Enjoy your Raspberries without any seeds

Since all my jellies start out as a bottle of wine I was very excited to find my Raspberry. It comes from the Chatham Hill winery near Raleigh, NC. Now don't get me wrong, I love fresh raspberries but I hate the seeds. Now I can enjoy all the flavor of fresh raspberries without having to grab the floss.

My raspberry wine jelly has many great uses so it was tough to pick one to feature but I finally settled on one of my favorites that I like to make for breakfast on the weekends. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Raspberry Coffee Cake

1/3 Cup sugar                                                    1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 Cup Cornstarch                                            1/2 Cup sugar
3/8 Cup cold water                                             3/4 teaspoon salt
1.5 oz Aunt Bunny's Raspberry Wine Jelly.      1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 Cup frozen raspberries                                    1/2 Cup butter, softened
1 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice                                 1 egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 Cup all purpose flour                                 1/2 Cup milk
                                                                            1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.

In a saucepan over medium low heat, combine1/3 cup sugar, cornstarch and water. Stir until cornstarch and sugar have dissolved. Add jelly and stir until well combined. Add raspberries and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Continue to cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat, stir in lemon juice and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and cinnamon. Add butter and mix using an electric mixer on low speed until well combined.

Mix in egg, milk and vanilla.

Grease and flour an 8 inch round cake pan. Pour 1/2 of the batter into the cake pan. Spread raspberry mixture over batter. Top with remaining batter.

Bake 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle come out clean. Remove from oven and cool slightly before removing from pan.

Makes 6-8 servings

Blueberries are not just for muffins!

There is a family owned Vineyard in Albemarle NC called the Dennis Vineyard. They have a wide variety of wines but today I want to talk about their Blueberry. This wine is made from the best available blueberries. They do not blend their blueberries with any grapes so the wine is very true to the flavor of the fruit.

I use this wine when making my Blueberry Wine Jelly. I have been told it is better than Smuckers! So I know what your thinking - what do I do with Blueberry Wine Jelly. Well besides the obvious of putting it on toast, crackers or a sandwich, check out the recipe below courtesy of the Cookbook "Eat, Drink and have Jelly".

CORN AND BLUEBERRY SALAD

6 ears of corn; husks removed and cleaned
1 cup fresh blueberries
4oz Aunt Bunny's Blueberry Wine Jelly, melted and slightly cooled
1/2 cup red onion; diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro; chopped
1 jalapeño; seeded and minced
3 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat grill to medium high heat. Grill corn until lightly charred on all sides. Allow to cool slightly then remove corn from cob.

In a bowl, combine corn, blueberries, jelly, red onion, cilantro, jalapeño, lime juice and olive oil. Stir well to combine.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour before serving.

Makes 4-6 servings