I am not a big fan of the food section of my local paper. In fact, I am not a fan at all. I read it every Wednesday just to see which recipe will cause me to roll my eyes the most. Sometimes I even post LOL comments on my Facebook page. It’s THAT bad. Occasionally, there are recipes that don’t cause me to roll my eyes. They cause me to fall asleep. LOL. Just kidding! NOT! Sometimes there are recipes I think aren’t too bad, but rarely am I inspired to try one. Then, last Wednesday there was a recipe that hit me over the head and hollered, “Try me, try me”. The recipe was “Mocha Cream Cheese Brownies”, and I did roll my eyes before I tried it. Not because the recipe was bad, it was really very good (as you have probably guessed based on the picture above). I rolled my eyes because the name of the brownie was wrong. I’ve had cream cheese brownies, bars, breads, muffins. The cream cheese is mixed with a bit of sugar and perhaps an egg, then layered in with the batter. When baked, you get a nice layer of cream cheese. This is NOT a cream cheese brownie. It’s a cheesecake brownie. There’s a world of difference. A world of yummy difference.
I baked the brownies, as directed, in a 9×9 pan. I won’t do that again. The brownies were too tall. They were so tall they were hard to get into my mouth! And, I had to bake the brownies 15 minutes more than the recipe suggested to get the cheesecake layer to set. Now I think they the size if the baking pan was wrong in the recipe (or maybe I just know better!). Next time I will bake these Mocha CheeseCAKE Brownies in a 9×13 pan and then the suggested baking time will probably be spot on.
About one third of my pan of brownies is in the freezer right now. I think they will freeze very well. Brownies freeze well. Cheesecake freezes well. Why not Cheesecake Brownies? If they don’t freeze well, I will update this post…but I am pretty sure that won’t be necessary.
This recipe was published in the San Jose Mercury News on Wednesday, October 5 as “Mocha-Cream Cheese Brownies” and attributed to Emly Luchetti, “The Fearless Baker”.
Mocha Cheesecake Brownies
Brownie Layer
- 9 oz. dark chocolate (58-62% cacao)
- 10 tablespoons butter, cubed
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 eggs
- 3/4 cup flour
- large pinch Kosher salt
Cheesecake Layer
- 16 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons instant coffee granules or instant espresso powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease a pan, your choice, a 9 inch square pan (as the original recipe originally specified), or as I suggest, a 9×13 oblong pan.
- Place the chopped chocolate and the cubed butter into a microwaveable bowl. Melt the chocolate and the butter in the microwave. (I did this on 50% power for three minutes, stirring after every minute.) Let the chocolate cool to room temperature. (You can get the rest of the ingredients for the brownie layer ready to go and also make the cheesecake layer while waiting for the chocolate mixture to cool) (Skip step #4 and come back to it when the chocolate has cooled.)
- Whisk 1 cup sugar and 3 eggs together until smooth. Stir in the melted and cooled chocolate. Add in the flour and the salt and mix until well blended.
- Mix the cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar together until smooth. Blend in the two eggs, and then the instant coffee and the vanilla.
- Pour the brownie batter into the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread the cheesecake layer on top of the brownie layer. Swirl the cheesecake layer and the brownie layer together (use a spoon or a knife–don’t over swirl)
- Bake in 350 degree oven for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (I had to bake mine–in a 9×9 pan for an additional 15 minutes)
- Cool to room temperature. Cut into bars. Serve.
Thanks for stopping by my kitchen today. Have fun with these brownies. They are deeelicious!