Vegan Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies

With a fudgy brownie base, and sweet cream cheese swirl, these Vegan Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies won’t last long!

It took three tries, but I finally perfected these Vegan Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies!

Until this past week, I felt like I was just making it through the day. I’m not even sure what tasks would occupy my time, but the three hour window between Harper’s feedings would always fly by. By the end of the day I didn’t have much to show for my time, other than I kept my child alive and fed and spent quality time with family.

Those first few weeks in Houston were just how I hoped they would be–restful and filled with family. But as our return to China approaches, I’ve found myself starting to ache for routine and productivity–for my sake and for Harper! For me, I feel like I’ve taken weeks off from blogging and experimenting in the kitchen and I miss it! In China I have a lot more opportunities to cook for others instead of people cooking for me, so it’s easy for me to find opportunities while in China to create new recipes. In America we’ve been so spoiled with family cooking for us or creating quick, delicious meals with store-bought items like bread, veggie burgers, hummus, etc. 

Thankfully this past week I feel like I’ve found pockets of time to let my creativity flow in the kitchen. I’m branching out from my usual morning oats and creating different flavors of smoothies. I’m throwing dates, oats, nut butters and warming spices together in a food processor and whizzing everything together to form delicious, healthy cookie dough balls. And I’m melting chocolate and folding it in with flour and sugar and swirling cream cheese on top to create these rich, fudgey Vegan Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies!

Yesssss.

It feels good to be back!

The first time I made these brownies the flavor was amazing, but they were too cakey for my liking. The second time I made them I tried using vegan butter and that was complete fail. The third time I went back to my original recipe and reduced the amount of flour and they turned out spot on. Fudgey richness.

As for cream cheese, I HIGHLY recommend using a nut based cream cheese, specifically Kite Hill Vegan Cream Cheese. The oil based cream cheeses separate in the oven, creating a weird texture, and they are also not as sweet as the Kite Hill Brand. 

I’d love to know if you give this recipe a try and what you think! Leave a comment down below or take a photo and tag #theconscientiouseater on Instagram so I can see your creation!

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Vegan Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies

Yield: 16 brownies

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

With a fudgy brownie base, and sweet cream cheese swirl, these Vegan Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies won't last long!

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Ingredients

CREAM CHEESE SWIRL:

• 1/2 cup (4 oz.) vegan cream cheese*
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

BROWNIES

• 1 cup chocolate chips + more for topping
• 1 cup flour
• 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup non-dairy milk
• 1/3 cup oil

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x9 inch pan. Set it aside.
2. In a bowl, mix together the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Set aside.
3. In a microwave safe bowl, microwave the chocolate chips for 30 seconds. Stir and continue this process, only microwaving 30 seconds at a time, until the chocolate has melted. Set aside to cool.
4. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients from the flour to the salt.
5. Add the melted chocolate, non-dairy milk and oil to the flour mixture and stir until combined.
6. Pour the brownie batter into your prepared baking dish and smooth out the top.
7. Take the cream cheese mixture and dollop it on the top of the brownie batter. Take a knife and drag the edge of the knife through the cream cheese and brownie batter in a swirly motion.
8. Top the brownies with extra chocolate chips if desired.
9. Bake the brownies for about 30 minutes, or until your desired doneness.
10. Allow the brownies to cool before slicing and serving. They may be a little crumbly if you cut them before they cool and set!
11. Place any leftover brownies in an airtight container in the fridge. The brownies will taste even better and get more fudgey once refrigerated.

Notes

*I highly recommend using Kite Hill Cream Cheese!

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  PLANT BIASED EBOOK

Nutrition Information

Yield 16 Serving Size 1 brownie
Amount Per Serving Calories 154Total Fat 9gSaturated Fat 3gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 2mgSodium 93mgCarbohydrates 19gFiber 1gSugar 11gProtein 2g

Nutrition information is a rough estimate provided by Nutrionix and should be used for informational purposes only.