Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Brownies

A stack of three peanut butter cheesecake brownies on parchment paper.

5 from 1 vote

Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Brownies

These are the best peanut butter cream cheese brownies! These super fudgy brownies are swirled with peanut butter cheesecake. You don't need a mixer to make these brownies.

Prep Time20

Cook Time30

Total Time50

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings: brownies

Calories: 298kcal

Author: Ella Gilbert

Equipment

8x8 baking pan
Bowls
Measuring Spoons
Whisk
Rubber Spatula

Ingredients

Chocolate Brownies

¾ cup unsalted butter
½ cup dutch process cocoa powder
4 oz dark chocolate chopped
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon espresso powder

Peanut Butter Cheesecake

½ cup granulated sugar
8 oz full-fat cream cheese
1 large egg room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
¼ cup smooth peanut butter

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350℉/180℃ and line an 8x8 baking pan with foil or with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the peanut butter cheesecake ingredients until smooth. Set aside.
½ cup granulated sugar, 8 oz full-fat cream cheese, 1 large egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, ¼ cup smooth peanut butter
In a medium bowl, melt the butter in the microwave. It should be hot.
¾ cup unsalted butter
Add the cocoa powder to the hot butter and whisk until smooth. This is called blooming the cocoa powder and will make your brownies richer!
½ cup dutch process cocoa powder
Pour in the chopped chocolate and let sit for a minute or two. Whisk until smooth.
4 oz dark chocolate
In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs with the granulated sugar and light brown sugar. Whisk for 1:30-2 minutes. It should lighten in color, and when you stop whisking bubbles should form on the top.
3 large eggs, 1 cup granulated sugar, ½ cup light brown sugar
Once the melted chocolate mixture has cooled down slightly, pour in the sugar mixture. Whisk until smooth and add in the vanilla extract.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
With a rubber spatula, fold in the flour, salt and espresso powder.
½ cup all purpose flour, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon espresso powder
Pour most of the brownie batter into the prepared pan, keeping ¼ of the batter to the side. Spread the cream cheese mixture on top until it covers the surface, then dollop over the remaining brownie batter. Use a butter knife or toothpick to create the swirls.
Bake for 33-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out with moist crumbs.
Let the brownies cool completely in the pan. To have even fudgier brownies, place the cooled brownie pan in the fridge for a few hours.

Video

Notes

My recipes have been developed and tested in metric grams. I highly recommend using a weighing scale and measuring out your ingredients the metric way. I have provided a conversion to US cups but please note that I haven’t tested the recipe with this method. Just click on ‘Metric’ above the ingredients to see the metric measurements.

Butter: I use European style butter in this recipe

Kosher Salt: if you don’t have kosher salt, halve the amount of salt in the ingredient list (1 teaspoon kosher salt = ½ teaspoon fine salt). Please note, that I'm using Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt. Morton Salt is a different type of kosher salt and is much saltier.

Cocoa Powder: I'm using dutch processed cocoa powder but you can swap it out for natural cocoa powder, just note that the brownies won't be as rich.

Espresso Powder: adding espresso powder is going to amplify the chocolate flavor, it won't make the brownies taste like coffee.

Peanut Butter: use smooth and creamy peanut butter, not the type of peanut butter that has oil on top!

Storage: Keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Nutrition