Wow, I am only 3 days into the new term and I am already exhausted! Hopefully, I just need a few days to get used to my new schedule, and it won’t be like this for the next 12 weeks. I think the worst part is that every day I spend a couple hours in class, then walk over to work for a few hours, then walk back to campus for another class, it just seems like it never ends. At least my classes seem to be fun(ish). I guess I will be getting to know Excel very well. I’m taking Crime Analysis, which apparently is not as exciting as it sounds! It basically means I get to sort through crime data in Excel, which while not hard, will certainly be tedious. Oh well, I’m sure you aren’t here to listen to me complain, so now on to these delightful brownies!
These brownies are probably one of the best desserts that have come out of my kitchen lately. I love cheesecake, and I love chocolate, so it makes perfect sense that together they would be amazing. The tang of the cheesecake swirl helps to offset some of the sweetness of the brownie, which made it even easier to eat a ton!
This recipe is extremely forgiving. I learned that the hard way. I decided to double this recipe to take some in to work, and apparently wasn’t paying very much attention. Not only did I leave out half of the eggs, I completely forgot to put them in until I had added in the dry ingredients. It all worked out in the end though. I was really relieved that they did, I was worried that I had wasted all of those ingredients. The instruction bellow reflect the correct amount of eggs, and the correct order J.
I definitely plan to make these again this weekend to help recover from my first week back in class!!!
Cheesecake Brownies
For the Brownies:
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
8 tablespoons (½ cup) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 eggs
For the Cream Cheese Filling:
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan. Place two strips of foil in the pan, creating a few inches of overhang on either side. Butter the foil; set aside.
Whisk the flour, salt and baking powder together in a small bowl; set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine the chocolate and butter. Melt in a double boiler or microwave in 30-second increments at 50% power, stirring after each, until completely melted and smooth. Whisk in the sugar and vanilla extract; allow the mixture to cool slightly. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Continue whisking until the mixture is completely smooth. Add the dry ingredients and whisk until just incorporated.
Make the cream cheese filling by beating the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and egg yolk together in a small bowl until evenly blended.
Pour half the brownie batter into the prepared pan, spreading it in an even layer. Drop half the cream cheese mixture, by spoonfuls, over the batter. Repeat, layering the remaining brownie batter and cream cheese filling. Use a butter knife to gently swirl the brownie batter and cream cheese filling, creating a marbled effect.
Bake until the edges of the brownies have puffed slightly, the center feels not quite firm when touched lightly, and a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out with several moist, fudgy crumbs adhering to it, 50 to 60 minutes.
Cool the brownies in a pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove the brownies from the pan using the foil handles. Place the brownies on a wire rack; allow them to cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours. Cut into squares and serve. The brownies can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
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