I used to think the swirl was decoration. It isn’t. The cream cheese layer cuts through all that cocoa, and without it a pan of brownies this fudgy gets heavy by the third square.
This is the from scratch version, made in a 9×9 pan. One bowl for the brownie batter, one small bowl for the cheesecake, and a knife to drag through the top. Twenty minutes of work.
There’s a box shortcut further down for the nights you can’t face measuring anything. You’ll also learn a red velvet version and a few other ways to use the same swirl.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Cheesecake brownies give you two textures in one square. Dense chocolate underneath, cool tangy cheesecake sitting on top, and that contrast is really the whole point of making them this way.
They also cut beautifully, once chilled.
The batter needs no mixer at all, though the cream cheese wants either a hand mixer or a very determined whisk. Lumps in the filling turn into white specks after baking, and they never disappear once they’re there.
Cheesecake Brownies Ingredients & Substitutions
Use block cream cheese, full fat, softened on the counter for a good hour before you start. The tub kind carries too much water, and the filling never really sets on top of a wet brownie batter.
| Ingredients | Amount | Substitution or Note |
| Unsalted butter | ¾ cup (170 g), melted | Salted, then halve the salt |
| Granulated sugar | 1¼ cups (250 g) | Don’t reduce it |
| Cocoa powder | ¾ cup (75 g) | Dutch-process is darker |
| Large eggs | 3, plus 1 for the filling | Room temperature |
| Vanilla extract | 2 teaspoons, divided | Optional but good |
| All-purpose flour | 1 cup (125 g) | Plus 1 tbsp for the filling |
| Salt | ½ teaspoon | Brings out the chocolate |
| Cream cheese | 8 oz (226 g) | Block, full fat, softened |
| Sugar for the filling | ⅓ cup (67 g) | Granulated, not powdered |
- Room temperature cream cheese. Cold cheese will not go smooth no matter how long you beat it, and the filling ends up grainy.
- That tablespoon of flour in the filling. It stops the cheesecake layer cracking as it cools, and you won’t taste it.
- Don’t over-swirl. Six or seven drags with a knife gives you a marble pattern. Twenty gives you muddy brown, and there’s no undoing it.
How To Make Cheesecake Brownies
Step 1: Make the Brownie Batter
- Whisk the melted butter with the sugar and cocoa until smooth, then beat in 3 eggs one at a time with 1 teaspoon of vanilla.
- Fold in the flour and salt just until combined, and set about ½ cup of the batter aside for swirling.
Step 2: Make the Filling
- Beat the softened cream cheese with the sugar until completely smooth, with no lumps left anywhere.
- Add the remaining egg, 1 tablespoon of flour, and the last teaspoon of vanilla, then mix briefly.
Step 3: Layer and Swirl
- Spread the main brownie batter into a lined 9×9 pan, then pour the cheesecake mixture over it and level the top.
- Drop teaspoons of the reserved batter across the surface and drag a knife through in an S shape, six or seven passes.
Step 4: Bake and Chill
- Bake at 350°F for 35 to 40 minutes. The cheesecake layer should look set, not wet, in the middle.
- Cool completely in the pan, then refrigerate for 2 hours before cutting. Warm ones fall apart.
Cheesecake Brownies From Box Recipes
No shame in this one. Cheesecake brownies from box recipes taste close enough that most people won’t spot the difference, and you save yourself weighing out cocoa on a weeknight.
- Make an 18-ounce box of brownie mix as directed, then hold back ¼ cup of the batter.
- Beat 8 oz cream cheese with ¼ cup sugar, 1 egg, and ½ teaspoon vanilla.
- Layer and swirl exactly as above, then bake at 325°F for 35 to 45 minutes.
Drop the oven by 25 degrees from whatever the box says. The cheesecake layer sets faster than brownie batter does, and a hot oven browns it before the middle is done.
Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies
Same method, different base entirely. Red velvet cheesecake brownies swap most of the cocoa for red gel color, and the white swirl against all that red is what makes them a Valentine’s staple every February.
- Use ¾ cup melted butter, 1¼ cups sugar, 3 eggs, and 1½ cups flour.
- Add only 2 tablespoons of cocoa, not ¾ cup.
- Stir in 1 tablespoon of red gel colouring and 1 teaspoon of white vinegar.
- Keep the cheesecake filling exactly as written above.
Gel color, never liquid. Liquid thins the batter out and the red bakes to a washed-out pink, which rather defeats the whole exercise.
Bake these at 350°F for 30 to 35 minutes. They run slightly drier than the chocolate version, so pull the pan while the center still looks a shade underdone and let it finish setting out of the oven.
Brownie Desserts
Half a pan left over and nobody touching it? These brownie desserts all start with squares you’ve already baked, which is the easiest kind of recipe there is.
- Trifle: layer cubed brownies with whipped cream and berries in a glass bowl.
- Sundae: a warm square, vanilla ice cream, hot fudge over the top.
- Ice cream sandwiches: two thin squares with softened ice cream between, frozen solid.
- Milkshake: blend one square into two scoops of ice cream and a splash of milk.
- Parfait glasses: crumbled brownie, cheesecake filling, repeat.
The trifle is the one I make for a crowd. It looks like real effort and takes about six minutes, which is my favorite ratio in all of cooking.
The ice cream sandwiches want thin squares, by the way. Cut a tall brownie in half through the middle first, or you’ll need a very wide mouth.
Vegan, Cupcake, and Apple Versions
Three variations people ask about constantly, and all three work with fairly small changes to the main recipe above.
- Vegan cheesecake brownies: swap in vegan butter, two flax eggs, and dairy-free block cream cheese. Add a teaspoon of cornstarch to the filling, since plant-based cream cheese sets softer.
- Cheesecake brownies cupcakes: line a muffin tin, fill each about two-thirds, swirl the tops, and bake for 20 to 22 minutes.
- Apple cheesecake brownies: drop the cocoa and make a blondie base instead, then fold in a cup of diced apple cooked with cinnamon. Chocolate and apple fight each other, so it’s better without.
Pro Tips
- Line the pan with parchment and leave an overhang on two sides. Lifting the whole slab out onto a board beats cutting squares in the tin.
- Chill before cutting, always. Two hours minimum, overnight if you can manage it.
- Wipe the knife between every single cut. Cheesecake drags across the blade, and the swirl smears onto the next slice if you don’t.
- Keep cheesecake brownies refrigerated for up to 5 days. There’s cream cheese in them, so leaving the pan on the counter isn’t an option.
Conclusion
Bake the cheesecake brownies the day before. The texture sets properly overnight and the flavors settle, which sounds like fussiness until you compare the two.
And underbake slightly. Every brownie recipe says it, this one included, and it’s still the thing most people get wrong.
Cheesecake Brownies
Ingredients
Method
- Whisk butter, sugar, and cocoa
- Beat in eggs and vanilla
- Fold in flour and salt
- Reserve ½ cup batter
- Beat the filling until smooth
- Layer and swirl
- Bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes
- Cool and chill 2 hours
