The Chocolate Raspberry sauce calls for unsweetened cocoa powder which contains a lot less oil than chocolate. I make Christine Ferber's Raspberries with Chocolate (with real chocolate) and it keeps fine for at least a year and usually longer. The problem I have with conserves is not that the nut oils go rancid, but the nuts get soft and mushy. I'd rather sprinkle on some fresh toasted ones, but that's just me. I looked in some of my other canning books, and didn't find anything referring to shelf life of items containing nuts or chocolate. A few did specifically mention to keep conserves in a cool pantry, but the shelf life was still listed as a year. Just curious, where did you hear the "6 months" rule?

This sounds yummy, I think it's a keeper

The Australian version, provided by Kellogg's on many packets of their Nutri-grain product. The nuts of the title are of course peanuts, the bolts are the shape of the cereal product. I have made this countless times. Sometimes I've added a packet of dried French Onion Soup to the mixture. Nuts and Bolts 250g butter 2 tablespoons oil 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce 1 teaspoon garlic salt 1 teaspoon paprika 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 500g KelloggÂs Nutri-Grain 500g salted mixed nuts Melt butter and oil together over low heat, add Worcestershire sauce, garlic salt, paprika and cayenne. Combine Nutri-Grain and nuts, place in a large baking dish. Pour butter mixture over and bake at 125C for about 1 hour, turning every 15 minutes with an egg slice. Cool. Store in an airtight container. Tried to find a decent picture of the cereal, to no avail. The link has a pic of sorts. Here is a link that might be useful: nutri-grain

I usually post on The Diet Chat, but since these aren't diet-friendly LOL, I am posting them here. They are quick and easy and look good. PECAN CARAMEL BROWNIE CUPS 18-22 individually wrapped choc. covered caramels (Milky Way Chocolate Covered Caramels work best!) Mini-fluted foil or paper baking cup liners ½ C butter (1 stick) 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped (I use the pre-melted NestléÂs*) 1 C sugar 1 tsp. vanilla 2 large eggs ½ C flour ¼ tsp. salt Pecan halves 1 bar (1.55 oz.) milk chocolate (optional) 1. Preheat oven to 350º F. Unwrap caramels and cut each in half with sharp knife. Line mini muffin tins with paper or foil liners. (Make sure to use liners in muffin cups; brownies will stick to pan, even if well greased.) 2. In large microwave-safe bowl, melt butter with unsweetened chocolate in microwave oven on High 1 minute; stir until smooth. (*30 sec. On high if using the pre-melted choc.) 3. With wire whisk, beat sugar, vanilla and eggs into melted chocolate mixture until blended. Whisk in flour and salt until smooth. Spoon batter by rounded measuring teaspoons into prepared muffin-pan cups. Top each with a caramel half and a pecan half (or quarter), lightly pressing caramel into the batter. 4. Bake brownie cups 10-12 minutes or until brownies are firm when lightly pressed. Do not over cook or they will be dry. Cool brownies in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on rack. 5. In microwave-safe cup, melt milk chocolate in microwave oven on High 45 seconds; stir until smooth. Cool slightly. Place brownies on wax paper lined cookie sheet. Pour milk chocolate into small self-sealing plastic bag. Snip 1 corner to make a 1/16-inch opening and drizzle chocolate over brownies. Refrigerate brownies 30 minutes or until chocolate is set. Store brownies in tightly covered container, with waxed paper between layers, at room temperature up to 1 week, or in freezer up to 3 months. Makes 36  44 mini brownie cups. You could melt white chocolate to drizzle over the top to give them a different look. Or tint the white chocolate green or red for a festive look.