Thursday, June 7, 2007

Cheesecake-Marbled Brownies

This was the one and only recipe I ripped from the June 2007 issue of Gourmet magazine. (The June issue was actually a pretty good one, but since I don't have much time to cook these days and since I don't have a grill, that limited a lot of the issue's recipes.) As much as I've tried not to bake (and cook) too much so I can focus on packing and other Vancouver-related things, I just knew I had to make these (and since I had all of the ingredients on hand, there was no reason not to whip up a batch). I made the recipe as written with the exception of using 1/3-less-fat cream cheese instead of full-fat cream cheese. I also baked them for 40 minutes instead of 35 since I am not a fan of fudgey brownies. These are excellent. They are slightly fudgey in the middle but overall they are more of a very dense, chewy brownie. At first, I thought that the recipe may have called for too much cream cheese batter to swirl into an 8-inch pan full of brownie batter, but I quickly realized that the brownie/cheesecake ratio is perfectly proportioned. I like a slightly larger brownie, so I cut these into 12 brownies. Next time, I will cut them into 16 brownies, though, because they are quite rich (and filling).

If you've never made cheesecake brownies before, put some (or all) of these in the freezer and eat them straight from the freezer whenever your sweet tooth needs a "fix". This is hands-down my favorite way to eat brownies. (Note to self: Give remaining 10 brownies away tomorrow so you don't eat them all.)

Enjoy!!!

Cheesecake-Marbled Brownies

Source: Gourmet - Quick Kitchen - June 2007

Two adored classics come together in this dessert lover's superbrownie.

For brownie batter
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2/3 cup all-purpose flour

For cheesecake batter
8 ounces cream cheese, well softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 large egg yolk
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Make brownie batter:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan.

Heat butter and chocolate in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, whisking occasionally, just until melted. Remove from heat and whisk in sugar, eggs, vanilla, and a pinch of salt until well combined. Whisk in flour until just combined and spread in baking pan.

Make cheesecake batter and bake brownies:
Whisk together cheesecake batter ingredients in a small bowl until smooth. Dollop over brownie batter, then swirl in with a knife or spatula.

Bake until edges are slightly puffed and center is just set, about 35 minutes.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 16 brownies.

 
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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have been eying that recipe. Now, with your amazing ooey gooey photo, I will have to make those this week! They look incredible.

Mindy said...

Kristen,

Go make them NOW. They are so yummy!!!