Brownies please

Like the rest of those foodies out there I love everything about food – searching through stores and markets for the best produce, talking about food, eating it and of course cooking and baking. When I’m in my kitchen with the ingredients I love I’m a happy person; conceptualizing a dish from start to finish and then working to create it is not only stress-relieving but also a wonderful creative outlet.

This morning I woke up with a sore throat and a headache – boo. The one thing I wanted to do was bake something to make me feel better. I couldn’t think of anything better than cheesecake brownies - indulgent and rich. I looked through a few recipes but the one that won me over was from the master-of-all-that-is-sweet David Lebovitz.

I altered the recipe a little and I’m not sure if this was the reason I ended up with a less marbled and therefore less beautiful brownie - or it could've been my feeling a little under the weather. But regardless of looks the taste was wonderful - dark chocolate smoothness combined with velvety, creamy cheese goodness! This is a serious brownie and the recipe is definitely a keeper. Note: I used gluten-free flour to ensure proper brownie squidgy-ness. Enjoy.

cheesecake brownies
adapted from David Lebovitz's recipe

makes 16 pieces

* I used organic where possible

main brownie mix

3 tbsp (40g) butter

3 tbsp (40g) coconut oil

115g dark chocolate (I used 85%)

2/3 (130g) cup brown sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1/2 cup gluten-free flour

1 tbsp good quality cocoa powder (unsweetened)

1/8 tsp sea salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup (80g) dark chocolate broken into small pieces – or chocolate chips

cream cheese mix

250g cream cheese, at room temperature

1 egg yolk

5 tbsp (75g) brown sugar

drop of vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.

Prepare a 23cm square pan with foil – line and lightly grease.

In a medium saucepan, melt butter, oil and chocolate, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat, stir in sugar then mix in eggs. Next add flour, cocoa powder and salt – then vanilla extract and chocolate pieces. Spread into prepared pan and even out.

To make cream cheese mix – beat cream cheese, vanilla extract, sugar and egg yolk together until smooth.

Add cream cheese mix in dollops across chocolate batter and using a small spatula or knife make swirl patterns with cream cheese to create marble effect. Place into oven and bake 30-40 minutes or until batter is set.  Take out and cool before slicing. Place into fridge and enjoy cold.