What better way to start off the weekend than with brownies? As
promised a recipe involving cream cheese and pumpkin, pumpkin cheesecake brownies. Enjoy!
PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE BROWNIES
For the Brownies:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
11 ounces dark chocolate chips
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
5 eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour the sides and bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan, line with parchment if desired.
In a medium sized bowl whisk together the flour and salt then sift in the cocoa powder and whisk to incorporate, set aside until needed.
Set a pot of water on the stove and heat until simmering. In a large bowl combine the chocolate chips, butter, and espresso powder, set bowl over simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Turn off the heat but leave bowl over the water and stir in the sugars. Once the sugars are completely incorporated remove the bowl from the pot. Note the mixture should be at room temperature.
Add 3 of the eggs and whisk until combined, then add the remaining eggs and whisk until combined. Stir in the vanilla, be careful not to over beat the batter.
Sprinkle the flour mixture over the chocolate mixture. Using a rubber spatula, fold the flour mixture into the chocolate mixture, until a just a few specks of the flour mixture remain visible. Set batter aside until needed.
Brownie recipe slightly adapted from
Baked: New Frontiers in Baking, by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito
For the Pumpkin Cheesecake:
8 ounces (1 package) full fat cream cheese, at room temperature
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
In the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, brown sugar, and pumpkin pie spice until smooth. Scrape bowl then beat in the pumpkin puree, mix until fully incorporated. Beat in the egg and vanilla, scraping the bowl as needed.
Recipe adapted from
Joy of Baking
Assembly:
Pour about 3/4 (does not need to be exact) of the brownie batter into the prepared 9 x 13 inch pan. Smooth the batter with an offset spatula. Pour the all of the pumpkin cheesecake batter over the brownie batter and smooth with the offset spatula. Drop the remaining brownie batter in dollops over the cheesecake batter. Spread the brownie batter around a bit with the offset spatula. Using a pairing knife, toothpick, or butter knife swirl the cheesecake and top brownie layers together. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Allow brownies to cool completely before cutting. Once cooled, you can chill the brownies in the refrigerator for about an hour which will make them easier to cut.