Cheesecake brownie cupcakes combine three of my favourite things. I found the brownie cupcakes in my Leila Lindholm book I was given recently and wondered how I could add my own touch. I’ve been making these Raspberry Cheesecake Brownies by Baking Bites for a good long while and thought I could adapt the recipe. Here’s the resulting baby!

You’re going to need to check these cupcakes regularly. My gas oven is wild and untamed – something that drives me mad because the temperature difference from top to bottom is mad and makes it impossible to cook two sandwich cake layer at once. The cupcakes sink a bit in the middle once they come of the oven, this is completely normal! You haven’t done anything wrong…

I popped some blueberries into the topping for a touch of healthy fruity flavour, but you can leave them out if you want! You could also try mixing up the jam flavours too.

Ingredients

For the brownie cupcakes (adapted from Leila Lindholm’s brownie cupcakes)

• 2 large eggs
• 180g caster sugar
• 1tsp vanilla essence
• 50g butter
• 50ml olive oil
• 80ml golden syrup
• 120g plain flour
• 50g cocoa powder
• 1tsp baking powder
• 1 pinch of salt
• 100g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), chopped into pieces

For the cheesecake topping (adapted from Baking Bites Raspberry Cheesecake Brownies)

• 225g full fat cream cheese (like Philadelphia)
• 50g caster sugar
• 1 large egg
• ½tsp vanilla essence
• 3tbsp strawberry jam
• 24 blueberries

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C/325°F/Gas Mark 3. Line a muffin tin with paper/foil cupcake cakes. I used British style extra large muffin cases (they’s be smaller than American ones but bigger than your normal cupcake cases, but if you’re using smaller ones then you will make more than 12 so you’ll need an extra tin.
2. Make the cheesecake by whisking the cream cheese, egg, sugar with the paddle in your stand mixer (or you can use a hand mixer or by hand too) on a medium speed until creamy and smooth. Set aside.
3. In a seperate bowl beat the eggs and sugar until fluffy and pale.
4. Melt the butter and mix with the oil and golden syrup in a large mixing bowl then stir into the egg mixture.
5. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt, then fold into the butter mix.
6. Melt the chocolate pieces in a bowl over bubbling water. Don’t let the bowl touch the water.
7. Fold the chocolate into mixture.
8. Spoon the mixture evenly into the muffin cases, and even the surfaces out with a spoon. Spoon a heaped tablespoon of the cheesecake mixture on the top.
9. Using a kebab skewer, swirl jam through the cream cheese, then push two blueberries into the top.
10. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, then check to see if they’re done by placing a skewer into the middle of one of the cupcakes. The skewer should come out clean. If not, check it every 5 minutes or so until done.
11. Remove from the oven, leave in the muffin tray for 5 minutes then leave to cool on a cooling rack.

This was inspired by Creative Review’s tweet about Bailey’s cheesecake which is an adaptation of a Nigella Lawson recipe. I liked the idea of using Daim bar in the base, but I quite fancied cheesecake with apple as I’d never tried it. In fact, this is the first cheesecake I’ve ever made!

3hr 30mins – Prep time: 30mins – Cooking time: 1hr – Cooling time: 2hrs

{Serves: 3-4}

Ingredients

Cheesecake base

• 125g Oat biscuits (I used Hob Nobs)
• 125g Digestive biscuits
• 80g butter
• 3 Daim bars
• 1/2tsp cinammon
• pinch of salt

Cheesecake mixture

• 500g mascarpone cheese
• 100g soft cream cheese
• 3 eggs
• 125g caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste (or 1tsp vanilla essence)

Apple mixture

• 4tsp light brown sugar
• 1tbsp butter
• 1 bramley apple, peeled and sliced into 1cm pieces
• 1tsp cinammon

Instructions

Oven temp: 160°C /320°F

1. Make the apple mixture. Melt the butter on a low heat in the saucepan and add the apple. Mix together and allow to cook for 1 minute before adding 2tsp light brown sugar.
2. Cover and allow to cook gently for 3-4 minutes when the apples will go soft. Stir in the cinnamon and remaining sugar. Leave to cool.
3. Make the cheesecake base. Take the Daim bars, put in a plastic bag and beat with a rolling pin until the Daim bars are in rough pieces.
4. Then add the biscuits to the bag and beat again until everything is in fine crumbs but not dust.
5. Melt the butter and combine with the biscuit crumbs in a medium size mixing bowl.
6. Add the cinnamon and salt and mix well.
7. In a 23cm springform pan, press the biscuit mixture down evenly in the bottom of the pan. Place in the fridge to chill.
8. Make the cheesecake mixture. In a large mixing bowl mix add the mascarpone cheese and soft cream cheese. Add each egg one at a time whisking until the mixture is smooth. Then whisk in the vanilla and caster sugar.
9. Add about half of the apple mixture to the cheesecake mixture and fold in.
10. Remove cheesecake base from the fridge and pour mixture on top.
11. By hand, gently add the remaining apple on top, then push into the mixture with a spoon
12. Place in the oven for about 50-60 mins or until the top is just browning.
13. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 2 hours. Store in the fridge. Serve with a dusting of cinnamon.