Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies

My 17 year old loves to find decadent desserts on Pinterest. If you're on Pinterest, I'd love for you to check me out here. She came across these divine morsels that combine two of our favorite desserts, red velvet and cheesecake. We doubled the recipe and put it in a 9 x 13 for our family of 6. If you don't need that much you can cut the recipe in 1/2, use a 8" square baking pan, and only bake for about 28-30 minutes. 

Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies
Recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction

For the Brownie Layer:
2  large eggs
1  cup unsalted butter, (2 sticks)
2  cups white sugar
4  teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2  cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4  teaspoon salt
2  tablespoons red food coloring
1  1/2 teaspoons white vinegar
1  1/2  cups white flour

For the Cheesecake Layer:
2  packages (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/2  cup white sugar
2  egg yolks
1  teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13" baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

For the Brownie Layer:
In a small bowl, beat the 2 eggs and set aside. In a large bowl, melt the butter in the microwave. Add the 2 cups of sugar, then the vanilla extract, cocoa powder, salt, food coloring and vinegar. Be sure to mix in that order. Whisk in the 2 beaten eggs, then fold in the flour a little at a time until fully incorporated. Don't over mix. Pour the brownie batter into the prepared pan, reserving about 1/2  cup for the top.

For the Cheesecake Layer:
In a medium bowl, use a hand mixer and combine the cream cheese, sugar, egg yolks, and vanilla until completely smooth. On top of the brownie butter in the prepared dish, drop about tablespoon sized dollops evenly over the top. Top with dollops of the reserved brownie batter. Use the tip of a knife to swirl everything together. 

Bake in the center of the oven for about 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool completely in the pan before cutting.

Enjoy!

Kim

Linked to these great blog parties:
Buns In My Oven What's Cookin' Wednesday
Miz Helen's Country Cottage Full Plate Thursday
The Best Blog Recipes The Weekend re-Treat