Who puts raisins in brownies?

...the cost of handmade.

Jump to the recipe…

I had a lot of plans for what I was going to make when I opened Sugar Couture as a retail bakery. I thought about all the things I loved, and wanted to see them take their place in the cases. I loved a Chunky bar. The small, square brick of thick milk chocolate packed with roasted peanuts and raisins, wrapped in silver. Perfection. So when I thought about making brownies for the shop, I dreamed up a brownie inspired by the satisfying sense memory of biting into that thick milk chocolate and the surprise of the soft, chewy raisin. Brownie flavors rotated with seasons and whims, but this was the signature flavor at the launch.

One very busy Saturday morning, at the height of the days rush, a woman approached me at the counter. Loaded with sarcasm and drenched with disdain, she pointed to the small case of hand made bon bons and said “is this really $1.75? I can go across the street and buy two candy bars for that!” The store was busy and buzzing, and for a moment I forgot myself. I answered that yes it was, but I did it in the same mostly nasty tone she had directed at me.

Days later, a Yelp review appeared. A mysterious, anonymous person complained about the audacity of the cost of hand made coverture chocolate bon bons, and followed it up with “And they put raisins in the brownies! Who puts raisins in brownies????”

I chuckle each time I repeat that line. “Who puts raisins in brownies?” has been an inside joke ever since.

I will never convince someone of the value of this work who hasn’t already discovered that for themselves. To some, its sugar flour and butter, and a little chocolate. To me, its a desire to share something I love, lovingly made. Maybe she didn’t realize she was speaking to the person who made these chocolates, who worked for years to get those doors open. It might not have made a difference if she had.

Instead of the detached customer service provider I should have been playing that morning, I showed up as the rejected artist. This was not quality customer service. This was a lesson.

I stand behind the Chunky inspired brownies.

---

Have a burning baking question?