Every time I see a picture of a homemade brownie, I contemplate baking some but for some reason never do. Maybe it's because I know I'll want to eat the entire batch. I'll be like Miranda in "Sex and the City" when she has to put dishwashing soap on the brownies to prevent her from eating it. Well, we're still in quarantine so I said screw it and finally caved. And of course, me being me, I didn't just make brownies but I made strawberry cheesecake swirl brownies. Go big or go home, right?

Serves 9

369

Strawberry Cheesecake Swirl Brownies

1 hrTotal Time

Yields 1 8-inch baking dish

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Ingredients

• ½ cup strawberries, chopped
• 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
• ¼ cup powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp egg, beaten
• ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ⅓ cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp instant coffee
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.
2. Beat together ½ cup chopped strawberries with 4 ounces softened cream cheese, ¼ cup powdered sugar, and 1 tbsp egg until smooth.
3. In a large bowl, combine ¾ cup flour with 1 cup sugar, ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp baking powder, ⅓ cup cocoa powder, and 1 tsp instant coffee.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together ½ cup vegetable oil with 1 tsp vanilla, and 2 eggs. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture, stirring until smooth. Mix in ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips.
5. Spread ½ of the brownie batter in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Spread all but ¼ cup of the cream cheese mixture on top of the brownie batter. Spread the remaining brownie batter on top.
6. Place dollops of the remaining ¼ cup cream cheese mixture on top and use a knife to make swirls. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until set. Let cool completely.

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**Helpful tips and common mistakes

Everyone has their own idea of their perfect brownie. Some like it cakier, some like it more fudge-y. This strawberry cheesecake swirl brownie has a fudge-y interior but isn't as dense as a full-on fudge brownie. I guess you can say it's a little bit of both.

The great thing about brownies is that they're just so easy to make. Sure this recipe calls for an extra step, beating together fresh strawberries with cream cheese, sugar, and egg, but it's still very easy. I haven't prepared these with frozen strawberries but I have no doubt that it will work just fine.

Mix together the dry ingredients then add the wet ingredients and stir until a batter forms. I like to add just a touch of instant coffee to enhance the chocolate flavors.

It won't look like there's that much batter but try to spread half of it as well as you can into an 8x8 inch baking dish. Spread all but ¼ cup of the strawberry cream cheese mixture then top with the remaining brownie batter. Then comes the fun part. Place dollops of the reserved cream cheese batter on top and use a knife to make pretty swirls.

Bake the brownies for 40-45 minutes or until the center is set. Once the top of the brownies starts cracking a bit and the edges of the brownies start to pull away from the pan, they're ready.

My on my, these strawberry cheesecake swirl brownies really hit it out of the park. The brownies are rich but the tang from the strawberry cream cheese helps to balance the flavors. Even my husband who doesn't have much of a sweet tooth was thoroughly impressed with this dessert. Now please send help before I devour the entire pan.

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