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Halloween Swirl Cream Cheese Brownies have a layer of rich, dark chocolate brownie topped with a layer of orange cheesecake then swirled together for a spooky treat. These are sure to be a perfect dessert treat for everyone at your Halloween party!
Halloween Brownies
It’s the second week of October so it’s appropriate that I’m sharing a Halloween recipe, right? When I pull up my Pinterest feed or step into any store, I’m already seeing all things Christmas. I feel behind and it’s not even November!
Halloween Swirl Cream Cheese Brownies
Confession Time:
To be honest, I did make these cream cheese brownies a couple months ago, but other things came up so I’m just now getting around to posting them. The problem with that is, I don’t know where I wrote down my notes for the recipe.
If I’m too prepared, I mess myself up.
Anyway, I found the recipe so you’re in luck and will have a chance to enjoy these Halloween themed cream cheese brownies for the spooky day!
Halloween Brownies Ingredients
Below is a list of the ingredients you’ll need to gather to make this recipe. Scroll all the way down for the full recipe card.
- Sugar – Granulated sugar.
- Flour – All purpose flour.
- Cocoa Powder – I use Hershey’s Special Dark because you want it to be really dark/black.
- Salt – Helps enhance flavor.
- Baking Powder – For rise.
- Eggs – Large eggs.
- Vegetable Oil
- Vanilla Extract – A good quality vanilla extract, even though it’s pricey!
- Cream Cheese – A brick (8oz) at room temperature.
- Orange Food Coloring – This kit lets you easily make custom colors.
Tips for making these brownies:
- Line your baking pan with parchment paper to make it easy to remove after baking
- Use a skewer instead of a spatula for more intricate swirls in your cream cheese brownies
- Use this same recipe for multiple holidays, simply change out the food coloring to match the holiday (like these Christmas Brownies)!
I like that the swirls in these cream cheese brownies have a creepy, spidery effect. You could leave out the food coloring and just make these “regular” and they’d still be really pretty.
Tools to help you make Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies
- Food Coloring Kit – this is the food coloring I use. I didn’t tell you exactly how much orange to use because it will depend on which kit you’re using. If you’re using the Wilton Color Right Performance Food Coloring Set I link here, it comes with a color formula chart that shows you exactly how many drops you need of each color to make bright colors, pastels, etc. It’s a really good kit. I have fun with it.
- 8 x 8 baking dish – love that this has a lid for easy storing.
- Brownie spatula – because you have to get them out of the pan!
FAQs
How to store them
Store leftovers covered in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Can I freeze them?
Yes, they should freeze well. I’d wrap them individually, then put them in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Can I double the recipe?
If you’d like more than the 8×8 pan, you can double the recipe and use a 9×13 pan.
Can I use a brownie mix?
Yes. If you’re in a pinch & want to use a mix instead of making the brownies from scratch, you can, just make sure you pick up a smaller pouch/box of brownie mix instead of the “family size” since this recipe is for an 8×8 pan.
Need more Halloween baking ideas? Try these:
- THIRTY Halloween Desserts – I compiled a great bunch of recipes in this list!
- Halloween Chocolate Tunnel Cake – the colors on this one are so fun!
- Brownie Bottom Halloween Cupcakes – brownie + cake = a whole lotta delicious.
- Black Cat Pudding Cups – these require no cooking and would be fun to send in as a class treat
- Jack-O-Lantern Brownie Bite – the kids will like to help decorate these.
- Best Halloween Party Food Ideas – not just baked goods, all kinds of ideas for your Halloween party.
This Halloween, have fun making our favorite Cream Cheese Brownies for a fun and spooky treat that everyone loves. This grown up dessert is a perfect treat everyone will love on the Halloween party buffet table this year!
Halloween Cream Cheese Swirl Brownies
Ingredients
For the Brownie Layer:
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- ½ cup all purpose white flour
- ½ cup Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 large eggs
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Cream Cheese Layer:
- 8 oz cream cheese at room temp
- ¼ cup granulated white sugar
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- orange food coloring
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8 x 8 baking dish with parchment paper or foil and spray with non-stick spray. Set aside.
For the Brownie Layer
- In a medium bowl, add the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder.1 cup granulated white sugar, ½ cup all purpose white flour, ½ cup Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- In a small bowl, add the eggs, oil, and vanilla. Mix with a fork until well combined.2 large eggs, ⅓ cup vegetable oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula until just combined.
- Reserve 1/4 cup of the batter for the swirls then pour the remaining batter into the prepared baking dish.
For the Cream Cheese Layer
- In a medium bowl, add the cream cheese, sugar, egg, & vanilla. Blend until smooth.8 oz cream cheese, ¼ cup granulated white sugar, 1 large egg, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add in the orange food coloring and stir to combine.orange food coloring
- Gently spread the cream cheese layer on top of the brownie batter.
- Drop tablespoons of the remaining brownie batter on top and gently swirl with a knife or skewer.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or until set. Remove and let cool completely before slicing.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Hi!
love this recipe, however my creamcheese layer is VERY runny.
I followed the recipe precisely to every measurement and it was runny
What am I doing wrong?
( It is cooking at the moment)
Hi! I wish I could troubleshoot with you but it’s hard not being in the kitchen with you 🙂 have you made them before & they were runny or is this the first time in the oven?
mine is also currently baking and was INSANELY runny. hoping it comes out!
I just shot a Reel for this one & the cream cheese layer is thin, but not runny. How much food coloring did you use?
These are easy, delicious, and so much fun for holidays (customizable as indicated in the post). It combines brownies AND cheesecake so you cannot go wrong. I can’t wait to make them again.
Thank you, Katja!
Can I freeze them?
Yes, they should freeze well. I’d wrap them individually, then put them in a freezer bag for up to 3 months.
If I am doubling recipe- which size baking pan should I use?
9×13 should be good
Should these be refrigerated?
Yes, covered in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Hi! I recently tried these and the brownie mix came out super thick, there’s no way I could’ve swirled it into the cream cheese. Also the oil puddled on top, the only thing I changed in the recipe is, I used lakanto Monkfruit sugar (white) instead of real sugar. Any idea what went wrong?
Sorry, I’ve never worked with monkfruit sugar so I’m not sure how it behaves.
The exact thing happened to me and I followed recipe exact. I haven’t tasted it yet so I’m hoping they taste better than they look!
Hi, i can tell you for sure that monk fruit will effect your texture, its often times blended with erithritol or xylitol and one of those two wont melt or combine with your mix, making a thick grainy, and crumbly texture. Hole that helps
If I’m doubling the recipe would I cook it longer as well?
In a 9×13 or 7×11 they’ll need about the same time since you’re spreading them out.
I followed the recipe carefully and these came out perfectly! Like a cross between cheesecake and a brownie.
Thanks, Jen! Happy Halloween 🎃
Can I use boxed Brownie mix in a pinch?
You can but this makes an 8×8 pan so make sure you get one of the smaller pouches & not a “family size”.
This sounds so yummy I can barely wait for cooler weather so I can run my oven! It was a tricky trip getting here, as your official Pinterest post has no direct link to this site, much less the recipe itself. However, I was unwilling to give up, manually entered the website, did a search and tada!
Quick question – I have a cow milk allergy, and will need to sub the cream cheese for a non-dairy type. Have you ever tested this recipe with something like Tofutti non dairy cream cheese? I know it is used for baking, just hoping for tips.
If not, once I get a chance to try it out I will get back to you with the results. All Hail Halloween! 😉
Hi Sylvia! The Pinterest post does have a direct link, however Pinterest seems to have forgotten its sole purpose & makes finding the links tricky lol I’m glad you found your way here nonetheless.
I have not tested with a non-dairy cream cheese & don’t recall anyone else reporting back that they have, so please let me know when you do!
This was so fun and cute
Thanks!
I’m practicing this recipe before making them for my office party. I made them twice and I’m not happy with the food coloring. First, there’s absolutely no orange food coloring to be found, I tried many places, so I’m trying to make the color orange by adding red+yellow, but it keeps coming out PINK. Second, the brownie batter is so thick it’s really hard for me to do the swirl (when you save a scoop of brownie mix) the batter just sticks in a big clump, it doesn’t pour over smoothly. The second batch I made I decided to just mix the cheesecake part with the brownie mix to make it super swirly. No matter what, I cannot make them look like yours however everyone in my home loves them, the taste, the fluffy/softness is definitely better than using box-brownie mix. They’re almost like brownie fudge bites mixed with cheesecake swirls. The taste is there but the look overall isn’t. I wanted to make them look as Halloweeny as possible for my party. I will keep trying!
First, kudos for doing a trial run! Second, I linked out to food coloring kits. Did you try one of those? It’s usually easier than running all over town on a goose hunt (from experience lol). It is a thick brownie batter but it should still spread & swirl. If you’re on Instagram, I just made them the other day & filmed a Reel – you can view it here for texture.
I’ve made this before and it’s absolutely delicious!!! I found orange food colouring at Michaels if anyone else is having trouble finding some, they have it!
If doubling the recipe, do you reserve 1/2 cup batter instead of 1/4 cup batter for the swirls?
Thanks for the tip, I always forget to check Michaels & they often have baking things I need.
Yes, I’d do 1/2 cup for the swirl in a double batch.
Hi just made them! Love how they look it tastes good but I have a question and probably I will sound very dumb! But is normal tht the cheeses cream part is soft? Creamy? And that you feel that taste? My kids did not liked it because they right away felt the cheese flavor. I am not shocked because they don’t like cheesecakes but just wondering if I nailed the baking time and flavor. It would be cool to add a picture
Hi! I’m glad you liked them. My kids don’t like cheesecake either but one kid will eat these. It should have a lil jiggle to it when it’s done but you can bake it a bit longer if you prefer that texture, it may crack though. Here’s a lil video of my latest batch where you can kinda see the texture better.
Brownies did not rise at all, and the batter was ridiculously thick, so I couldn’t really swirl it with the cheesecake layer. Also, 35 minutes was not nearly enough time to bake them. This is 100% clickbait.
lol 100% not clickbait. There are over 200 positive reviews. Sorry you had issues.
Turned out absolutely delicious! Finding orange food coloring to get the right color orange color. I am living in a high altitude and the brownie layer didn’t cook at all more than just the edges.
What would you recommend for people trying the recipe at high altitude?
I’m not very familiar with high altitude baking but here are what seem to be good tips >> high altitude baking.
The batter came out very very thick for me. Very difficult to spread with the cream cheese layer. I even made it again right away thinking I had followed the directions wrong. Anyone else who said this find a solution?
The batter is thick, but not too thick. You can see the consistency in this reel I made the other night. Did yours look similar?
Perfect cream cheese and brownie recipe! They turned out perfectly! I added chocolate frosting and sprinkles for our Halloween treat 😋
Yay, thanks, Eve! Love the additions you made 🙂
soooo Yummy!!!
Thanks, Stephanie:)
These brownies were so yummy!
I will definitely make them again.
Thanks, Mary!