Healthy Cheesecake Swirl Brownies
These Cheesecake Swirl Brownies are THE fudgiest, most dense, and chocolatey brownies that will ever meet your face… oh, and they’re gluten free, sugar free, high fiber, and high protein too!
Can I tell you something? These fudgy squares of goodness are made with a secret ingredient. But don’t worry, you’d never know it’s there… these are the best. brownies. ever.
BECAUSE THEY’RE SWIRLED WITH CHEESECAKE.
I’m dying.
I’m dying.
I’m dead.
These are seriously delicious. I finished the entire batch in two days. Like, I had these brownies for dessert (obviously), midday snacks, midmorning snacks, aaaaand breakfast. Yes, breakfast.
When I told my friend I ate brownies for breakfast, she thought I was insane. But that’s because she doesn’t have a sweet tooth like me us 😉
Most people can’t handle such decadence in the morning, but I sure can. When I was younger I used to eat chocolate bars on my way to school, so I’m used to it I guess.
I mean, brownies for breakfast?? HELL YES. WHO’S WITH ME?!
Healthy Cheesecake Swirl Brownies
Ingredients
Brownies:
- 260g (one 15.5oz can) Black Beans
- 175g (~1¼ cups) Fresh Blueberries
- ⅓ cup Brewed Coffee (cooled to room temp)
- 1 tbs Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Liquid Stevia Extract
- 96g (½ cup) Granulated Erythritol
- 60g (¾ cup) Unsweetened Natural Cocoa Powder
- 34g (¼ cup) Sweet White Sorghum Flour
- 28g (¼ cup) Ground Flaxseed
- 1½ tsp Double Acting Baking Powder
- ¼ tsp Baking Soda
- ¼ tsp Salt
Swirl:
- 6 oz Neufchatel Cream Cheese (room temp (or ⅓ Less Fat Cream Cheese)
- ½ tsp Liquid Stevia Extract
- ¼ tsp Vanilla Paste (I used homemade!)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line an 8x8” brownie pan with parchment paper.
- Drain the can of black beans and pour the beans into a sieve. Rinse well and drain off the excess water.
- In a blender (I used my NutriBullet), add the black beans, blueberries, coffee, vanilla extract, and stevia extract. Purée until completely smooth.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the erythritol, cocoa powder, sorghum flour, flaxseed, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- For the Cheesecake Swirl- In a small bowl, whisk together the cream cheese, stevia extract, and vanilla paste.
- Pour the blender mixture (scrape out as much as you can!) into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix until completely even. Scoop the mixture into the prepared pan and spread it out. Scoop spoonfuls of the cheesecake swirl over the batter and swirl in with a butter knife.
- Bake for ~43 minutes. Let cool completely, then cover and refrigerate overnight. Slice into 9 squares. Serve and enjoy! Store in a tightly sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Feel free to mix in ½ cup of No-Sugar-Added Chocolate Chips for some extra chocolate goodness and texture!
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Awwww yeahhhh, only 140 calories and 6g of fat per brownie. Plus, 7g of fiber, 5g of protein, and zero added sugar!
When you’re craving Cheesecake but also want some brownies, you make these fudgy, swirly Cream Cheese Brownies!
Enjoy 🙂
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– Jess
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Indulge − no strings attached!
I was a bit intrigued when I saw blueberries in the recipe. Now, I think they couldn’t be more perfect! I can imagine them adding the most perfect texture, moisture, and sweetness to the brownies! I also love the cheesecake swirl on top. Looks so pretty!
Awwww thanks so much Cassie! Your support and kind words always mean a ton <3
Can I substsiute ground flaxseed for 1 egg? Have to try this recipe :D:D:D
I haven’t tried the egg instead of flax (I find that the flax makes this extra fudgy) but I’m sure it would work just fine!! 🙂
These brownies look delicious! Love the use of whole foods like black beans and blueberries for both moisture and (of course) a good dose of nutrients. I want to make these but I don’t have sorghum flour…is there another flour I could substitute? Thanks, and keep up the healthy, creative recipe writing!
I haven’t tried another flour here but I think brown rice flour, quinoa flour, or whole wheat pastry flour (not GF) would work! 🙂
I would really like to try your brownies. They look & sound so good but do the black beans not cause any problems with gas? Is there something else I could substitute for black beans? Erythritol in Lilly’s chocolate causes me gas also but I could probably just increase the stevia.
I don’t experience gas with black beans… and if you do maybe consider a digestive enzyme. There’s a “de-gassing” method you look Google (I believe you soak the beans before cooking?)…
Unfortunately there’s no sub for the beans as that is the main ingredient of the recipe. You can substitute the Lily’s chocolate for regular chocolate, or increase the stevia as you said 🙂
Hi! THANK YOU so much for your great recipes, I really appreciate them! Today I made these Healthy Cheesecake Brownies and WOW what a great recipe. However; I do have to ask you……I baked them in silicone pan with 12 individual 3x3inch square molds. I baked them at 350 for 20 minutes and I am not completely sure if they were done….they tasted good…. the edges were firmer than the middle (the middle actually did not seem to have any structure. I have all your cookbooks and I wish you would come out with another! You have quite a talent and all of your readers are so fortunate to benefit from them. I appreciate your time and I am looking forward in hearing what you think about my baking time! Thank you! Debbie
20 minutes probably isn’t enough time for these to bake completely through. I’d shoot for 25-30 minutes… it could also be affected by the silicone pan, as I’m sure a dark metal pan maintains heat differently.
Your comment and support both mean so so much to me Debbie! I’m honored to know that my cookbooks are sitting somewhere in your home <3
My work load has been pretty crazy for the last 10 months, currently working for 5 companies as well as myself, but thankfully 2 of those contracts are ending in May so I’ll have more time to spare. It’s one of my goals to start writing a 3rd cookbook this summer!! 🙂
THANK YOU so much Jessica for getting back to me so quickly, especially with such a hectic schedule! I will try the recipe again next week trying maybe 25 min. total baking time. I was thinking the lesser baking time because it was being baked in a silicone pan with 12 individual portions so the density of the batter was much less than baking all the batter in a 8 inch pan….it is hard to convert baking times when changing size…..I guess it would be like baking cupcakes instead of baking in a 9 x 13/or round cake pans. How would you convert? My silicone pan is 9 x 12 with 12 individual 3″ square cells! Do you think 25min – 30min would do the trick? I have found that the silicone pans bake pretty close to any other baking pan. Again, Jessica thank you so much for your time and support, it is truly appreciated so much! Your the best! Debbie
These brownies are super fudgy, so I don’t think an extra few minutes in the oven would hurt. I would check it at 25 minutes — tap the center of a little brownie and if it’s soft, keep it in the oven for 5 more minutes. It should be firm when tapped 🙂
As I said before YOUR THE BEST! Trying again next week. Thank you for the support and guidance! I will let you know the results!
These look really good! Just out of curiosity I was wondering what the blueberries add to the brownies? I’ve never seen a bean-based brownie recipe call for them!
The blueberries are one of the secret ingredients in these brownies! You know how applesauce replaces some oil in baked goods? The blueberries do the same thing, but since they have a lower water content than applesauce, they yield a fudgier, less cakey brownie. They provide a little sweetness too, but I used blueberries mostly for the texture aspect 🙂