I've always wondered why black and orange were the designated Halloween colours. Well, it turns out it dates all the way back to the Celts about 2000 years ago. Black symbolises the darker nights, while orange is the colour of Autumn leaves and fire. It makes sense now! I've used these seasonal colours to create delicious and gooey Halloween Cheesecake Brownies. These delicious treats combine sweet gooey chocolate brownie, with swirls of baked orange coloured cheesecake, they're two fabulous desserts in one and they're perfect for spooky nights! And with their black and orange hues they'll certainly up the spook factor at your Halloween celebrations!
Ingredient Tips & Equipment Information
- Make sure your eggs are at room temperature before you start baking. The butter can be cold for this recipe, as you are going to melt it anyway. It will just take slightly longer to melt.
- I used unsalted butter for this recipe.
- For the best results, use a good quality food colouring. My favourites are Sugarflair and Pro Gel.
- I used dark brown sugar for the brownies, but you can also use light brown sugar or caster sugar.
- Although I provide cup measurements, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients out using digital kitchen scales*. It is the most accurate way to measure ingredients and will ensure the best results. Digital scales are very low cost and can be purchased for around £12 ($16.50) .
- For teaspoon (tsp) and tablespoon (tbsp) measurements, please use measuring spoons* and not the type of spoons you eat with. Again this will ensure accuracy and provide the best results.
For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.
How to make Halloween Cheesecake Brownies
Make the orange coloured cheesecake first by mixing together full fat cream cheese, caster sugar, egg, vanilla extract and orange food colouring until smooth.
For the brownie batter, melt the chocolate and butter in a pan, then leave to cool. In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs and dark brown sugar together. Pour the melted chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, stirring as you pour, then add plain flour and black food colouring.
Pour about two third of the brownie mixture into a lined tray bake tin, then put the cheesecake mixture on top on blobs. Add the rest of the brownie mixture on top in blobs, then swirl it altogether with a butter knife. Bake for 30-35 minutes.
For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.
Can this recipe be made in a different size tin?
I make this recipe in a 12" x 9" traybake tin, but you can also make it in 9" or 8" square tin. To do this, you'll need to reduce the recipe by ⅓. Check the recipe notes at the end of this post for the exact measurements. A 9" square tin is 25% bigger than an 8" square tin, so the thickness of the brownies will be different depending on which one you use. They will also need slightly different baking times.
How should the brownies be stored and can they be frozen?
They should be stored in an airtight container, or covered on a plate, in the fridge for 3 days. You can also freeze the brownies. Once they are fully cool, wrap them well and freeze for up to 3 months.
Can the brownies be made gluten or dairy free?
Yes! For gluten free you can replace the plain flour with a gluten free plain flour blend. For a dairy free version, use a dairy free baking spread instead of butter, dairy free cream cheese and a dairy free dark chocolate for the brownies
More tips for making the Halloween Cheesecake Brownies:
- Use a regular butter knife to make the swirls, glide it around slowly until you're happy
- You could change the food colouring for the cheesecake swirl to other popular Halloween colours like green or purple!
- Make sure to line your tin with greaseproof baking paper so the brownies come out easily
Troubleshooting
If you have any questions about this recipe, or if something went wrong and you need help, please use the comment form below and I will get back to you. You can also get in touch with me on my Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. I'd love to hear from you!
Recommended equipment & ingredients*
- Traybake tin
- Mixing bowls
- Cooling rack
- Kitchen scales
- Dark chocolate
- Orange food colouring
- Black food colouring
*I earn a small amount of money if you buy the products after clicking on the links. You will not be charged anything extra for this. Thank you for supporting The Baking Explorer!
More Halloween recipes...
Halloween Cheesecake Brownies
Ingredients
For the cheesecake swirl
- 350 g Full fat cream cheese
- 1 Egg large
- 65 g Caster sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- Orange food colouring I use Pro Gel
For the brownies
- 350 g Dark chocolate
- 250 g Butter or baking spread
- 250 g Dark brown sugar
- 3 Eggs large
- 120 g Plain flour
- Black food colouring I use Pro Gel
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 160C Fan/350F/Gas Mark 4 and grease and line a 12" x 9" traybake tin
- To make the cheesecake swirl, mix together the full fat cream cheese, caster sugar, egg and vanilla extract with a hand whisk or electric hand whisk until smooth. Add enough orange food colouring to get a bright shade. Set aside
- For the brownie mix start by melting the dark chocolate and butter in a pan on a low heat, once melted stir together then set aside to cool for 5-10 minutes
- In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to mix together the dark brown sugar and the eggs until frothy - this takes about 5 minutes
- Slowly pour the melted chocolate and butter into the egg mixture, whilst constantly whisking - either with a hand or electric mixer
- Add the plain flour and gently whisk in
- Add enough black food colouring to get a dark shade, gently stir it in
- Pour about two third of the brownie mixture into the traybake tin, then add the cheesecake mixture on top, then spoon the rest of the brownie mix on top in blobs
- Using a butter knife, swirl the mixture around to create a swirl pattern, then bake it for 30-35 minutes
- Leave it to cool completely then refridgerate before removing from the tin and cutting into squares
- Store in the fridge and eat them within 3 days
Video
Notes
- Make sure your eggs are at room temperature before you start baking. The butter can be cold for this recipe, as you are going to melt it anyway. It will just take slightly longer to melt.
- I used unsalted butter for this recipe.
- For the best results, use a good quality food colouring. My favourites are Sugarflair and Pro Gel.
- I used dark brown sugar for the brownies, but you can also use light brown sugar or caster sugar.
- Although I provide cup measurements, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients out using digital kitchen scales*. It is the most accurate way to measure ingredients and will ensure the best results. Digital scales are very low cost and can be purchased for around £12 ($16.50) .
- For teaspoon (tsp) and tablespoon (tbsp) measurements, please use measuring spoons* and not the type of spoons you eat with. Again this will ensure accuracy and provide the best results.
- 235g Dark chocolate
- 165g Butter
- 165g Dark brown sugar
- 2 Eggs
- ½ tsp Baking powder
- 80g Plain flour
- 1 Egg, medium
- 45g Caster sugar
- ¾ tsp Vanilla extract
Laura - Mummy Lauretta
Yum! My boys would love these, we are big fans of brownies in our house 🙂
Donna
brownies and cheesecake and Halloween! OHMYGOSHYUM
Anita Holland
These look so great, the colour through it looks so pretty.
Cat | Curly's Cooking
These look fantastic! Love the colours and cheesecake brownies sound delicious.
Ellie h
How do you use gel food colouring in chocolate without it splitting? Thanks!
thebakingexplorer
Hi Ellie, you don't colour the chocolate directly in this recipe so it shouldn't split because it's mixed with the other brownie ingredients 🙂
Sophie
Great recipe to follow and the end product looks amazing!!! So pleased with how they turned out!
Stephanie
Easy to follow recipe to make with my daughter. Tastes amazing. Great balance and not too sweet. Thank you.
thebakingexplorer
Thank you so much Stephanie!