Strawberry Cheesecake Swirl Brownies (vegan, gluten-free)

photo of brownie slices placed at different angles
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It’s National Cream Cheese Brownie Day and I’m currently obsessed with these strawberry cheesecake swirl brownies! They are so delicious, fudgy, and decadent. It’s a chocolate lover’s dream and the strawberry cheesecake swirl is divine!

I love a good brownie and these strawberry cheesecake swirl brownies would be perfect for Valentine’s Day coming up. It will give a regular chocolate covered strawberry a run for its money. If you want to impress your special someone on love day, these babies are it! I can never turn down a brownie and these have been hitting the spot lately.

In my opinion, brownies have to be fudgy! If it’s cakey, it’s just chocolate cake right?! To get the fudgy texture in these brownies, I used Spero Foods vegan chocolate sunflower cream cheese in the batter and the strawberry sunflower cream cheese in the swirl. It made it super fudgy and flavorful! One tip to get extra fudgy brownies is to not over bake them.

Head over to my Instagram (@nutsaboutgreens) to enter into the giveaway I am doing with Spero Foods! One winner will receive a box of all their flavors! If you make these brownies, tag me @nutsaboutgreens on Instagram so I can see your creations!

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Strawberry Cheesecake Swirl Brownies (vegan, gluten-free)

These strawberry cheesecake swirl brownies are fudgy, decadent, and so delicious! You can't even tell that they are vegan and gluten-free!
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photo of brownie slices placed at different angles

Ingredients

  • scant 3/4 cup gluten-free AP flour, not packed
  • 1/2 cup cacao powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 flax eggs (2 Tbsp + 6 Tbsp water)
  • 1 tub (6.5 oz) Spero chocolate sunflower cream cheese
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
  • 3/4 cup pure organic cane sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsp almond milk (or any non-dairy milk)
  • 1/2 cup dairy-free chocolate chips

Strawberry Cheesecake Swirl

  • 1 tub (6.5 oz) Spero strawberry sunflower cream cheese
  • 2 tbsp pure organic cane sugar
  • 2 tbsp almond milk (or any non-dairy milk)
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 8×8 inch square pan with parchment paper.
  • In a medium bowl, make the flax eggs by adding the ground flaxseeds and water. Stir until combined. Set aside for 5 minutes to thicken.
  • In a large bowl, add the flour, cacao powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk until well combined.
  • In the bowl with the flax eggs, add the chocolate cream cheese, coconut oil, sugar, vanilla, and almond milk. Whisk until combined.
  • Add wet to dry. Use a spatula to mix until just combined. Don’t over mix. Fold in chocolate chips. The batter will be very thick.
  • Make the strawberry cheesecake swirl by adding the strawberry cream cheese, sugar, milk, and cornstarch to a bowl. Mix with a spoon until well combined and smooth.
  • Add 2/3 of the brownie batter to the lined pan. Spread batter out evenly in the pan. Drop spoonfuls of strawberry cheesecake batter over the brownie batter. Then drop spoonfuls of the leftover 1/3 brownie batter in the empty spaces between the cheesecake filling. Use a knife and gently swirl the batters together.
  • Bake for 35-40 minutes until center is set. Don’t over bake. It will firm up more when it cools. Cool brownies in the pan on a wire rack and then place in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. Slice and enjoy!
Servings: 16
Author: valeria.chao