Cream Cheese Brownies

Cream Cheese Brownies are what I bring when I want to come home with an empty pan. They read as two desserts in one: a fudgy cocoa brownie with a cheesecake layer baked right through the middle.

That middle layer is the whole point, and keeping it from sinking comes down to one small move before the pan goes in the oven. I’ll show you exactly where it happens.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• You get two desserts in one: a fudgy cocoa brownie and a cream cheese layer thick enough to taste rather than a faint swirl you have to go looking for.
• They’re made from scratch with cocoa powder, so you decide how deep the chocolate goes instead of taking whatever a box mix hands you.
• They hold their shape and travel well, so they end up at potlucks and parties more than almost anything else I make.
• They keep for days and freeze cleanly, so a batch is ready whenever you need one.

Ingredients You’ll Need

You’ll need all the ingredients shown in the photograph below.

• Cream cheese. Use full-fat, brick-style cream cheese and let it soften at room temperature first. The tub and low-fat kinds are too soft, and the layer turns loose and runny instead of setting into a clean cheesecake band. It’s the same softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla I use for the filling in my easy Oreo cheesecake.
• Unsweetened cocoa powder. This is a cocoa brownie rather than a melted-chocolate one, so the cocoa carries all the chocolate flavor. Use one whose taste you like.
• All-purpose flour. Spoon it into the cup and level it off, or weigh it. Pack the cup, and the extra flour makes the brownie thick and dry instead of fudgy.
• Eggs. Bring them to room temperature so they blend in without knocking the air back out of the creamed butter and sugar.

How to Make Cream Cheese Brownies

A complete printable recipe and the measurements in both US customary and metric are available in the recipe card below.

Make the brownie batter

Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until smooth and a little lighter in color. Beat in the eggs one at a time so each one blends fully, then stir in the vanilla. Add the cocoa powder, flour, and salt, and mix only until the streaks disappear. Stop right there, because overmixing is what turns a brownie tough and cakey instead of fudgy.

Layer the pan

Spread half the batter across the bottom of a greased or parchment-lined square pan, right into the corners, so the cream cheese has a flat base to sit on. That even base is what keeps the cheesecake layer from sinking down into the brownie as it bakes.

Make the cream cheese layer

Stir the softened cream cheese with the sugar and vanilla until it’s completely smooth, with no lumps left. Drop it in spoonfuls over the brownie base, then spread it into a thin, even layer with the back of a spoon. Add the rest of the brownie batter on top and smooth it gently over the cream cheese so it covers the whole surface.

Bake the Brownies

Slide the pan into a preheated 350°F (180°C) oven and bake for about 40 minutes, or until the edges are firm and the center looks just a little soft. You’ll know it’s ready when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out almost clean with just a few moist crumbs.

Let it cool completely in the pan before cutting so the layers set properly. You might get a little excited at this point, but cutting too soon will cause messy slices, so give it time to firm up slightly before digging in.

Bake and cool

Bake at 350°F (180°C) for about 40 minutes, and start checking at 35. You want the edges set and the center still slightly jiggly when you nudge the pan, since it keeps firming as it cools.

A toothpick that comes out completely clean means it’s already overbaked and will bake out dry, so pull the pan while the middle still has a little give. Let it cool fully before cutting, or the layers smear instead of slicing clean.

To get ahead, soften the cream cheese and bring the eggs to room temperature earlier in the day so the batter comes together fast when you start. The assembled pan bakes best fresh rather than sitting made up in the fridge.

For another fudgy brownie you make from scratch, my zucchini brownies hide three cups of zucchini and stay just as fudgy, with no eggs at all.

Recipe Notes and Expert Tips

• Use brick cream cheese, fully softened. Cold or tub-style cream cheese stays lumpy and won’t spread, and the layer ends up thin and loose instead of a clean band.
• Don’t trust a clean toothpick. Through a cheesecake layer, it tells you very little, and a spotless one usually means you’ve baked the fudge right out of it. Go by the set edges and a little movement in the middle.
• Start checking at 35 minutes. Ovens run hot or cool, and those few minutes are the whole difference between fudgy and dry.
• Cover the top if it browns early. If the surface is coloring before the center sets, lay a piece of foil loosely over the pan for the last few minutes so the cream cheese doesn’t scorch.
• Cool before you cut, then wipe the knife. Cutting warm drags the two layers together. A cooled slab and a blade wiped clean between cuts gives you neat squares that show the layer.

Recipe Variations

• You can leave the cream cheese as a clean layer or marble it. I’ve tested both, and dragging a knife through the top batter before baking pulls some of it up into swirls with no change to the bake. If the swirl is the part you’re after, my raspberry lemon cheesecake bars run fruit through the same kind of layer.
• Fold a handful of chocolate chips into the brownie batter when you want them richer. I’ve tested this, and the chips melt into extra pockets of chocolate through the base without changing anything else.
• Spoon a little Nutella over the cream cheese layer before the top batter goes on, and it bakes into pockets of hazelnut through the middle. I’ve tested that one and it holds up fine.

How to Store Leftovers

Keep leftover Cream Cheese Brownies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. They soften and get a little gooey at room temperature, so the fridge is what keeps the layers firm.

To freeze, wrap the slices tightly and store them in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months, then thaw them overnight in the fridge so they stay moist.

If you’re taking them to a potluck, pack them in a single layer in a hard-sided container and keep them cool on the way, since that cream cheese layer is happiest cold.

What to Serve With Cream Cheese Brownies

A warm square under a scoop of vanilla ice cream is the easiest way to serve these, and the cold against the fudge is the whole appeal. A little whipped cream works too, and a handful of fresh raspberries or strawberries on the plate cuts the richness.

Coffee is the natural drink to pour alongside. If you’re setting out a full dessert table for a party, my Mississippi mud pie sits well next to them for anyone who wants chocolate on chocolate.

FAQs

More Desserts I Keep in Rotation

When I want something sweet that I already know will work, these are the ones I come back to.

• Tiramisu Cheesecake. When you want something cold and coffee-forward that you can make the day before.
• Red Velvet Cake. For a proper celebration, when a layer cake under cream cheese frosting is the point.
• Chocolate Crinkle Cookies. When you want that same fudgy center in something you can eat with one hand.
• Double Chocolate Chip Cookies. For the nights you want chocolate fast, with no chilling and no layering.