Hearing the words red velvet and cheesecake in one recipe had me a little nervous, since I’m all about quick and simple recipes like these No Bake Strawberry Cheesecake Bites. Never in my life have I tried making red velvet anything, but after reading through the recipe a few times, it became quite clear that these brownies were a lot simpler than the name made them seem.
It’s no secret around here that I have a major sweet tooth. Especially for baked goods! And I am a huge fan of any recipe that has more than one type of dessert all wrapped up into one treat. So when a recipe combines THREE types of desserts, I just knew it was one that I had to try! Inspired by the recipe over at Sally’s Baking Addictions, I grabbed some ingredients, a few baking supplies, and got to work.
Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies
The full printable recipe is at the end of this post, but here’s what you’ll need:
eggs unsalted butter sugar vanilla extract unsweetened cocoa powder salt red liquid or gel food coloring white vinegar flour cream cheese
Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a small mixing bowl, beat the two eggs together and set aside. Melt the butter in the microwave. You can use a large microwave safe bowl that the other ingredients can be added to later, or just use a small microwave safe dish and dump the butter into a large bowl.
One ingredient at a time, stir in the sugar, vanilla extract, cocoa powder, salt, food coloring, and vinegar. So I would dump the sugar into the butter, mix it well, then add the vanilla and mix, etc. for each ingredient to make the brownie layer. I used the liquid food coloring that comes in the little box and it was just under 1 full tablespoon. I do think the shade of red turned out quite well for these red velvet brownies, however the next time I make this recipe, I will be giving some food coloring gel a try to see if they brighten up the red a little more. And if you are wondering about that vinegar, don’t worry, you will not taste it after the brownies have baked! It’s there to help make the red a little more vibrant! So back to the red velvet brownie making – it’s time to add the two eggs that you had mixed and set aside. Whisk them into the mixture and then fold in the flour. It’s important to not over-mix the batter. Spray an 8″ x 8″ baking pan with nonstick spray. Pour the brownie batter into the pan, but leave a few tablespoons in the bowl to be used for the topping later.
Now it’s time to make that yummy cheesecake filling! Combine softened cream cheese, sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla in a bowl using a hand mixer. Beat on medium speed for about a minute or so until the mixture is smooth.
Using a spoon, add large dollops of the cheesecake filling to the top of the brownie batter in the pan. Pour the remaining brownie batter from the bowl on top of the cheesecake filling. It won’t completely cover it, as it is just to help with creating the cheesecake swirls in the next step.
Using a butter knife, start at the top of the pan and go through the batter and cheesecake filling from side to side across the pan. Once you have gone from side to side all the way down, change directions and go up and down. This will start to create a marbled, swirled look that make these red velvet cheesecake brownies SO yummy. You might need to do this a few times to completely combine the batter and filling, just make sure not to overdo it or you will lose the swirls and layering.
Pop into the oven and bake for about 28-30 minutes. Insert a toothpick into the center to check for doneness, if it comes out clean, they are ready!
Cool completely before cutting into squares.
After making this decadent treat, I now have a new go-to dessert recipe that is sure to impress! With red velvet brownies and dollops of cheesecake filling swirled together, these treats are perfect for Valentine’s Day. If you’re looking for more delicious red velvet recipes, check out our Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies. These are decadent, simple, and they end up looking gorgeous!
