Raspberry Cheesecake Brownies

When life gives you big decisions, make brownies. This is my advice to you.

As a soon-to-be college grad, I have some pretty big decisions looming ahead. Sure, there’s the creeping sense of excitement as I imagine what my life may look like one, two, even five years down the road. Naturally, this includes a job that never actually feels like a job. You know, the type of fun and cool job that supports a lifestyle of frequent shopping sprees, a trendy and chicly decorated loft or New England style town home  with a decked out kitchen and master suite complete with a giant walk-in closet, and a big, cuddly dog – I’m thinking a Newfoundland, thoughts?

And then I wake up from this lovely little daydream and reality settles in, along with all of the nerves and anxiety we’re all so accustomed to when approaching the precipice of a big life change. Transitioning from a full-time student to a full-time adult will certainly be an adjustment; if anyone knows of any books and/or easy to follow tutorials on being an adult (adulting?), will you please let me know?

Balancing a schedule of classes, coursework, internship projects, work, and post-grad planning has its hairy moments, but it’s nothing a little chocolate can’t fix. Or, in some cases, a lot of chocolate.

Needless to say, a lot of chocolate has been consumed in this house of five soon-to-be grads this past semester. Also factor into the equation that these five soon-to-be grads are all girls. For those of you who don’t know this already, girls are known to eat about 200% more chocolate than boys. And in stressful situations, I’m fairly certain that figure skyrockets to somewhere in the billions. But what is our favorite form of chocolatey stress-relief, you may ask? BROWNIES. Hands down, no questions asked. Brownies win out every time we’re confronted with a late night or early morning crisis of the variety that only chocolate can possibly fix.

ENTER: THESE BROWNIES.

I promise you, these taste every bit as heavenly as you’re probably imagining. And bonus: they’re so easy to whip up, I kid you not. This particular brownie base, which is my absolute favorite, uses both melted chocolate and cocoa powder. I’m a huge advocate of including both in brownies for the deepest chocolate flavor (thank you, Mr. Cocoa Powder) and fudgy texture (and to you, as well, Mr. Melted Chocolate). I also always add coffee to all of my baked goods when chocolate is in the mix, either in the form of espresso powder or a fresh brew. This is something I picked up from watching the lovely Ina Garten, and as she promised, that little bit of coffee goes a long way as it magically makes chocolate taste more chocolatey. The raspberries scattered throughout offer some balance in flavor, as they provide a bite of sweet acidity that counters well with the richness of the cheesecake swirl and brownie base.

Though the future will always be riddled with uncertainties, at least we can all take comfort in one of life’s few constants: the stress-relieving qualities of chocolate. Next time you find your mind wandering towards such stress-inducing thoughts, run to the nearest kitchen and make yourself a pan of these brownies.

Raspberry Cheesecake Brownies
Makes 16 brownies

For the cheesecake swirl:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1 egg yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 Tablespoons flour

For the brownie base:
4 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
12 Tablespoons butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup + 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon espresso powder
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips or chunks
1 pint fresh raspberries

Directions:
Line an 8- or 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper (or line with greased aluminum foil); set aside. Preheat oven to 350 ºF.

In a small bowl, mix together the softened cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add the remaining yolk, vanilla, and flour and mix until smooth and creamy. Be careful not to overbeat if using a mixer – you don’t want to incorporate too much air into this batter (I actually use a fork to mix this all together). Set aside until ready to use.

For the brownies, begin by placing the chocolate and butter in a large, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at 30-40 second intervals (giving the mixture a good stir each time) until melted and smooth. With a whisk, beat in the eggs, yolk, vanilla, salt, and espresso powder until well-combined. Swap out your whisk for a rubber spatula and stir in the flour and cocoa powder until just combined – the batter will be thick.

Evenly spread about two-thirds of the brownie batter into the prepared baking pan. Dollop large spoonfuls of the cheesecake batter all over the surface of the brownie bater, then scatter with half of the chocolate chips and raspberries. Dollop the remaining brownie batter over the dollops of cheesecake batter and berries, and use a butter knife to create a marbling effective, evening out the batter across the pan as you go. Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips/chunks and berries over the top of unbaked brownies.

Bake for about 30 minutes; an inserted toothpick will emerge with some moist, chocolatey crumbs attached. Let the brownies sit at room temperature until no longer warm; transfer the pan to the fridge and let set for a couple of hours before slicing and serving. Store any leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.