerator, or freeze slices for later. The berries will break down if you defrost this cake, so it's best stored in the fridge and eaten within a week.

For a detailed explanation, read about how to store cake.

Other Berry Recipes

When it's peak berry season, here are a few other berry baking recipes to try:

If you tried this recipe for the best framboisier cake (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

📖 Recipe

Print

Framboisier Cake

This framboisier cake is like a fraisier made with raspberries: layers of sponge cake filled with mousseline cream and raspberries. You can top it with powdered sugar or a layer of marzipan.

Course Dessert

Cuisine British

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Servings 10

Calories 553kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• OXO balloon whisk
• 5-quart KitchenAid Artisan mixer
• 8-in springform
• Acetate
• 8-inch cake ring

Ingredients

Vanilla bean pastry cream

• 115 grams unsalted butter room temperature (softened)
• 5 mL vanilla bean paste
• 500 mL whole milk (3.25 % fat) or 2 % fat
• 100 grams granulated sugar divided
• 2 large egg(s)
• 24 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 16 grams cornstarch
• 1.25 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt

Hot milk sponge cake

• 125 mL whole milk (3.25 % fat) or 2 % fat
• 15 grams unsalted butter
• 5 mL pure vanilla extract
• 125 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 5 mL baking powder
• 1.25 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
• 2 large egg(s)
• 200 grams granulated sugar

Syrup

• 100 mL water
• 50 grams granulated sugar
• 15 mL spiced or dark rum or a splash of vanilla extract

Mousseline cream

• 1 batch vanilla bean pastry cream (room temperature) recipe above
• 115 grams unsalted butter room temperature (softened)

Framboisier assembly

• 300 grams Fresh raspberries
• 200 grams marzipan rolled out and trimmed into an 8-inch circle
• freeze-dried raspberries optional, either ground or grated on a microplane

Metric - US

Instructions

Pastry cream

• Place a strainer over a large bowl that contains the butter and vanilla bean paste. Set aside.
• Place the milk in a medium saucepan. Stir in half the sugar. Heat over medium–high until the milk is almost boiliing.
• Meanwhile, whip the eggs with the remaining sugar until light in colour and fluffy. Whisk in the flour and cornstarch until smooth.
• When the milk is hot, turn off the stove and, whisking constantly, pour the milk over the egg mixture.
• Pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Heat it on medium—high heat until the mixture comes to a boil, whisking constantly.
• Boil the mixture for 2 minutes until very thick, then immediately take off the heat and pour the custard over the strainer and push it through. Whisk the strained pastry cream to incorporate the butter (which has likely melted) and vanilla at the bottom.
• Cover the pastry cream with plastic wrap and let cool to room temperature.

Hot milk sponge cake

• Preheat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C). Butter and flour an 8-inch (20 cm) cake pan with 3-inch (7.5 cm) sides or an 8-inch (20 cm) springform. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Set aside.
• In a small saucepan (or in a microwave safe bowl), heat the milk with the butter until the butter is melted on low heat. Add the vanilla and let cool slightly.
• Sift the flour with the baking powder and salt into a medium bowl. Set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the eggs with the sugar until very light and fluffy. The mixture should at least double in volume, if not more.
• Add dry ingredients alternately with wet ingredients, beginning and ending with the dry. You can fold it in or just whisk it in.
• Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan and smooth it out. Tap the cake pan on the counter a few times to release any big air bubbles.
• Bake the cake until golden brown. A cake tester inserted into the middle should come out clean. The cake will be spongy and light and spring back when gently pressed. This takes about 35 minutes.
• Let cool slightly before unmoulding onto a wire rack to cool completely. You can cool the cake upside down to flatten the top.

Syrup

• In a small saucepan, combine the water and the sugar. Heat it on medium until the sugar is dissolved.
• Remove from the heat and add the rum (or vanilla). Let cool.

Mousseline

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the butter until creamy and smooth.
• Rewhip the pastry cream to loosen it up, then gradually add it to the stand mixer, whipping constantly.
• Whip the mixture until it is light and fluffy.
• Transfer the mousseline to a large pastry bag and use immediately.

Framboisier assembly

• Prepare an 8-inch cake ring (from Amazon) by placing it on a parchment-lined rimmed (or your cake stand) baking sheet, lining the inside of the ring with a 26 inch long piece of acetate (also on Amazon).
• Using a serrated knife, trim the top of the sponge cake if necessary so that it is flat and levelled. Slice the sponge cake into two equal layers.
• Place the bottom layer on the bottom of the ring and press it gently so that it fits flat.
• Brush the cake with one third of the syrup, roughly 50 mL (a little more than 3 tbsp).
• Slice 13 to 14 raspberries in half and arrange them neatly on top of the bottom layer of cake, pressing them gently against the acetate to set them in place.
• Pipe half the mousseline in the middle and smooth it from edge to edge, gently pushing it against the berries to lock them in place.
• Scatter raspberries over the mousseline (you'll need 50 to 60 berries depending on their size). Press the berries into the cream, gently.
• Pipe the rest of the mousseline over the berries, then smooth it from edge to edge with an offset spatula. The berries should be completely covered.
• Brush the underside of the top cake layer with 50 mL of syrup, then place over the mousseline cream, pressing gently to make sure there are no gaps of air.
• Brush the top of the cake with the rest of the syrup.
• Place the marzipan on top and press it gently to smooth it out.
• Chill the cake in the fridge for at least 4 hours.
• Before serving, remove the cake ring and gently peel off the acetate.
• Let the cake sit at room temperature for 30 minutes so that the mousseline isn't too cold.
• Sprinkle the top with a generous amount of ground freeze-dried raspberries or freeze-dried raspberry powder.

Notes

• This recipe calls for Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty!
• For the sponge cake:
  • For detailed step-by-step photos and instructions, read about the hot milk cake recipe.
  • If you have the patience, you can beat the eggs and sugar to the ribbon stage. If you don’t have the time, just make sure that they are frothy. I’m not sure that beating them to the ribbon stage is necessary, but this time I did go the extra mile and was pleased with the extra sponginess that it gave the final cake.
  • When adding the wet and the dry alternately, remember to start and end with the dry. Thus: dry, wet, dry, wet, dry. This is one of the golden rules of baking, although I’m not quite sure why.
  • We always butter (or spray with cooking spray) the inside of the pan and coat it with sugar (not flour) because sugar is delicious. Flour works best to prevent sticking so that's what I did in this recipe.
• For the mousseline cream:
  • Look over the pastry cream recipe to review the detailed step-by-step photos and instructions.
  • If the pastry cream or the butter is too cold, the texture will be lumpy. Use a blowdryer to heat the outside of the bowl, melting a portion of the filling. It will look even worse, but then when you whip it, it will come together into a light, fluffy, creamy, smooth mixture. Repeat this process until you achieve the desired texture. It takes some time, but it's worth it!
• You can make this exact recipe, replacing the raspberries with strawberries.
• You can dye the marzipan with a small amount of gel food colouring (traditionally, it is dyed pale pink or pastel green). Instead, I opted to leave the marzipan as is and dust it with ground freeze-dried raspberries for a pretty effect on top.
• Let the cake chill for 4 hours before unmoulding it to solidify the layers. At that point, you can place it on a plate and remove the cake ring. Let the cake sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before serving for the optimal texture and flavour.
• Store the leftover cake in the fridge, wrapped tightly.

Nutrition

Calories: 553kcal | Carbohydrates: 65g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 126mg | Sodium: 180mg | Potassium: 294mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 48g | Vitamin A: 824IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 139mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Framboisier Cake (Fraisier With Raspberries) appeared first on The Bake School.

How do you like your brownies? Do you prefer fudgy brownies or chewy brownies? Do you like to eat the centrepiece or an edge? The trouble is there's no such thing as perfect.

What I would call the perfect brownie might be your least favourite iteration. The fact is that I cannot come up with a brownie recipe that will please everyone because we all like different things.

This recipe makes brownies that I think are the perfect brownie: a brownie with chewy edges and a fudgy middle. It's a variation on the recipe for classic brownies with walnuts and one I've jazzed up for Easter, topping the brownies with Mini Eggs. I've even used this base recipe to make gluten-free brownies with millet flour and a peanut butter swirl!

What You Need to Make Raspberry Brownies

Most every brownie recipe you'll come across all have the same basic ingredients, but a few are key to achieving the desired texture:

• Fat: I prefer to bake with butter, melting it with the chocolate. The water in the butter will help dissolve the sugars, which in turn contributes to a shiny crust on top. Butter also provides more flavour.
• Chocolate, preferably semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate with at least 70 % cocoa solids. If you use chocolate chips, these have a lot of sugar and you may need to adjust this recipe
• Sugar (granulated and/or brown sugar): choose granulated sugar if you like to have that shiny paper-thin flaky crust on top of brownies and use more sugar to make sure it forms. Superfine sugar dissolves even faster and will help you achieve a shiny top
• Eggs: in brownies, you often see little to no leavening agents used and so the moisture from the eggs acts as a leavening agent here but also helps dissolve the sugar to make a shiny top
• Flour: the less flour you use, the more fudgy the brownies will be, but I find too little can lead to a brownie that is too dense and too greasy. I like to add enough flour to brownie batter so that it can absorb the fat and lead to a more chewy texture that's not so moist
• Cocoa powder—use Dutch-processed cocoa powder to give the brownies a deeper chocolate flavour that dark chocolate alone can't
• Leavening agents: classic brownies don't have leavening agents, but like with cookies, you can add just a little baking powder so that the brownies rise taller yielding a slightly less dense, more open texture.
• Other flavour ingredients: you may see vanilla extract and even espresso powder to further enhance the flavour. Bitter coffee notes are known to enhance the chocolate flavour.
• Raspberries: I used fresh raspberries, which I sprinkled over top. Be careful if you want to use frozen brownies, they may be too wet in this recipe, leading to a gummy texture!
• White chocolate: invest in better quality white chocolate made from cocoa butter, sugar, and milk solids, as opposed to white baking chips which aren't actually chocolate.

Please see the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions

After a few attempts and many, many brownies consumed, I ended up with this recipe, where some of the cocoa in a typical brownie recipe is replaced with dark chocolate. If you need help making baking substitutions, check out my guide for how to replace the cocoa powder with dark chocolate (and vice versa).

Brownies are made from a simple list of ingredients and your substitution options are limited. Here are some places where you can deviate:

• dark chocolate: I used 70 % dark chocolate from Cacao Barry. This is a semi-sweet chocolate verging on bittersweet. If you don't have access to this brand of chocolate, feel free to use a Lindt dark chocolate bar or any high-quality chocolate with at least 50 % cocoa content. If you are unsure, read about the different types of chocolate for baking.
• cocoa powder: I used a Cacao Barry brand cocoa powder called Extra Brute. It is a Dutch-processed cocoa powder that is a dark colour with a reddish tint and higher in fat. You can replace it with any brand of Dutch-processed cocoa powder, but a lower-fat cocoa powder will have an impact on the texture of the brownies.
• sugar: I used granulated sugar (white sugar), but feel free to use a combination of brown sugar and white sugar if you prefer. Do not use icing sugar. Superfine sugar works very well in this recipe and creates a shinier brownie crust on top.
• raspberries: I used fresh raspberries—frozen raspberries may work but could also lead to a wet layer on the surface of the brownie if they release too much water. Proceed with caution!
• nuts: Feel free to add chopped walnuts to the brownie batter if you like nuts in your brownies!

Types of Chocolate For Brownies

When you make brownies with chocolate, ideally you should use the best chocolate for baking you can get, specifically dark chocolate that has a deep, dark flavour and that isn't overly sweet.

To make these one-bowl brownies, I used Ocoa chocolate from Cacao Barry, which is a 70% cocoa dark chocolate with a rich chocolate flavour. You can find it at IGA grocery stores in Quebec in 1-kilo resealable bags.

If you don't live in Quebec, you can order this chocolate online (and many other Cacao Barry products) via the Vanilla Food Company website. They ship across Canada and to the United States! This means that we all have access to professional quality chocolates at the click of a button. They also carry two types of Cacao Barry cocoa powders, which I highly recommend.

How to Make One-Bowl Brownies

The beauty of these white chocolate raspberry brownies is that the brownie batter is mixed in the same bowl you use to melt the butter and chocolate. This means fewer dirty dishes and an easier way of assembling the ingredients without any fuss.

Step 1: Combine the butter and dark chocolate in a large bowl set over a pan of water (image 1). Heat the water on the stove until it simmers and let the butter and chocolate slowly melt together until smooth and glossy (image 2).

Step 2: Take the pan off the heat and add the sugar to the bowl of melted chocolate and butter (image 3). Then whisk in the eggs one at a time (image 4), adding the next egg only when the previous one is completely mixed in.

Step 3: Sift the dry ingredients together (image 5) because cocoa tends to create lumps, then add the dry ingredients to the bowl of brownie batter and stir it in (image 6). Fold in the white chocolate chunks (image 7).

Step 4: Spread the brownie batter in a square brownie pan using a mini offset spatula (image 8), then scatter a few raspberries and extra white chocolate chunks (image 9). Bake until the edges and top of the brownies are set, but the centre will still be a little fudgy (image 10). Let cool before cutting into squares.

Tip: Got leftover brownies? Make homemade chocolate brownie ice cream!

Brownie Baking Tips

Please use a metal pan to bake brownies. The bars will have a better texture if you bake them in a metal pan. If you use a glass pan, they may be more dense. Read all about the different types of baking pans to understand the difference.

Don't overbake your brownies! These white chocolate brownies are moist and have a fudgy middle, but they aren't too dense. The edges are a little chewy. I baked these brownies for 35 minutes to ensure chewy edges with a fudgy middle because that's how I like them. Feel free to bake them even less for a gooey centre.

If you overbake these, the top will be less shiny and the brownies may be dry.

Serving Suggestions

Brownies are greatly enjoyed as is, but you can also eat them "à la mode," topped with vanilla bean ice cream or dark chocolate ice cream. Another favourite of mine is to serve these with Oreo ice cream or mint chocolate chip.

Brownie Baking FAQs

Other Berry Recipes

If you like these brownies with raspberries, here are more desserts you can make with berries:

If you tried this recipe for the best raspberry white chocolate brownies (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

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Raspberry White Chocolate Brownies

These easy raspberry white chocolate brownies start with a one-bowl brownie recipe made with melted chocolate and cocoa powder, with white chocolate mixed into the batter and topped with fresh raspberries for a super chocolaty treat!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 16

Calories 251kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• OXO balloon whisk
• 9x9-inch pan
• Mini offset

Ingredients

• 115 grams unsalted butter
• 175 grams dark chocolate (70 % cocoa content) or your favourite semi-sweet or bittersweet dark chocolate
• 250 grams granulated sugar
• 3 large egg(s)
• 95 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 45 grams Cacao Barry extra brute cocoa powder or your favourite Dutch processed cocoa powder, sifted to remove lumps
• 2.5 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
• 100 grams white chocolate plus a little extra for garnishing, coarsely chopped

Metric - US

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF (175 °C). Butter a 9x9-inch (23x23-cm) brownie pan. Line the bottom with parchment. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, melt together the butter and the chocolate. You can do this over a pan of simmering water or in the microwave at power level 5, pausing from time to time to stir a little so that the mixture heats evenly.
• Add the granulated sugar to the bowl of melted chocolate and butter, and stir it in.
• Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each addition. Dump in the flour, cocoa powder, and salt, and stir it in.
• Fold in the chopped white chocolate.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with a mini offset spatula. Sprinkle with extra chopped white chocolate and fresh raspberries.
• Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or for however long it takes to achieve your perfect brownies. I like my brownies chewy so I bake them for 35 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan before cutting into squares using a plastic knife. Don't use a metal knife because it will stick.

Notes

• This brownie recipe fits in a metal 9x9" square pan.
• Use a metal pan which is a better heat conductor than glass. Brownies baked in a glass pan may take longer to bake but also may overbake after removing them from the oven as the glass retains the heat for longer.
• For the dark chocolate, I used Cacao Barry Ocoa 70 % dark chocolate. If you don't have access to this brand of chocolate, feel free to use a Lindt dark chocolate bar or any high-quality chocolate with at least 50 % cocoa content. If you are unsure what the cocoa content means, read about the different types of chocolate for baking.
• For the cocoa powder: I used a Cacao Barry brand cocoa powder called Extra Brute. It is a Dutch-processed cocoa powder that is a dark colour with a reddish tint and higher in fat. You can replace it with any brand of Dutch-processed cocoa powder, but a lower-fat cocoa powder will have an impact on the texture of the brownies.
• For the sugar, I used granulated sugar (white sugar), but feel free to use a combination of brown sugar and white sugar if you prefer. Do not use icing sugar. Superfine sugar works very well in this recipe and creates a shinier brownie crust on top.
• Raspberries: I used fresh raspberries—frozen raspberries may work but could also lead to a wet layer on the surface of the brownie if they release too much water. Proceed with caution!
• Nuts: Feel free to add chopped walnuts to the brownie batter if you like nuts in your brownies!
• Salt—This recipe calls for Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty!
• To cut the brownies easily and cleanly into squares, use a plastic bowl scraper or a plastic knife! Don't use a metal knife because it may stick. Chilling the brownies before cutting helps.

Nutrition

Calories: 251kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 48mg | Sodium: 96mg | Potassium: 159mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 230IU | Vitamin C: 0.03mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 2mg

This post is sponsored by Cacao Barry. I was compensated monetarily and with product. Thanks for supporting the companies that allow me to create content . As always, please know that I wouldn’t work with a sponsor nor recommend a product if it wasn’t worth it.

The post Raspberry White Chocolate Brownies appeared first on The Bake School.

Ingredients

This apple blackberry crumble is made from a simple list of ingredients and you likely have most of them in your pantry!

• butter—use unsalted butter or adjust the salt in the topping
• sugar—any sugar will do, whether light or dark brown sugar or granulated sugar
• flour—bleached all-purpose flour you can also use a mix of all-purpose and buckwheat, or all-purpose and whole wheat
• oats—use rolled oats (or large flake oats). Do not use quick or minute oats which have a finer texture that is less interesting
• salt—I used Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt. If using table salt, add half the amount
• apples—use baking apples that hold their shape like Cortland, Granny Smith, Gala, or Honeycrisp apples, or use a combination with a saucing apple like McIntosh. Do not use saucing apples only for the filling as it will turn to mush and lack texture.
• lemon juice—use fresh or bottled lemon juice. It's optional and used to create an acidic water bath to prevent the peeled apples from browning while you peel and slice them all.
• berries—use fresh blackberries washed, dried, and picked over, but frozen will also work. You don't have to defrost them.
• thickener—use cornstarch, not flour to avoid making the filling cloudy
• vanilla—it's optional but I love to add vanilla bean paste to fruit crisps. You could also use vanilla extract.

Please see the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions and Variations

This is a very simple recipe. Your substitution and variation options are limited.

• sugar—any sugar will do, whether light or dark brown sugar or granulated sugar. Don't use coarse sugar that may be too slow to dissolve, especially in the filling.
• vanilla—it's optional, but I love to add vanilla bean paste to fruit crisps. You could also use vanilla extract.
• spices—while I only used vanilla in the fruit filling and no flavourings in the topping, you can add spices to the oat topping, like cinnamon to add flavour, like ½–1 teaspoon (2.5–5 mL)
• berries—I used fresh wild blackberries which have a great flavour but they are only available in late summer where I live. You could also use frozen berries instead. Don't defrost them.

Don't have blackberries? Try this apple and blueberry crumble!

Instructions

Like all fruit crisps and crumbles, there are two components to prepare to make this apple blackberry crumble: the oat topping and the apple blackberry filling. I like to start by making the topping first to stick it in the fridge to firm up while I make the filling.

Step 1—start by making the oat crumble topping by combining the dry topping ingredients with the sugar (image 1) and whisking them until evenly dispersed (image 2). Then drop the diced butter into the bowl of dry ingredients (image 3) and work the mixture with your fingertips until it resembles wet sand (image 4).

Tip: I like to take the topping a step further, working it into a cookie dough texture that clumps together, but you don't have to.

Step 2—Prepare the apples by peeling them all (image 5) and then coring and slicing them into 1-inch slices (image 6).

Tip: Since there are a lot of apples to peel and slice, have a bowl of lemon water on the side to drop the apples in as you peel them. This will reduce the browning that may happen with certain apple varieties.

Step 3—Prepare the fruit filling by first mixing together the sugar and cornstarch (image 7). Use a whisk or even your fingertips to make sure the mixture has no lumps in it (image 8), then add the sliced apples and blackberries, along with vanilla bean paste (image 9) and use your hands to mix the fruit filling really well, being sure to lift up from the bottom and get all the sugar off the bottom of the bowl (image 10).

Hint: how much thickener you use is entirely dependent on the types of apples, how juicy the berries are, and how thick or thin you want the fruit filling. I created a thick filling with cornstarch and a mixture of apple varieties, but you can use less (or no thickener) for a loose filling.

Step 4: Transfer the fruit filling to a deep 9x13x2-inch (23x33x5-cm) (image 11). I used a metal OXO pan, but a glass Pyrex pan will work too. Scatter the oat crumble topping over the fruit (image 12) making sure that it is spread out in an even layer from edge to edge (image 13). Bake until golden brown and bubbling in the centre (image 14).

Top Baking Tip

Other Apple Desserts

If you tried this recipe for apple blackberry crumble with oats (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

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Apple and Blackberry Crumble

This delicious apple blackberry crumble is so easy to make from fresh blackberries and sliced apples and topped with a sweet oat crumble.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings 10

Calories 528kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• 9x13 baking pan
• Sheet pan

Ingredients

Oat crumble topping

• 230 grams unsalted butter cold, cut into cubes
• 200 grams light brown sugar
• 190 grams bleached all-purpose flour you can also use a mix of all-purpose and buckwheat, or all-purpose and whole wheat
• 140 grams rolled oats (or large flake oats)
• 2.5 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt

Apple blackberry filling

• 1.75 kg Cortland apple(s) I used 10 small–medium apples
• 30 mL fresh lemon juice
• 450 grams fresh blackberries washed, dried, and picked over
• 100 grams light brown sugar
• 30 grams cornstarch
• 10 mL vanilla bean paste

Metric - US

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 375°F (190 °C). Butter a large baking dish or casserole dish (I used a 9x13x2-inch baking pan with a non-stick finish, but a Pyrex or ceramic pan would work fine). Set the baking dish on a large, rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment (to catch any drips). Set aside.

Oat crumble topping

• In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, oats, sugar, and salt. Add in the cubes of cold butter and toss it in the dry mixture to coat all the pieces. You can do this with your fingertips. Press and work the butter into the dry ingredients until you have a crumbly topping with lots of texture. Set aside. You can refrigerate the crumble topping if your kitchen is warm.

Apple blackberry filling

• Peel and core the apples, and then slice them into 1-inch slices. Place them in a bowl with the lemon juice and some water to immerse them and prevent the apples from browning while you work. Pat them dry before mixing with the rest of the filling ingredients
• Wash, dry, and pick over the blackberries to remove any stems or twigs. Pat them dry
• Mix the cornstarch and sugar until evenly mixed in a large bowl, being sure to squish any lumps.
• Drain and pat the fruit dry and add to the large bowl of sugar and cornstarch, along with the vanilla bean paste.
• Stir the filling really well to make sure the fruit is evenly coated. Ensure that all the sugar and cornstarch are incorporated throughout the fruit. Pour the fruit evenly into the bottom of the buttered baking dish.
• Scatter globs of the crumble topping over the fruit from edge-to-edge.
• Bake the blackberry apple crumble for 45 minutes, then turn down the temperature to 350 ºF (175 °C). Continue baking until the fruit layer is bubbling, the topping is golden brown. This takes another 20–30 minutes or so.
• Let cool on a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream or custard sauce.

Notes

•  sugar—any sugar will do, whether light or dark brown sugar or granulated sugar
• vanilla—it's optional but I love to add vanilla bean paste to fruit crisps. You could also use vanilla extract.
• spices—while I only used vanilla in the fruit filling and no flavourings in the topping, you can add spices to the oat topping, like cinnamon to add flavour, like ½–1 teaspoon (2.5–5 mL)
• berries—I used fresh wild blackberries, which have a great flavour but they are only available in late summer where I live. You could also use frozen berries instead. Don't defrost them.
• salt—This recipe calls for Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty!
• Feel free to modify the amount and type of thickener. You can try using more to achieve a thicker, more set fruit filling, and try arrowroot or tapioca starch instead of cornstarch.
• I don't recommend using flour as a thickener because it will make the filling appear cloudy.

Nutrition

Calories: 528kcal | Carbohydrates: 85g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 49mg | Sodium: 134mg | Potassium: 380mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 50g | Vitamin A: 766IU | Vitamin C: 19mg | Calcium: 64mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Apple Blackberry Crumble appeared first on The Bake School.

I love the combination of sweet, vanilla-flavoured baked goods and fruit. The pairing works especially well in fruit muffins like these rhubarb muffins with sour cream, honey blueberry muffins, or even low-sugar blueberry bran muffins. And you can even make it work in cookies, like these blueberry oatmeal cookies with white chocolate chips.

Financiers are also a great canvas for fruit because these little cakes are sweet and nutty, the perfect pairing for bright fruit flavours. I added slices of golden kiwis to these coconut financiers, cranberries to these gluten-free chestnut financiers, and raspberries to make classic berry financiers.

You simply can't go wrong with playing with fruits in baked goods! 

Basic Ingredients to Make Blondies

Blondies are made with the same basic ingredients as chocolate chip cookies, so you will need:

• butter, preferably unsalted butter because you will add salt to the cookie dough, but if you have salted butter, it will work. Just adjust the salt in the recipe accordingly, otherwise, your bars may be too salty. We will be browning the butter for this recipe!
• sugar, both granulated and brown sugar work here. I prefer using all (or mostly) brown sugar for the flavour and to balance out the egg in the cookie dough.
• large eggs, don't use smaller eggs because your cookie dough may be too dry and your brownies may be crumbly but don't use extra large eggs because they could cause the batter to separate
• vanilla extract—I use pure vanilla extract in this recipe though artificial could work (just use a little less because it's more potent)
• all-purpose flour is needed to bind all the ingredients together and give the blondies structure, contributing to the chewiness of the bars as well. If you don't use enough flour, your cookie bars may be overly fudgy and dense
• salt is really important to balance out the sweet chocolate flavour, especially since these brownies feature quite a bit of candy chocolate. Please don't skip it. I like to use Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt, but table salt will work, though the bars will be saltier and you may want to halve the salt in that case
• leavening agents—both baking soda and baking powder are added to the mix of dry ingredients to open up the crumb of the cookie leading to a lighter texture. People who like cakey cookies tend to favour recipes with baking powder. 
• white chocolate, either a chopped bar of white chocolate or white chocolate chips will work
• Fresh raspberries to scatter on top of the bars before baking

Please see the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.

Tip: Not sure about the difference between the leavening agents? Please read this post about baking soda versus baking powder.

Substitutions and Variations

If you need to make some baking substitution ideas for this recipe:

• browned butter: I love to brown the butter before making blondies because it adds a nutty flavour to the cookie dough, but by all means, just use melted!
• sugar: I used a combination of mostly light brown sugar with a little granulated sugar. You can do all brown sugar and even use dark brown sugar for a more flavourful blondie bar
• chocolate: feel free to replace the white chocolate with semi-sweet chocolate chips or any of your favourite chocolate chips or chopped chocolate. Any chocolate will do but try to use a good type of chocolate for baking! Dark chocolate would balance out the sweetness of these bars, while white chocolate enhances it, adding some milky notes. I've also tested this recipe with cream cheese-flavoured chips and was very happy with the results!
• berries: Raspberries can be replaced with frozen raspberries, and blueberries would also work great.
• vanilla: you can replace the vanilla extract with a splash of bourbon or scotch, which will provide an interesting oak flavour to these blondies. Vanilla bean paste also works in this recipe.

How to Make Blondies with Raspberries

Step 1: Before you do anything else, brown the butter in a small saucepan (image 1) so that it can cool down a little before you make the cookie dough. Meanwhile whisk the dry ingredients in a small bowl (image 2).

Tip: If you've never done it before, please read all about how to make brown butter before making this recipe!

Step 2: Combine the cooled brown butter and sugars in a mixer bowl and whisk them using an electric hand mixer (image 3). You can also do this by hand. Once well mixed, add the egg and vanilla (image 4). Beat the mixture until light and fluffy (image 5).

Step 3: Add the dry ingredients (image 6) and stir them in. You may use a spatula to make sure the mixture is evenly mixed (image 7), then stir in the white chocolate chips (image 8). Pat out the cookie dough in a greased 8x8 pan (image 9).

Step 4: Scatter the top of the blondies with fresh raspberries and then bake until the edges are golden brown and the surface begins to set (image 11).

Tips for Adding Delicate Berries to Baked Goods

The cool thing about baking with fruit is that you can also use fruit as a topping for bars, like brownies and blondies. I realized how well this works after garnishing these one-bowl brownies with raspberries just before baking.

Since it's raspberry season, I decided to take my fruity obsession one step further and make these white chocolate and raspberry blondies. When you want to add delicate berries to cake batters or cookie doughs, you have to be very careful to avoid crushing the berries, which will ooze too much juice and throw off the recipe. That shouldn't stop you because you have options:

1. Freeze the berries until they are solid so that you can fold them into cake batters (about an hour or more if possible). For this to work, you have to incorporate the frozen berries directly from the freezer. I did this for these honey blueberry muffins, for example. But if you decided to go this route, don't dawdle! And make sure to bake the batter right away or else the fruit will defrost and break down and make your baked goods gummy.
2. Scatter the berries on top before baking or layer them in stages (which is what I did to make these apple blackberry muffins, where I scooped a little batter into each muffin cup, then scattered a few berries, and then repeated to fill the cups).

Blondie Baking FAQs

Other Dessert Bar Recipes to Bake

Blondies and other cookie bar recipes are great for serving a crowd fast. You bake them all in one pan and slice to serve, making the whole process faster than scooping and baking individual cookies.

These raspberry and white chocolate blondies are the perfect summery treat when raspberries are in season!

If you tried this recipe for the best white chocolate raspberry blondies (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

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White Chocolate and Raspberry Blondies

These raspberry and white chocolate blondies are made just like chocolate chip cookies, but patted in a square pan to bake and serve as bars!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 14 minutes minutes

Servings 9

Calories 377kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• OXO balloon whisk
• Braun mixer
• GIR spatula
• 8x8-inch pan

Ingredients

• 190 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 5 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt or 2.5 mL (½ tsp) table salt
• 2.5 mL baking powder
• 1.25 mL baking soda
• 115 grams unsalted butter
• 150 grams light brown sugar
• 50 grams granulated sugar
• 1 large egg(s)
• 15 mL pure vanilla extract
• 175 grams white chocolate chips approximately 250 mL or 1 cup
• 110 grams fresh raspberries

Metric - US

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 ºF (175 °C). Butter an 8x8-inch metal brownie pan and line the bottom with a square of parchment. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
• In a small saucepan on medium–high heat, melt the butter, swirling the pan often. Continue heating the butter and swirling often until the milk solids at the bottom of the pan begin to brown. The browned butter will smell nutty when it's done. Set aside to cool slightly.
• In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer, whip together the browned butter, the granulated sugar, and the brown sugar until it's well mixed.
• Add the egg and the vanilla, and mix well until the mixture is light and fluffy. Make sure to clean down the sides of the bowl as needed with a big spatula.
• Dump in the whisked dry ingredients, and incorporate them either with the hand mixer on low, or by hand with a big wooden spoon.
• Mix in the chocolate. The dough should be quite thick.
• Transfer the dough to the prepared pan and pat it out from edge-to-edge so that it fills the pan completely.
• Scatter the raspberries over the dough.
• Bake the blondies for 30 to 40 minutes. Less for a more gooey blondie, longer for a chewy blondie. I like to bake blondies until the edges are nicely browned.
• Let the blondies cool completely before cutting into squares (9 large squares or 16 smaller squares).
• Store in an airtight container.

Notes

Substitutions and variations:

• browned butter: I love to brown the butter before making blondies because it adds a nutty flavour to the cookie dough, but by all means, just use melted!
• sugar: I used a combination of mostly light brown sugar with a little granulated sugar. You can do all brown sugar and even use dark brown sugar for a more flavourful blondie bar
• salt: This recipe calls for Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty!
• chocolate: feel free to replace the white chocolate with semi-sweet chocolate chips or any of your favourite chocolate chips or chopped chocolate. Any chocolate will do but try to use a good type of chocolate for baking! Dark chocolate would balance out the sweetness of these bars, while white chocolate enhances it, adding some milky notes. I've also tested this recipe with cream cheese-flavoured chips and was very happy with the results!
• berries: Raspberries can be replaced with frozen raspberries, and blueberries would also work great.
• vanilla: you can replace the vanilla extract with a splash of bourbon or scotch, which will provide an interesting oak flavour to these blondies. Vanilla bean paste also works in this recipe.

Nutrition

Calories: 377kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 285mg | Potassium: 154mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 34g | Vitamin A: 352IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 1mg

The post White Chocolate and Raspberry Blondies appeared first on The Bake School.

Ingredients

This moist blueberry cake is made from a simple list of ingredients. Here's what you need.

• butter—use unsalted butter or adjust the amount of salt added if you are using salted
• sugar—you will need a combination of white granulated sugar and light brown sugar for this recipe
• eggs—use large eggs or else the cake may be too dry or too crumbly
• vanilla—use pure vanilla extract in this cake, or half the amount if baking with artificial which tends to be more potent.
• flour—I bake with bleached all-purpose flour. You can get away with unbleached in this recipe.
• leavening—this cake is leavened with baking powder, not baking soda. Read about baking soda versus baking powder if you don't know the difference.
• salt—use Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt. If using table salt, add half the amount or the cake may be too salty.
• milk—use whole milk if possible with 3.25 % fat, though low fat will work too.
• cinnamon—use ground cinnamon. Note that it's only added to the topping to preserve the sweet vanilla flavour of the cake
• blueberries—you can use cultivated or wild blueberries for this cake, but wild blueberries are more flavourful and taste much better when in season so bake with them if you can! Frozen blueberries can work too but you will have to bake the cake a little longer. Do not defrost frozen blueberries before incorporating.

See the recipe card for the exact ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions and Variations

Instructions

You only need a small amount of cake batter to fill an 8-inch springform pan, so we are using an electric hand mixer to mix the ingredients.

Step 1—Start by making the streusel, combining the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl and stirring them with a fork (image 1) before working in the cubed butter (image 2). The cinnamon streusel will resemble wet sand (image 3). Set aside for later in the fridge if your kitchen is hot.

Step 2—Combine the butter and sugars using an electric hand mixer in a large bowl (image 4). Mix the ingredients well before adding the eggs one at a time, along with the vanilla (image 5). Beat the mixture until fluffy and light (image 6).

Step 3—In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, then add them one-third at a time (image 8), alternating with half the milk (image 9). Remember to begin and end with flour. The batter will be quite thick (image 10).

Step 4: Add the flour-coated blueberries to the bowl of vanilla cake batter (image 11) and fold them in gently with a spatula (image 12).

Step 5: Spread the blueberry cake batter in a buttered and floured 8-inch springform pan using a mini offset spatula (image 13), then top with streusel (image 14).

Step 6: Scatter a few extra blueberries over the top, nestling them between blogs of crumble topping (image 15). Bake until the edges are golden brown (image 16). A cake tester inserted into the middle will come out clean when it's baked through.

Hint: There are many ways to check if your cake is done baking. Use a couple of methods to be sure.

Cake Tip

Remember to let the cake cool slightly (10–20 minutes) before you unmould it. This will give time for the edges to set and the cake to firm up.

The beauty of baking in a springform pan is that you can unmould the cake without having to invert it, which is especially useful for old-fashioned coffee cakes topped with crumble or streusel.

Be sure to cool the cake on a wire rack completely before serving.

Storage

Simple cakes like this will stay fresh for up to 4 days wrapped tightly with plastic wrap stored in a cool, dry place. After that time it will either dry out or go bad.

It isn't necessary to refrigerate the cake, unless your kitchen is very hot. Let the cake come to room temperature (at least 30 minutes) before serving if you do refrigerate it.

Top tips

• Always run a spatula around the sides of your mixer bowl between steps to ensure all the ingredients are properly mixed.
• Ripe berries are very delicate and will break down easily. Use a large spatula or wooden spoon to fold the berries into the cake batter gently. Do not use a mixer for this step.
• Toss blueberries in a small amount of flour (1 teaspoon) to coat them in flour, removing the excess. The flour will help anchor the berries in the cake batter and prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the cake.
• Remember to butter and flour your springform. You can also line the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment paper to ensure it's easy to unmould.

Blueberry Cake FAQs

More One Layer Cake Recipes

I love the simplicity and elegance of one-layer cakes, sometimes referred to as snacking cakes. Here are a few others to try:

Serving Suggestions

If you tried this recipe for blueberry crumb cake (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

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Easy Blueberry Crumb Cake

Learn how to make the best simple blueberry crumb cake with this easy recipe. This moist blueberry cake is easily mixed with just an electric hand mixer and loaded with blueberries and topped with a layer of cinnamon crumble topping, transforming this old-fashioned cake cake into a moist and delicious blueberry crumble cake.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Calories 379kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• Braun mixer
• 8-in springform
• GIR spatula
• Mini offset
• Cake tester

Ingredients

Cinnamon crumble topping

• 65 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 70 grams light brown sugar
• 2.5 mL ground cinnamon more or less depending on how cinnamony you want the topping to be
• 1.25 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
• 58 grams unsalted butter softened slightly

Blueberry cake

• 188 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 7.5 mL baking powder
• 2.5 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
• 80 grams unsalted butter very soft
• 100 grams granulated sugar
• 50 grams light brown sugar sugar
• 10 mL pure vanilla extract
• 2 large egg(s)
• 125 mL whole milk (3.25 % fat)
• 290 grams fresh blueberries divided

Metric - US

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 ºF (175 °C). Butter and flour an 8-inch springform pan, lining the bottom with a circle of parchment. Set aside. Attach the beater attachments to the Braun MultiMix Hand Mixer to get it ready to use. 

Cinnamon crumb topping

• Use a fork to combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt.
• Pour the melted butter over top and stir it until evenly mix. It will form a crumbly, sandy mixture. Set aside.

Blueberry cake

• In a bowl, with the hand mixer, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, beat together the butter and the sugar until it is well mixed, light and fluffy. Mix in the vanilla, and then the eggs, one at a time. Be sure to move the mixer around the edges of the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well mixed.
• Alternate adding the flour mixture and the milk, beginning and ending with the flour. Stir just to combine on a lower speed.
• Toss three-quarters of the blueberries with 1 teaspoon (5 mL) of flour to coat them then gently fold into the vanilla cake batter by hand with a wooden spoon or spatula.
• Transfer the cake batter to the prepared pan and smooth it out.
• Sprinkle the topping over the batter, scattering and tucking a few extra blueberries in places to decorate it.
• Bake the cake until a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean. This takes about 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes.
• Let the cake cool on a wire rack for 20 to 30 minutes before removing the springform ring. The cake should unmold quite cleanly. You may need to release the sides with the help of a thin knife.

Notes

• Subsitutions and variations:
  • Berries - you can use fresh or frozen blueberries, preferably wild blueberries which have more flavour and a better taste. If baking with frozen, stir the frozen blueberries directly into the cake batter without defrosting.
  • Sugar - you can make this cake with granulated sugar or brown sugar (light or dark). The colour of the cake and the taste will be different with brown sugar which contains molasses, especially if you use dark brown sugar with a higher molasses content.
  • Salt - add half the amount of salt if you are using regular table salt in place of Diamond Crystal kosher salt
  • Nuts - you can add nuts to the topping if you'd like. For example, chopped pecans would be really nice!
  • Oats - you can incorporate oats in the streusel, replacing a portion of flour with oats in the topping
• Always run a spatula around the sides of your mixer bowl between steps to ensure all the ingredients are properly mixed.
• Ripe berries are very delicate and will break down easily. Use a large spatula or wooden spoon to fold the berries into the cake batter gently. Do not use a mixer for this step.
• Toss blueberries in a small amount of flour (1 teaspoon) to coat them in flour, removing the excess. The flour will help anchor the berries in the cake batter and prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the cake.
• Remember to butter and flour your springform pan. You can also line the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment paper to ensure it's easy to unmould.
• Serve this blueberry cake for dessert with a scoop of ice cream. This cardamom ice cream or this lemon custard ice cream will pair especially well with this old-fashioned blueberry cake.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice of cake | Calories: 379kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 75mg | Sodium: 252mg | Potassium: 211mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 32g | Vitamin A: 481IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 86mg | Iron: 2mg

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Is there anything better than a freshly-baked blueberry scone during peak blueberry season? These blueberry scones are easy to make starting with a cream scone base that comes together quickly. If you've never made scones before, please read about how to make the best scones for all my tips and tricks.

The crunchy turbinado sugar topping sprinkled on before baking makes them completely irresistible! Serve them with butter or clotted cream and homemade blueberry jam.

Ingredients To Make Blueberry Scones

If you want to make cream scones with blueberries, you will need the following ingredients:

• all-purpose flour to bind the ingredients together and give the scones structure. If you don't use enough flour (or the right flour), your scones may spread too much as they bake
• granulated sugar though used sparingly in this recipe will help tenderize and preserve the scones so they don't dry out too fast
• baking powder is a complete chemical leavening agent that doesn't require any special ingredients to work, as long as you add moisture (in this case from butter and cream) and heat (when you bake the scones in the oven). Do not use baking soda, which requires adding an acid to help baked goods rise. Read up on baking soda vs baking powder if you are unsure of the difference
• salt is really important to enhance flavour and also balance it out. Don't skip it. I like to use Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt, but table salt will work, though the scones will be saltier and you may want to halve the salt in that case
• butter, preferably unsalted butter because you will add salt to the dough, but if you have salted, it will work. Just adjust the salt in the recipe accordingly, otherwise, your scones may be too salty
• fresh blueberries, though frozen will work here too. Use frozen blueberries straight from the freezer. Don't defrost them because they will release a lot of water, which will mess with the scone texture
• whipping cream (35 % fat) adds moisture and fat to the dough, leading to more tender and light scones that don't go stale too quickly.

See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Substitutions

With its simple list of ingredients, there isn't much room for substitutions when you make these eggless blueberry scones. Still, here are a few options:

• Fresh blueberries: I much prefer to use fresh blueberries but you can also use frozen. Do not allow them to defrost and work quickly so that you get the scones into the oven without giving the frozen berries a chance to thaw.
• All-purpose flour: If you prefer to use self-raising flour, use the same weight of flour, but omit the baking powder and salt since self-raising flour contains both. You may need to adjust the amount of liquid you use to form the dough as self-raising absorbs more liquid than all-purpose does.
• Cream: The liquid used to bring the dough together can be cream, milk, or buttermilk, but which one you use is entirely dependent on the chemical leaveners you will be using:
  • If you are using baking soda, you will want to use buttermilk, an acidic ingredient that will react with the leavener to help the scones rise.
  • If you use cream or milk, you'll want to use baking powder because it combines the acid needed with baking soda all in one complete powder.
  • If you want to make this scone recipe without cream and use milk instead of cream, this is how to do it: add an extra 58 grams (¼ cup) extra butter for a total of 173 grams (¾ cup) cold butter and replace all of the 35 % cream in the recipe with 250 mL (1 cup) milk (so slightly less milk than cream)

Variations

• Lemon blueberry: incorporate the zest of a lemon with the dry ingredients
• Orange blueberry: incorporate the zest of an orange with the dry ingredients
• Blueberry white chocolate chip: mix white chocolate chips or chopped white chocolate with the blueberries before adding the cream (these blueberry white chocolate cookies are a prime example of this flavour combo!)

As for garnishing these scones:

• Before baking, I like to brush the tops of unbaked scones with cream or milk (or an egg wash) and then sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Turbinado is a coarse golden cane sugar that adds a lovely crunch to the tops of baked goods, and a little sweetness. Please read about the different types of sugar used in baking for more information.
• After baking, you can drizzle the scones with a simple glaze made from milk and icing sugar, or you can make a lemon glaze from lemon juice and icing sugar (like the glaze on these lemon butter cookies).

How To Make This Recipe

Scones are fairly easy to make and the process of making scones is quite similar to making pie dough!

• Step 1: use your fingertips to work the diced cold butter into the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, salt). The mixture will resemble a coarse crumble (image 1).
• Step 2: Stir in the fresh blueberries (image 2). Make sure the blueberries are evenly distributed (image 3) before adding the liquid.
• Step 3: Add the cold cream and vanilla to the bowl (image 4). You can use a Danish dough whisk (or a wooden spoon) to stir everything together.

Pro Tip: Remember to keep the ingredients cold, especially the butter and the cream to avoid overworking the dough. If the dough is too warm, the scones will lose their shape as they bake.

• Step 4: Transfer the shaggy dough to a clean work surface. You can very lightly dust the surface with flour to prevent sticking (image 5).
• Step 5: Pat out the dough into a thick even rectangle (image 6)and then, use a ruler and a chef's knife or a metal bench scraper to cut the dough into 4 wide strips across the width (image 7).
• Step 6: Cut the dough crosswise into 12 equal portions (roughly 2x2 inches each) (image 8).

• Step 7: Transfer the scones to a parchment-lined half-sheet pan (image 9). You can brush the tops of the scones with a little cream and sprinkle with turbinado sugar before baking (image 10)
• Step 8: Bake the scones until golden brown (image 11).

More Scones To Bake

Looking for other scones to try? Here are a few to inspire you!

Other Recipes To Bake With Blueberries

Make the most of the season and bake these blueberry recipes:

• apple and blueberry crumble
• blueberry crumb cake
• blueberry jam
• best blueberry pie
• blueberry muffins with honey
• blueberry bran muffins (low sugar)
• blueberry rhubarb crisp
• blueberry oatmeal cookies with white chocolate
• blueberry hand pies

If you tried this recipe for scones with blueberries (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

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Scones with Blueberries

These tender blueberry scones are made with a traditional cream scones recipe made with butter and cream.

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Chill time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Servings 12

Calories 305kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• Sheet pan
• Danish dough whisk
• Bench scraper
• Pastry brush

Ingredients

• 375 grams bleached all-purpose flour
• 100 grams granulated sugar
• 15 mL baking powder
• 2.5 mL Diamond Crystal fine kosher salt
• 115 grams unsalted butter very cold, cut into small pieces
• 300 grams fresh blueberries
• 310 mL whipping cream (35 % fat) plus a little extra for brushing on the scones before baking
• 15 mL Turbinado sugar

Metric - US

Instructions

• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt.
• Drop the cold butter cubes into the dry ingredients, and press the cubes of butter into the flour with your fingertips to get large flour-covered flakes (approximately the size of corn flakes).
• Incorporate the blueberries carefully so that they don't burst.
• With a big fork or a Danish dough whisk, stir in the cold cream until the dough clumps (don’t over-mix it!). The dough should be a clumpy, floury mess at this point.
• Using your hands, press and gently squeeze the dough together, working it just enough to be able to gather the dough into a fat disk. Watch the blueberries!
• On a lightly floured surface, pat out the dough into a 10 x 7.5 inch rectangle.
• Cut the dough into 12 equal scones (2.5 x 2.5 inch squares).
• Place the scones on a parchment lined sheet pan, spaced out evenly. Chill for 15 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 400 °F (200 °C) while the scones are freezing.
• Just before baking, you can brush the tops of the scones with a little cream. Sprinkle with turbinado.
• Bake the scones for 25 to 30 minutes, until the edges and tops are golden brown. Serve warm

Notes

• For more information, please read about how to make the best scones before you get started!
• This scones recipe is made with all-purpose flour, also known as plain flour, which is why we have to add baking powder and salt to the dry ingredients. If you are in the UK or other countries that regularly use self-rising flour:
  • use 375 grams of self-rising flour and skip the baking powder and the salt in the recipe.
• Want to make this scone with whole milk instead of cream? This is how to do it:
  • Add 58 grams (¼ cup) extra butter for a total of 173 grams (¾ cup) cold butter and replace the 35 % cream in the dough with 250 mL (1 cup) of milk.
• This recipe calls for Diamond Crystal fine Kosher salt. If using regular table salt, add half the amount or the recipe may be too salty!

Nutrition

Calories: 305kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 56mg | Sodium: 93mg | Potassium: 179mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 619IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 78mg | Iron: 2mg

The post Scones with blueberries appeared first on The Bake School.

Ingredients to make the best blueberry jam

To make any jam at home, including blueberry jam, a lot of people are surprised that you don't need any special ingredients. The proof is this homemade blueberry jam only requires three ingredients to make:

• Fresh blueberries, ideally a mixture of wild and farmed blueberries in season
• Granulated sugar, but you can also go wild and try some alternative sugars, like brown sugar, or a combination of granulated sugar and honey or maple syrup.
• Lemon juice, which helps ensure the perfect set, balances out the sugar, and also makes sure the pH of preserves is safe for canning.

Ratio of fruit to sugar

You'll notice that we aren't using pectin in this recipe. Blueberries are quite high in pectin, especially when compared to other fruit used in jams, like rhubarb, which is very low in pectin.

The key to making preserves and jams that set properly without pectin is using the right ratio of fruit to sugar, and to boil the jam for long enough to evaporate the water. That evaporation concentrates the mixture, making it thicker, less fluid and thin.

For blueberry jam, I like to use a ratio of 2 parts fruit to 1 part sugar, by weight, so for 1 kilogram of prepared fruit, I use 500 grams of sugar. If you prefer to talk in percentages, 33 % of the total weight of ingredients is sugar and 67 % is fruit. There's also a quarter cup of lemon juice, and though lemon juice is an essential ingredient in homemade jams, the weight is pretty insignificant compared to the weight of sugar and fruit.

Key steps and techniques

Like with most jam recipes, the basic steps are all the same and you can use the same techniques to make blueberry jam at home:

• Prepare the fruit. You may have to wash or clean the fruit, sorting through it to remove any stems or leaves, but also to remove any fruit that isn't looking good. Berries that are past their prime won't make better jam, contrary to popular belief.
• Macerate the fruit with the sugar and lemon juice. Macerating helps the sugar dissolve, bringing some of the juices out of the fruit. Combined with heat, this step ensures that the pectin is released into the mixture, which will help ensure the perfect set.
• Boil the fruit until the jam setting point. You'll notice in the blueberry jam recipe below, this is done in two stages
  1. heat the mixture until the sugar dissolves, then remove a portion to blend it until smooth in a blender. Add the smooth purée back to the pot.
  2. boil the mixture until it reaches the jam setting point, around 102–103 ºC (or 215–217 ºF).
• Transfer to jars and seal, either by boiling the closed jars in boiling water for a full 10 minutes or by inverting the closed jars upside down for 3 minutes. For more information on canning, read this guide to home canning.

Ensuring the perfect set with the jam setting point

Have you ever made jam that is thin and runny, and seemingly lacking in flavour? It's likely you didn't boil the jam long enough to hit the jam setting point, the temperature where the jam has boiled for long enough that a good portion of the water has evaporated and the pectin can do its job of setting the jam texture so it's thick and not so fluid and liquid.

Remember fruit contains a lot of water. Blueberries are made up of over 80 % water, and once you heat the berries, the fruit burst and the water is released into the jam, making a very soupy preserve if you don't boil it for long enough.

With most jam recipes, it's hard to give a cooking time because some jams can take even an hour of boiling to achieve the perfect set. I boiled this batch of blueberry jam for 30 minutes, until it reached 103 ºC (217 ºF). I think I could have actually pushed it further and boiled it for longer, but I liked the taste and texture at this point so I proceeded to can it.

You could also boil a little less, to 102 ºC (215 ºF) but make sure that you let it boil to that jam setting temperature. The jam has to reach that temperature and maintain it for long enough to ensure the proper set. Recall, this is the same for marmalade, which also has to be boiled to a certain temperature to achieve the marmalade setting point.

Other methods for determining jam set

If you don't want to watch the temperature, there are other ways of determining if your jam will set once it's cooled down:

1. Watch the bubbles: you'll notice that the initial bubbles of boiling jam are very easily popped, they appear and disappear very quickly. The mixture is very fluid. When you approach the jam setting point, the bubbles will become more stable and appear like blinking fish eyes on the surface, more stable and less prone to popping so easily.
2. Watch the texture: lift your spatula or wooden spoon high up out of the pot of jam and watch the jam fall off. When the jam isn't cooked enough, it will run right off the spatula like water. The more it boils, the more viscous the jam will be and it will drip down off the raised spatula more slowly and some will even gel on the end
3. Do a plate test by dolloping a small ½ teaspoon amount on a frozen plate. Return the plate to the freezer for 30 seconds to a minute, then push the edge of the dollop with your fingertip. It should wrinkle. If it doesn't wrinkle and the dollop appears very fluid/liquid, you need to cook the jam more.
4. Observe how the jam behaves as its boiling: the more you evaporate off the water and concentrate the mixture of fruit and sugar, the more viscous and thick the jam becomes. It will become very glossy and it will spit at you and even burn your arms with dollops of boiling jam that shoot out of the pot at you.

Special equipment for making jam at home

I highly recommend investing in a canning kit made up of the smaller tools you will need in order to properly seal your jars, including a magnet to transfer the clean lids to the jars to avoid contamination, as well as a headspace measuring tool to make it easier to verify that you are filling the jars correctly, and a non-reactive funnel that will help you fill the jars without spilling and without dirtying the edges (which would ruin the seal!).

The kit should also come with jar lifters which are so helpful when moving the jars in and out of the water bath! You will also need a big pot preferably with a rack, like this one on Amazon, in order to boil the jars of marmalade for 10 minutes.

In order to achieve the perfect texture, it's very important to boil marmalade just enough so that it is thick, but not so much that the peel becomes chewy. A thermometer like a fast-reading Thermapen helps judge how far along you are in the cooking process and works perfectly with this recipe and method. The Thermapen is what I use. For a hands-free setup, a probe thermometer with a longer cable like the ChefAlarm would be better because then you don't have to hold it with your hands, which would be much less dangerous to use than my hand-held setup.

Jam-Making FAQs

What to Eat With Blueberry Jam

Blueberry jam is a little unusual in that most people immediately think of strawberry jam and orange marmalade when they think about homemade preserves. I'm here to tell you that blueberry jam is a real treat and very special because it has such a unique, delicate flavour.

If you've ever wondered what to use blueberry jam for, I highly recommend serving it on toast with cream cheese spread thick. Blueberry jam is also great with blue cheese or even goat cheese (if you are a fan). You can also serve blueberry jam with savoury meats, like pork (which is traditionally served with apple sauce).

Of course, you can also use it as a filling for these delicious jam-filled shortbread cookies. Or just spoon it over yogurt or homemade ice cream, like this cardamom ice cream!

More Blueberry Recipes

Blueberry season spans much of the summer. Besides jam, I always make a point of baking with them, making a lattice top blueberry pie, this easy blueberry crumb cake (topped with cinnamon streusel) and, of course, blueberry muffins sweetened with honey.

If you tried this recipe for the best small-batch blueberry jam (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!

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Blueberry Jam

Learn how to make this easy blueberry jam with just three ingredients and no pectin! It's boiled to the jam setting point to ensure the perfect set.

Course Preserve

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Maceration time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes

Servings 80 tablespoons

Calories 38kcal

Author Janice Lawandi

Equipment

• Big pot
• Canning kit
• Mason jars
• Wooden spoon

Ingredients

• 1.2 kg fresh blueberries washed and picked over to remove any stems
• 600 grams granulated sugar
• 60 mL fresh lemon juice

Metric - US

Instructions

• Mix the berries with the sugar, lemon juice in a large bowl.
• Cover the mixture and let the berries macerate for at least 30 minutes. Stir every so often to help the sugar dissolve. You can also leave them to macerate in the fridge overnight to make jam the next day.
• Transfer the macerated fruit and all the juices into a big pot and place the pot with the macerated berries on the stove. Heat on medium, uncovered, stirring every so often.
• Once the sugar is completely dissolved, turn off the stove and take the pot off the burner.
• Ladle a third of the jam mixture into a blender jar, cover partly, then blend until smooth. Transfer the blended mixture back to the pot.
• Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring with a wooden spoon to help distribute the heat.
• When the jam comes to a boil, continue cooking it until it hits the jam setting point, around 102-103 °C (215–217 °F).
• Take the pot off the stove. Let stand 2 minutes then stir well to distribute the fruit.
• Divide the jam among the jars, leaving a ¼ inch headspace. Remove air bubbles, wipe the rims clean, then cover with the lids, fingertight. If any of the jars aren't filled full, don't seal them. Instead you can cover them and enjoy them right away, storing in the fridge.
• Seal the closed jars according to the manufacturers recommendations using a water bath canning kit. I used Bernardin jars and I boiled my jam jars for 10 minutes to seal them.
• Remove from the canner. Let sit 24 hours undisturbed before storing them in the pantry.

Notes

This recipe makes 4–5 small jars (of 250 mL  (1 cup) each)

Make sure to sterilize your jars by washing them well and then heating them on a sheet pan in the oven at 250 ºF for at least 30 minutes. Ladle the hot jam into the hot jars.

Nutrition

Calories: 38kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 12mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 8IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 1mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Blueberry Jam appeared first on The Bake School.