Goat Cheese Swirled Brownies

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**This recipe made the Foodbuzz Top 9 today!  Thanks to everyone who enjoyed it enough to click BUZZ!**
At the end of my last post I mentioned that you had these to look forward to:

Goat Cheese Swirled Brownies

I threw a baby shower for my friend, Summer–who is expecting a little girl–and I wanted some of the desserts to be girly and pink.

I made an assortment of desserts, but my absolute favorite were the Goat Cheese Brownies!

Pink Goat Cheese–Dark Chocolate Chunk Brownies

Any chance to use one of my favorite ingredients–goat cheese–I’m going to take it!  I never really enjoyed cream cheese brownies, but I love the beautiful contrast of the dark brownie and the light cream cheese.  So pretty!

Unfortunately, looks aren’t everything; and I think the cream cheese mixture becomes a little dry and tasteless once it’s baked.  Yuck.  But, what if that cream cheese mixture had a little tang?  A little flavor? A little goat cheese?

3 or 4 years ago I was watching “Throw-Down” with Bobby Flay.  The episode had him competing against the ladies from the Vermont Brownie Company, and it featured their Dark Chocolate Chevre Brownies.  They looked incredible!  But at $23 dollars for 6 brownies–not including shipping–they were an (extreme) indulgence that I just couldn’t justify.

Heck! It’s years later, and they’re still a purchase I couldn’t possibly think to justify.

So, like any home-cook with a craving, I decided to make my own.  I whipped up some brownies, threw in some goat cheese, tossed them in the oven and hoped for the best.  I was so excited to taste them, and when that time finally came–I was left with nothing but disappointment.

My brownies weren’t fudgy.  In fact, I had over-baked them to the point of ruin.

I gave up trying to make homemade brownies and stuck with a  cheap boxed mix from the grocery store.  That is, until I found Anne Thornton‘s Decadent Brownie Recipe (along with her Fudgy Salty Peanut Butter Brownies–which are probably the best I’ve ever tasted!).

Not only did I love her brownies, but I wanted to be her best friend!  She has a show on the Food Network: Dessert First, and watching her makes me wish she lived closer so we could be baking buddies!  She’s a baking genius.

I now use her recipe for all my brownie needs (they are needs, right?!); and they turn out awesome every time!

The goat cheese mixture was basic and quite simple.  I took 8 oz. cheese, some honey, cream cheese, a little flour and an egg and mixed it all together.  Once it was nice and smooth, I added a few drops of hot pink food coloring.  Perfection!

This recipe was insanely easy–even easier if you choose to use a boxed brownie mix (hey, I won’t judge!)–and everyone loved them!  The goat cheese gives the brownies a nice flavor that most people can’t quite put their finger on.  Yum!

I baked the brownies a few days before the baby shower, let them cool and then cut off the edges (I know, the edges are the best part…but they’re not all that pretty).  Once the edges were cut off, I wrapped the brownies with plastic wrap and tossed them into the freezer.

They’re easier to cut when they’re frozen and the super fudgy brownies won’t stick to the knife.  You’ll get perfect squares!  I cut them the night before the party, and then tossed them in the freezer again.  Easy!

Pink Goat Cheese Swirled Brownies

Goat Cheese Swirled Brownies

Serves 12 to 30 –depending on which pan size you use

Ingredients:

  • 1 batch of brownies, prepared–but not baked (I recommend THESE)
  • 1 large dark chocolate bar- cut into chunks
  • 8 oz. chevre (goat cheese)
  • 1 tbsp. honey
  • 1 tbsp. all purpose flour
  • 2 tbsp. cream cheese
  • 1 egg
  • food color- optional

Directions:

  • Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and grease your baking pan (I used a 9×13).  You can also cut a piece of parchment paper to fit in the bottom of the pan.  It will ensure your brownies don’t stick to the bottom.
  • In a large bowl, prepare your favorite brownies–homemade or from a mix–and stir in the dark chocolate chunks.  Set the brownie mixture aside.
  • In a separate bowl, combine the chevre, honey, flour, cream cheese and egg.  Beat the ingredients together until the mixture becomes nice and smooth.  Add food coloring if you want colored swirls.
  • In the greased baking pan add half of the brownie mixture.  Spread it out so that it covers the entire bottom.
  • Now, add spoonfuls of the goat cheese mixture on top of the brownies you just spread in the pan.  Spoon the rest of the prepared brownie mix on top, as well.
  • Using a plastic knife or a butter knife, make swirls and zig-zags throughout the spoonfuls of chevre mixture and brownie mix, creating a pretty swirled pattern.
  • Bake the brownies in the pre-heated oven until the center is set but still quite fudgy.  (Follow the baking directions for whichever brownie mix or recipe you used–I had to bake mine for approximately 20 minutes).
  • When the brownies are finished, remove them from the oven and let them cool.  Once they’re completely cooled, remove from the pan and freeze–or cut and serve.  Enjoy!

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I’m excited for Christmastime!  I’m envisioning cookie trays piled with brownies that have red and green goat cheese swirls!  Pretty!

32 thoughts on “Goat Cheese Swirled Brownies”

    1. Shari Post author

      I think those would work fabulously! You could maybe mix some strawberry preserves with the goat cheese…or make a mixture of strawberry and cream cheese and do the goat cheese separately so the strawberry doesn’t mask the tang of the cheese. Yum!

      Reply ↓
  14. foodiestuntman

    I like how you’ve taken a base recipe and adapted it. Congratulations on making the foodbuzz Top 9!

    Reply ↓
  17. Food Stories

    I’ve enjoyed your site so I’m nominating you for the Illuminating Blogger Award for informative, illuminating blog content. I know not everyone participates in blog awards but I hope you’ll at least check it out because it’s a great way to discover new blogs, meet new web friends and pay it forward, so to speak. If you’re interested in participating, you can check out the details at my site … http://foodstoriesblog.com/illuminating-blogger-award/ … Hope you’re having a great day!

    Reply ↓
    1. Shari Post author

      Thank you so much C.J.! I checked out your blog, my goodness there is a lot of info! You’ve done a wonderful job!!! I am flattered you’ve nominated me, and I will be sure to pass it on once I get a little time to sit and read through some other lovely blogs!

      Thanks again! 🙂

      Reply ↓
      1. Food Stories

        Thank you … Can’t wait to try this recipe and to see what your next post will be 🙂

  19. Pingback: Cream Cheese Brownies with a Twist! | Daily Dish with Foodie Friends Friday

  20. pam

    Just put these in the oven right now and I am SOOO disappointed…
    I used the Anne Thornton brownie base (per your recommendation) and ended up with a paste/dough…not a batter.
    I should have known when I read her instructions and she said to “press the thick batter” into the pan with your hands…how on earth you were able to swirl any kind of mixture into this cookiedough-like sludge of a disaster is beyond me!
    I only hope that everything will sort of “melt together” in the oven. Who knows what kind of texture I’ll end up with.
    If there is a next time, I’ll certainly be using one of my trusty Ina Garten brownie recipes.

    Reply ↓
    1. Shari Post author

      Pam,
      I’m so sorry you were disappointed with the brownies. Was it just the brownie recipe, or was the whole recipe (the goat cheese mixture) also a bust? I’d love to hear back from you about how they turned out after you pulled them from the oven.

      The brownies always seem to work for me, but I do hope you’ll give this recipe another try with the Ina Garten brownie recipe. Ina is a baking goddess, and I’m positive that you’ll enjoy if you find a brownie base that works for you. Sometimes, if I’m in a pinch…I’ve also been known to use a boxed brownie mix! They turn out beautifully.

      Reply ↓
      1. pam

        just the brownie recipe! the goat cheese mixture was delicious.
        They came out sort of like chewy cookies–just with the goat cheese sandwiched between two layers of the dough.
        Not bad in taste, just not brownie-like! I have yet to try with a new brownie recipe, but i’m sure it will be delicious.
        Thanks for taking the time to reply! Not sure why the brownie recipe turns out so differently for the two of us, but the goat cheese was certainly a success.

      2. Shari Post author

        I’m glad the goat cheese mixture was good! Try it sometime with a new brownie recipe (or if you’re short on time, maybe a store-bought brownie mix?), and let me know how it goes! 🙂

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