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Cheesecake Chocolate Brownies

Cheesecake Chocolate Brownies

Ever since Deb at smitten kitchen posted her recipe for cheesecake marbled chocolate brownies, I’ve been trying to come up with an excuse to make them myself.

Then when the Ali P & mango bake fest was drawing to an end on Friday night, we desperately sought excuses to keep the sugar high going, and I was delighted when she mumbled, “I’ve always wanted to try a good cheesecake swirl brownie recipe”. Well, look at that, I just happen to have a recipe!

Recipe adapted from the original smittenkitchen.com post, which was from Gourmet in 2007.

You will need

Brownies

  • 4 oz. unsalted butter (1 stick)
  • 3 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped coarsely – I used extra-bitter Lindt couvertures because I really didn’t want the chocolate taste to be too sweet
  • 5 oz. granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tbsp. instant coffee granules
  • 1 oz. cocoa powder
  • 3.5 oz. all-purpose flour

Cheesecake

  • 8 oz. (1 pkg) cream cheese at room temperature
  • 3 oz. sugar
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Putting it together

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter and flour a 8″ pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper
  2. Melt the butter and the chocolate carefully together in a microwave, or over a double boiler. Add in the coffee granules when it is warm
  3. Whisk in sugar, vanilla, eggs, cocoa powder, and flour one at a time, until everything is well combined
  4. Pour brownie mixture into the prepared pan, smooth out the top slightly, and set aside
  5. In an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, or with a handheld mixer, mix together all of the ingredients for the cheesecake, beating until it is smooth and the sugar’s fully incorporated and the mixture feels light and fluffy when scraping down with a spatula
  6. Drop the cheesecake batter in dollops on top of the brownie batter. Use a small paring knife or spatula, swirl in the cheesecake batter
  7. Cheesecake Chocolate BrowniesCheesecake Chocolate Brownies

  8. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes, until the mixture is set enough that when you remove it, nothing jiggles like Jell-O
  9. Cool in tray. I put it in the fridge overnight, loosely covered, before slicing into squares.

The brownies are dense, chocolate-y, and chewy, and the cheesecake is just the right sweetness that it doesn’t overpower the brownies. We made quite a few adjustments to the brownies (they’re not the typical Ali P recipe), because the original recipe was just a little too sweet for me. I wanted something more like a dark chocolate brownie on the bottom, so the sugars were called down and I also intensified the chocolate flavour with a dash of coffee and some cocoa powder for good measure. Enjoy!

Cheesecake Chocolate Brownies

{ 7 comments… add one }
  • VancityAllie Monday 21 September 2009, 20:12

    Mmmmmmmmmmmmm… Sandy those look so good.

    When I finally figure out whatever food allergies I have, I am definitely going to try baking these. Yum! Sounds like I have the same food palate as you as well.. I think your adjustments are key :)

  • Michelle Tuesday 22 September 2009, 15:40

    My favorite brownies growing up were cream cheese brownies my mom made. These look just like those did. And they sound delicious.

  • oneshotbeyond Tuesday 22 September 2009, 17:54

    love how these look…so pretty!

  • mango Tuesday 22 September 2009, 21:58

    Thanks everyone!

    Allie – I have to admit, I didn’t do the swirling in the photos, and I just tried doing it for a batch I’m making for the office…didn’t turn out so well. I think there might be a trick to that I need to learn!

    Michelle – the cream cheese part was my favourite because it doesn’t taste like a super-dense NY style cheesecake, but more like a fluffy Cheesecake Factory cheesecake.

    oneshotbeyond – love your photos! I wish I needed a photographer in LA so I could work with you!

  • The Anthology Saturday 26 September 2009, 19:57

    Ohhhhh boy. Those look dangerous. I could go for one (or a few) right about now.

    * Kelsey

  • liz Tuesday 25 January 2011, 15:22

    hi there! just found your website through Jenn Stark’s post about your save the dates – then i saw these! needless to say i had a busy afternoon seeing if i could whip them up – they smell DELICIOUS! thanks for posting! *liz

    • mango Tuesday 25 January 2011, 23:05

      Oh I am so excited! Eating healthy for 6 days of the week really has me craving chocolate constantly. I hope it worked out!

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