Festive, Flavorful Gifts

(Family Features) Food is a gift from the heart. It’s one-size-fits-all, and you don’t need to fight the crowds at the mall or worry about blowing your budget. Whether for holiday presents or hostess gifts, receiving something homemade is truly what the season is about: sharing comfort and good cheer.

For a festive twist to your delectable goodies, look no further than your freezer. Aside from their bright, joyful color, frozen red raspberries’ sweet and tart flavors make them versatile from a culinary standpoint, complementing and enhancing a wide range of ingredients. These jubilant rubies are also nutritional powerhouses, boasting the most fiber and the lowest natural sugar content compared to other berries.

Fun, Festive, Frozen Raspberries

Not only do raspberries lend the perfect seasonal hue to homemade gifts from the kitchen, these bright red berries offer numerous nutritional and other benefits, according to Lisa Samuel, RDN, MBA of NourishRDs.com. Frozen raspberries, which are available year-round, offer:

• 80 calories per cup, with no added sugar or preservatives
• More fiber than any other berry at 9 grams per cup
• One of the lowest in natural sugar content compared to other berries
• High in vitamin C, providing 60 percent of the Recommended Daily Value per cup
• Convenience and consistent quality right out of the freezer, with no waste or spoilage
• Frozen at peak ripeness

These recipes are sure to warm your friends’ and family members’ hearts with the taste of the holidays. Find more recipes worth sharing this holiday season at redrazz.org.

Raspberry Greek Yogurt Bark

Recipe courtesy of NourishRDs.com.

• 2 cups plain, reduced-fat (2%) Greek yogurt
• 1 lemon, zest only
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 cup frozen raspberries
• 1/2 cup shelled pistachios
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds

1. Line small baking pan with aluminum foil.
2. In medium bowl, combine first 3 ingredients. Stir until well incorporated.
3. Add berries, pistachios and almonds to mixture. Fold in until well incorporated. Spread mixture in baking pan and place in freezer for about 2-3 hours, or until hardened.
4. Once hardened, remove bark from pan and either cut or break up into pieces. Allow to thaw about 5 minutes before eating.

Notes, Tips & Suggestions:

Store remaining bark in freezer. You can experiment with any ingredients you have on hand, such as frozen cherries with dark chocolate chunks, frozen blueberries with unsweetened flaked coconut or dried cranberries with pecans.

Red Raspberry Fruit Leather

• 1 (12 ounce) package frozen red raspberries, thawed
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar or honey
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

1. Heat oven to 170 degrees F.
2. Line two baking pans with parchment paper or silicone mats.
3. Combine all ingredients in blender and puree until smooth. Pour raspberry mixture on both pans and smooth into thin layer, less than 1/8-inch thick.
4. Bake for 3 hours or until mixture is no longer wet, but still slightly tacky, rotating every hour and alternating levels.
5. Cool pans on wire rack to room temperature.
6. Remove parchment paper (if using), place on cutting board and cut (or tear) into chip-size pieces.
7. Store with fresh pieces of parchment paper between fruit leather layers in airtight container.

Anytime Pumpkin-Raspberry Muffins

Batter

• 1 cup frozen unsweetened red raspberries
• 1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 3 egg whites
• 1 tablespoon grated orange rind
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 ounces chopped pecans, toasted

Muffin Topping

• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Anytime Pumpkin-Raspberry Muffins: Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Coat 12 nonstick muffin tins with cooking spray and set aside.
3. Place frozen raspberries on counter to thaw slightly while preparing muffins.
4. In medium bowl, stir together flour, brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.
5. In another medium bowl, stir together remaining muffin ingredients, except raspberries.
6. Stir pumpkin mixture into flour mixture until blended. Do not over mi.
7. Spoon equal amounts of batter into each muffin tin. Place equal amounts of raspberries on top of each muffin.
8. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted comes out almost clean.
9. Meanwhile in small bowl, combine topping ingredients and set aside.
10. Remove muffins from oven, place on wire rack and immediately sprinkle with topping. Let stand 15 minutes to continue to cook and absorb flavors.
11. Remove muffins from pan and cool completely on wire rack before storing.
12. Store cooled leftovers in airtight container in refrigerator up to 48 hours or freeze up to 1 month.

Notes, Tips & Suggestions:

May make as mini muffins: bake for 15 minutes in 12 muffin tins.

Raspberry Salsa

• 1 Pink Lady or other tart-sweet apple, cored and diced
• 2 cups peeled jicama, diced
• 1/3 cup raspberry vinegar
• 1 medium jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
• 3 green onions, sliced
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• 1 (12 ounce) bag frozen raspberries

1. In large bowl, toss apple and jicama with vinegar.
2. Add all remaining ingredients and toss to blend.
3. Serve at once or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Source: National Processed Raspberry Council