Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies

I came across this recipe on another blog Southern Grace and just had to make them immediately.

First of all I love brownies, (who doesn't) and I love peanut butter and the two together are delicious. But the addition of Cream cheese to the peanut butter is what piqued my interest. So here's the recipe:

Chocolate:

1/2 cup butter
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tsp espresso powder (my addition)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla

Peanut Butter:

1 8-oz package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk (I used cream)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8x8-inch pan.

To make the chocolate portion, melt the butter and chocolate together in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time. Melting chocolate in the microwave is the way to go but it's easy to burn it, so watch it carefully. Let cool slightly.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt and espresso powder and set aside.

Whisk the sugar into chocolate mixture. Add the eggs, and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Stir in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture and stir until well incorporated. Pour into prepared pan.

For the peanut butter part, beat together all the ingredients until smooth and creamy. Now in the original recipe from Southern Grace she layered the peanut butter on top of the brownie layer and I decided to swirl it together instead. Although mine came out great, the peanut butter mixture is a bit thin, even after baking, so NEXT time I make these, I'm going to put part of the brownie mix in the dish, part of the peanut butter, swirl it around and then repeat the process on top of that first swirled layer. Just my preference after trying them simply swirled.




Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. (I found they needed to be baked close to an hour for my preference for doneness) Cool completely before cutting. Cut in squares and serve. Enjoy, and thanks to Southern Grace for this great recipe.


I really liked these brownies. The chocolate brownie part was delicious. The peanut butter part, because of the cream cheese, was light and delicate and subtly tangy, not overpowering, so the two together are a winning combination. Please try them and let me know if you agree.