Nutella Swirl Cheesecake Bars

"If this fell on the ground; I would pick it up and eat it and never regret it." This was told to me by a fellow co-worker after he inhaled one of these scrumptious cheesecake bars. There's your answer whether or not these little devils are good or not. This was the second recipe I used from Sallys Baking Addiction to include in my cookie bag. They have a velvety, nutellay (made up word), and cheesy taste. The graham cracker crust gives it a nice little crunch and help hold everything together. This recipe was quite simple to make, and as you can see from the above quote very much loved. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Crust
12 full-sheet graham crackers (or 1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs)
6 Tablespoons (90 grams) melted unsalted butter
1/3 cup (67 grams) granulated sugar

 Filling
16 ounces cream cheese (2 standard packages or 450g), softened to room temperature
1 large egg
1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup (100g) Nutella, slightly warmed*

First, pre-heat your oven to 350 and get out an 8x8 baking dish. Place parchment paper in the baking dish so enough hangs over the edge. Set aside.

If you're using graham crackers then you will need to take out your food processor and place the crackers in the processor and pulse until it's a fine crumb. Get out a medium bowl and pour in the graham cracker crumbs, add in the melted butter, and sugar. Stir well, and pour into the baking dish and press down gently. Bake for 5 minutes, and then take out and set aside.

Now, in your standing mixer add in your cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla and beat on medium speed until smooth and creamy; about 3 minutes. Pour the mixture on top of the graham cracker crust. Gently spread evenly. Take the warmed nutella and dump in batches onto the cream cheese mixture. Take a knife and make swirls. Then, bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the cheesecake has set and the edges are a golden brown. Allow to cool for about 30 minutes, and then place in the fridge to further cool for about 3 hours. Enjoy!

Cream Cheese Brownies

I've been getting a lot of slack lately at work. Not because of how I'm performing, or anything, but due to not bringing in any goodies lately. It's not that I don't want to, but I just haven't felt like baking. I think the warm weather has something to do with it. I mean who feels like turning on a hot oven on a 90 degree day? Personally, I would prefer firing up my ice cream maker and making some watermelon sorbet. Mmm. Alas, this weekend wasn't sunny and 90 degrees. Nope, try rainy and in the low 70s. Bleh. But, it worked out for my fellow co-workers, because I decided to try a new brownie recipe. I found this recipe in my handy Cook's Illustrated cookbook, and it was definitely yummy. The brownies turned out very moist and chocolatey (new word?). Plus, the cream cheese almost convinced you that you're eating a brownie cheesecake. Almost. I highly recommend this recipe, and if you bring it into work your co-workers will be most appreciative and complimentary! Promise!
 

Ingredients
Brownie Base:
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
4 oz bittersweet chocolate or semisweet chocolate (I used semi-sweet chocolate chips)
2 oz unsweetened chocolate
8 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
Cream Cheese Filling:
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk

First pre-heat your oven to 325 degrees. Take out your 8x8 baking pan and place foil inside so the edges hang over the pan. This will make lifting the brownie out of the dish easier. Spray with cooking oil, and set aside. Take out a small bowl and add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk and set aside. Now, take out a medium sized sauce pan and fill half way with water. Bring to a simmer, and then place a medium sized bowl in the saucepan. Place the butter and chocolate in the bowl. Stir occasionally, so the butter and chocolate melt and come to a smooth consistency. Remove the bowl from the saucepan, and then add the sugar and vanilla. Then, whisk in the eggs one at a time. Continue whisking until the mixture is completely smooth. Next, add the dry ingredients that you had set aside earlier, and whisk until just incorporated. For the cream cheese filling; beat the cream cheese in a small bowl with sugar, vanilla, and the egg yolk until just combined. Transfer half the brownie batter into the prepared baking dish. Then using a spatula add in half the cream cheese mixture. I just plopped about 3 spoonfuls into the brownie mixture. Then, add the remaining brownie batter and add the remaining cream cheese mixture. Then, use the tip of a knife and swirl the batter and cream cheese filling. Bake until the edges of the brownies have puffed slightly, and the toothpick inserted in center comes out with several moist crumbs attached. About 50 to 60 minutes. I believe mine took about 50 minutes to bake. Be sure to turn the brownie mixture half way thru baking to ensure it cooks evenly. Let brownies cool in pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Then, remove the brownies from the pan using the edges of the foil. Let cool on wire rack to room temperature, about 1 1/2 hours. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours. Cut brownies into 2-inch squares and serve.