Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting
These brownies with cream cheese frosting are the perfect sweet treat! They have fudgy brownie base full of rich chocolatey flavor, topped with a creamy, sweet cream cheese frosting that adds the perfect tangy flavor to these decadent brownies.
Ingredients
Brownies
- 1 cup butter salted or unsalted
- 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate (1 full bar is typically 4 ounces), see notes
- 4 ounces (about ¾ cup) semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 cup dark brown sugar packed
- 4 large eggs
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup flour (130 grams) spooned and leveled
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese (half a bar or ½ cup) room temperature
- ¼ cup butter room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch salt
Instructions
- Note: You can also sub your favorite brownie mix ifyou prefer (see notes). Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit, grease and line an8x8 or 9x9 inch pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, melt your butter and chocolates (both semi-sweet chocolate chips and unsweetened chocolate)together. Keep stirring until they are completely melted and incorporated together. Add in both sugars and stir until combined.
- Remove saucepan from heat and let cool slightly. Your mixture should be warm, but not hot (you don’t want the eggs to scramble and cook when you add them in). Add in 1 egg at a time and really whisk the mixture so the egg is fully incorporated and glossy before adding in the next egg.Repeat until all the eggs are mixed in.
- Add in your salt, vanilla, and flour (make sure your flour is spooned, leveled, and measured correctly—too much flour will make these cakey not fudgy). Mix until the flour is just barely incorporated. Do not over mix.
- Pour batter into your greased and lined 8x8 or 9x9-inch baking dish. Bake for 35-40 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.
- Make the cream cheese frosting. With a hand mixer, beat cream cheese until light and fluffy.Add in butter and beat until smooth.
- Add in half your powdered sugar, vanilla and salt. Mix until smooth. Add in the remaining powdered sugar and whip until light and fluffy. If your frosting is too runny add a little more powdered sugar or if it is too dry add a teaspoon of milk until you reach your desired consistency. Spread evenly on your cooled brownies.
Video
Notes
Unsweetened Chocolate. Using unsweetened chocolate will give you a rich, dark chocolate brownie. If you prefer a milk chocolate flavored brownie, replace the unsweetened chocolate with an additional 4 ounces (¾ cup) semi-sweet chocolate.
Using a Brownie Mix. You can use a brownie mix instead of the homemade brownie recipe if you prefer. (But I promise these homemade ones are better!) Do not bake the brownies in a 9x13-inch pan, bake them in an 8x8 or 9x9 inch pan so they are thick.
How to Store this Recipe. Keep these brownies tightly covered and store at room temperature or in the refrigerator. They are best eaten within 3-4 days.
Freeze Them I love freezing leftover brownies with cream cheese frosting. I like to wrap each brownie individually in plastic and then store them in a freezer bag or food storage container. If you choose not to wrap them individually in plastic wrap, I recommend placing parchment paper in between the brownies so they don’t stick together. The stay good in your freezer for 3 months; just remember to thaw them first.
Use Parchment Paper. Greasing and lining your pan with parchment paper is the easiest way to get your brownies out of the pan cleanly. I recommend leaving the edges of the parchment paper long enough that you can pull up the entire pan of brownies cleanly out of the pan.
Cream Cheese Frosting. If you prefer a less tangy cream cheese frosting you can replace a portion of the cream cheese with an equal amount of butter.
Nutrition
Serving: 1brownie