Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake Brownies

It’s 4 o’clock PST on a Friday, also known as the perfect time to dream about desserts for the weekend. And lucky for us, Lindsey never fails to disappoint. Peanut Butter Cups, cheesecake, and that fun flavor of brownies that never seems to get old. Make these today, enjoy ’em all weekend. You go Glen Coco!

Check out Lindsey‘s recipe below and for all step-by-step pictures head to her full post.

Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake Brownies

3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
6 peanut butter cups

1 cup heavy whipping cream
8 ounces cream cheese, softened (that’s 1 block of cream cheese)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar
hot fudge topping (don’t heat it up! keep the hot fudge topping at room temperature)

Sift the flour, cocoa powder and kosher salt into a bowl. Set aside.

In a bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, mix together the brown sugar, sugar, melted butter and 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract on medium speed.
Add in the eggs, one at a time and mix until combined.

Slowly add in the sifted ingredients and mix until almost combined. Take a spatula and fold the ingredients together.

Cut up the peanut butter cups and throw them in. Fold them in with a spatula.

Lightly grease an 8 by 8 inch baking pan and spread the brownie batter into the pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Cool the brownies in the pan on a cooling rack.
Before spreading the cheesecake portion on top, make sure the brownies have completely cooled.

In a bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip 1 cup of heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Put the whipped cream in another bowl and set aside.

In a bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, add in the cream cheese and 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract. Sift the powdered sugar over the bowl. Mix the ingredients on medium speed until completely combined.

Add in the whipped cream and gently fold it in. You want to completely combine the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture but don’t overmix it.

Spread the cheesecake on top of the brownies. Chill for 4-5 hours until the cheesecake has set.
Cut into squares. If you like, drizzle with hot fudge topping. Enjoy!