Raspberry Cheesecake Brownies

My birthday. Twenty-seven. Twenty-seven feels like a number that knows what it's doing. Not young-young anymore. Not thirties yet. The sweet spot where you've made most of your big mistakes and learned from approximately half of them. Caleb's card: the potato has reached renaissance-level detail. It now has fingers (five on each hand, he counted), shoes, and is standing next to a stove. The stove has smoke coming out of it. 'That's because you're cooking something HARD, Mama.' I am HONORED to be the potato who cooks something hard. Hazel's card: a pink blob with the word 'MAMA' written by Miss Jenna. Hazel added stickers. Seventeen stickers. The card weighs approximately a pound. Ryan made breakfast. Pancakes (now reliably excellent), eggs, and the coffee that he has mastered through sheer Marine determination. He also gave me a gift: a new Moleskine notebook. Number seven. He knows I'm running out of pages in number six. 'You'll fill this one too,' he said. 'I'll fill them all.' Megan called. 'Twenty-seven! Almost thirty!' 'Megan, you say this every year.' 'And every year you're closer!' The annual Megan age-harassment. Consistent, predictable, sisterly. Made my own birthday cake — chocolate, three layers. The tradition. Dad's gift arrived by mail: a packet of heirloom tomato seeds and a card that said 'Happy birthday, sweetheart. Grow something beautiful.' The man writes like a Hallmark card now. Retirement has made Kevin Abernathy poetic. Twenty-seven. Potato portraits. Moleskine number seven. Heirloom seeds. The year begins again.

I said I made my own birthday cake — and I did — but “cake” is a flexible word in this house. What I actually made were these raspberry cheesecake brownies, which I have been making for myself on birthdays since I was old enough to decide that I get to choose. The chocolate is deep and serious, the cheesecake layer is tangy and creamy, and the raspberries cut through all of it like a little burst of something bright — which felt exactly right for twenty-seven. Caleb approved (he ate two). Hazel approved (she ate the raspberries off the top of three of them). Ryan said nothing, just reached for another one, which in Marine-speak is the highest possible praise.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 35 min | Total Time: 55 min | Servings: 16 brownies

Ingredients

Brownie Layer
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
Cheesecake Layer
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Raspberry Layer
1/2 cup fresh or frozen raspberries (thawed if frozen, patted dry)
2 tablespoons seedless raspberry jam

Instructions

Preheat and prep. Preheat oven to 325°F. Line an 8x8-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving overhang on two sides for easy lifting. Lightly grease the parchment.
Make the brownie batter. In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt butter and chopped chocolate together, stirring constantly until smooth. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes. Whisk in sugar, then eggs one at a time, then vanilla. Fold in flour, cocoa powder, and salt until just combined — do not overmix.
Make the cheesecake layer. In a medium bowl, beat softened cream cheese and sugar together until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla until fully incorporated.
Prepare the raspberry swirl. Gently warm the raspberry jam for 20 seconds in the microwave to loosen it. In a small bowl, toss raspberries with the warmed jam until lightly coated.
Assemble the layers. Pour roughly two-thirds of the brownie batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Spoon the cheesecake mixture over the brownie layer and spread gently to the edges. Dollop the remaining brownie batter in small spoonfuls across the top of the cheesecake layer. Scatter the raspberry mixture evenly across the surface.
Swirl. Use a butter knife or skewer to gently swirl the top layers together in slow, loose figure-eight motions — 8 to 10 passes. Do not over-swirl or the layers will muddy together.
Bake. Bake for 33 to 38 minutes, until the cheesecake layer is just set at the center and the edges are lightly golden. A toothpick inserted into the brownie portion should come out with moist crumbs (not wet batter).
Cool completely before cutting. Let the pan cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes, then transfer to the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. Lift out using the parchment overhang and cut into 16 squares with a sharp knife, wiping the blade clean between cuts.

Nutrition (per serving)

Raspberry Cheesecake Brownies — Because the Birthday Girl Bakes Her Own Cake