Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies

So apparently people love cheesecake, people love brownies, and people LOVE when the two are combined! Who knew?

This experiment went perfectly. It was like the stars aligned just for me! And it was surprisingly simple, too.

Thanks to treats like this, people at work are constantly asking me now if I'm going to open up my own shop. Maybe I should! It'd be SO fun!
And to be honest, I really don't have any helpful tips on making these! Follow the directions, and you're pretty much set. The one thing I would suggest is letting the butter sit out to room temperature (which the recipe doesn't say to do) because it made the cheesecake mixture a little more lumpy than I felt it should be.

These are SUCH an easy way to impress people, too!
But the recipe calls for it to be put in an 8" cake pan, so you don't get a lot of brownies. You'll definitely have to a) make two batches at once, or b) make small brownies.

I'm getting good at marbling!

Chocolate Cheesecake Brownie Recipe:

• For Cheesecake Mixture
• 1 egg
• 1- 8oz package "full-fat" cream cheese
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• For Brownie Mixture
• 4oz dark chocolate (Recipe says "minimum 70% cocoa solids -- I used 60% and it worked fine)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (Softened!)
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Preparation

• Preheat the oven to 325°
• Line the base/sides of an 8" cake tin with parchment paper, or grease the base/sides.
• Cheesecake mixture -- Beat the egg in a mixing bowl.
• Add the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla extract. "Beat until smooth and creamy."
• Set bowl aside for later.
• Brownie mixture -- Melt the chocolate and butter together in the microwave, or by using a double-boiler.
• Stir well to mix, and add brown sugar. Mix.
• Add the eggs a little at a time and beat well.
• Gently stir in the flour.
• Spread 2/3 of the brownie mixture over the base of the tin.
• Spread the cheesecake mixture on top. (The easiest was the 'blob' method for me, of putting it down in blobs and then just sort of pushing it around until the brownie was covered.)
• Spoon the remaining brownie mixture (or a LITTLE less, since the brownie seemed to overwhelm the cheesecake a bit) in blobs on top of the cheesecake.
• Using a skewer (or in my case, popsicle stick) swirl together to create a marbled effect.
• Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until just set in the center.
• Do NOT overcook! After about 25 (my oven cooks hot) I checked on it until I was satisfied with it.
• Leave to cool in the tin, and then cut into squares.

And I can't say it enough. These are VERY simple, and VERY impressive. Use it to your advantage if you want to make someone say "Hey, that person is awesome!"