Recipe for Gluten Free Cheesecake Brownies

Wow, this week was INSANITY! So many ads due at the office, all at once, and no one booked the photographer, and I had to get as many of our realtors to show up for the group photo as I could… Thankfully, realtors are easily bribed with baked goods, so I made a key lime pie and cheesecake brownies, and everyone showed up except for two people, one of whom was away on vacation. So I handled the craziness as well as I could, and we got a great group photo this year, and everyone loved my brownies (and the key lime pie, but that’s not this week’s post).

Okay, sorry, let me back up a little. I work as the in-house graphic designer at a real estate office, and we do an annual group photo around this time of year because the local newspaper does a reader’s choice vote. We produce ads for the nomination edition and the winner’s edition, and our winner’s edition ad was due Wednesday by 5. I found out last Thursday that my boss had forgotten to book the photographer, and since we’ve had some staff changes since last year’s photo, we absolutely needed a new one. So I decided I’d bring in my camera and tripod and use the self-timer, and if we took enough photos, one had to be good enough to use. But realtors are notorious for skipping out on office gatherings, including our group photo in years past. And since you can’t bribe them with alcohol during working hours, you need to substitute something else to entice them…so I mentioned in several emails that I’d be bringing in baked goods, and they actually showed up.

As always, the key lime pie was a hit. But the brownies disappeared even faster! And since I had to make them for the office anyway, I set up the camera and recorded my blog video. So without further ado, my recipe for delicious gluten-free cheesecake brownies.

Ingredients:

Cheesecake filling-
1 ½ 8-oz. blocks cream cheese, softened
½ c. sugar
1 c. sour cream
1 tbsp. lemon juice
½ tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs

Brownie batter-
¾ c. white sugar
½ c. packed brown sugar
1 c. dutch process/alkalized/dark cocoa powder
½ c. gluten-free all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. rice flour
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 stick butter, melted
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 eggs

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Line 8×8” or 9×9” square pan with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, use a mixer to mix all cheesecake filling ingredients except eggs. Once all other ingredients are beaten together, add the eggs one at a time until incorporated. Set aside.
3. In another bowl, combine all dry ingredients for brownies. Whisk together to break up lumps. Add melted butter, vanilla, and eggs and whisk again. Batter will be thick, prepare to work for it. Do not lick fingers if batter gets on hands if using Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free all-purpose flour.
4. Pour batter and filling into lined pan in turns, half the brownie batter, half the cheesecake, the rest of the brownie batter, and the rest of the cheesecake. For the first layer of brownie batter, smooth batter into bottom of the pan with a rubber spatula. Brownie will release easier than cheesecake after baking. Shake pan so top is level.
5. Bake brownies at 350° approximately 1 hour. Reduce oven to 325° if cracks begin forming in top cheesecake layer. Brownies are done when edges turn a light golden brown and center only just jiggles a little. Remove from oven and cool in pan.
6. Cut with a sharp, non-serrated knife and serve with coffee or a glass of milk. Store brownies in airtight container in the refrigerator when completely cool.

And that’s how you bribe realtors to show up for a thing without booze. I hope you guys enjoy making and devouring these decadent brownies at home. Please leave your thoughts in a comment below, or get in touch with me directly by filling out the form on the contact page.

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