Black Bottom Brownies

My good friend Carri-Anne had a baby girl a few weeks back.  (You can read about her baby shower here.)  Today, she and baby girl came over for lunch.  But before they did, Matthew thought he’d make something sweet and kind for them.  He ultimately settled on these brownies, which combines a little bit of brownie and cheesecake.  However, he had a rocky start.  You see, he wanted to add some Cheerios, milk, and white chocolate chips.  Maybe for a new breakfast combo…Eventually, he asked for some help to get it right, so we worked together to make these yummy brownies.  Matthew was so proud of his work.  (Sorry if the picture is a bit blurry.  It’s hard to keep a toddler smiling for more than half a second.)

These are big, fat brownies, and I love them.  The dark chocolate chips just sink into the cheesecake layer and create this level of gooey-ness that can’t be described.

I forgot that I had this recipe until last night, when I tried to make grasshopper brownies and they didn’t turn out.  (I hate directions that are unclear.  When you have a layer dessert, you need to specify if you wait for a layer to cool or not!  And it was from a published cookbook!!)  Anyway, totally not dwelling on the loss of a few hours and ingredients from last night.  This is a layered dessert and will take a little extra time, but I promise you, it is worth your while.

Two words of advice.  One, make sure you have all the ingredients before you begin.  (Which really is a no-brainer and I know better.)  I didn’t have enough eggs, and because I was trying to help Matthew make these, I forgot to double-check that I had all the ingredients before I began, which resulted in me running to my neighbor friend to ask for 2 eggs.  Oops!  And second, make sure that others are there to help you eat them.  It will take a lot of self-control to not eat two or three…or four.  Enjoy! xoxo

Black Bottom Brownies

printable recipe

Brownie Layer

6 ounces unsweetened chocolate

2 sticks unsalted butter

1 2/3 c flour

¾ t salt

½ t baking powder

4 eggs + 2 egg yolks

2 c sugar

1 ½ T pure vanilla

Cheesecake Layer

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature (NOT NON-FAT)

1 ½ c sugar

¼ t salt

6 eggs

2 t pure vanilla

2 c dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Spray a 9×13-inch pan with cooking spray and lay down parchment paper, covering the bottom and sides of the pan.

Using a double boiler, melt the chocolate and butter until smooth.  Cool and bring down to slightly warm. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and baking powder.  In another bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Pour the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture.  (Make sure the chocolate is not hot, otherwise you will cook the eggs.) Using a spoon or whisk, mix until incorporated.  Add the flour mixture and mix until fully incorporated. Be careful not to over-mix. Pour the brownie mixture into the prepared pan.  Set aside while making the cheesecake layer.

For the cheesecake layer, using a mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the salt, sugar, and cream cheese until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Add the eggs, 2 at a time, mixing each time until the egg is dissolved. Hand stir in the vanilla.

Pour the cheesecake mixture on top of the brownie layer.  Sprinkle evenly the dark chocolate chips. Bake in the oven for 1 hour 10 minutes, or until sides are golden brown and toothpick entered comes out clean.

Cool fully before cutting into squares.  Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge up to one week.

Recipe Source: slightly adapted from Melissa Murphy, via podcastGO