Raspberry Crumble Squares

Okay, so I think it's been a while since I mentioned how much I love and adore the Stonewall Kitchen Cookbook, and pretty much anything that Stonewall Kitchen makes.  As you may remember from earlier posts, I pretty much keeled over with excitement the first time I saw this:

In this case, however, I went for something that actually didn't involve chocolate, if you can believe that!  This recipe is a quick and easy one that is all about raspberries...and it works PERFECTLY with the frozen bags of raspberries you can get in the supermarket freezer section, and that is exactly what I used.  What's basically going on here is this: you make a super-simple shortbread recipe - flour, sugar and butter - and bake it until it is just set.  Then you heat up some raspberry jam just until it is melted, and you brush it onto the shortbread. (I used the spectacular Stonewall Kitchen variety.  Of course.)  Sprinkle on those raspberries, and then top the whole thing with a crumble topping of butter, flour and brown sugar.

Now pop it in the oven until the whole thing is golden brown and bubbling.  The next part is definitely the hardest: having the self-control to wait until it is fully cooled before you cut it into little squares fo raspberry heaven.  Now, these guys are very delicate and fragile and, well, crumbly when they are at room temperature, which is perfectly fine, but if you prefer your raspberry crumble squares a little less crumbly, they are equally wonderful cold.

That's my Stonewall Kitchen fix for today...but I'm still working my way through this fabulous cookbook, so I will probably be back, Stonewall Kitchen-wise.

Raspberry Crumble Squares, from Stonewall Kitchen Favorites

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sifted confectioner's sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 sticks cold butter, cut into 8 pieces

• 1/2 cup raspberry jam
• 4 cups fresh or frozen raspberries
• 3 tablespoons flour

• 1 stick cold butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup brown sugar

1. Preheat oven to 375.  Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, confectioner's sugar, salt and butter in food processor and pulse about 30 times, until the butter is the size of small peas or smaller.  Sprinkle the mixture into an ungreased 9 x 13 inch pan.  Press into the bottom of the pan and about 1/2 inch up the sides.  Bake for 10-12 minutes or until firm and just beginning to brown.

2. Melt the jam in a small saucepan over medium heat until thinned and liquified.  In a medium bowl, mix the berries with 3 tablespoons flour until well coated.

3. For the topping, combine 1 stick cubed butter, 1 cup flour and brown sugar in food processor  and pulse until the mixture comes together.  

4. When the shortbread comes out of the oven, spread the liquid jam over the crust.  Sprinkle the berries and any remaining flour on top of the jam.  Sprinkle the brown sugar topping over all.  Return to oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden.

5. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting into squares.  Serve room temperature or cold.

Click here for printable recipe