Cheesecake Brownies with Chocolate Ganache

When you have a job you truly enjoy, made even better by wonderful co-workers, and you absolutely love to bake (hmmm, we couldn't possibly be talking about me, could we?), baking birthday cakes to celebrate co-workers' birthdays seems the natural outcome of this blissful combination! Last week I had an especially exciting challenge: baking with Splenda for the first time. I wanted to make sure that a co-worker of mine, who's diabetic, could have a completely decadent birthday treat without any added sugars! I'd never baked with Splenda before, though, so what possessed me to try to attempt a three-part dessert, complete with a brownie base, cheesecake topping, and a chocolate ganache, truly, I'll never know... but luckily the entire dessert was a magical success! For those of you who prefer to bake with regular sugars, I know this treat would work just as well with my beloved raw turbinado sugar too. For this occasion, though, I was so happy to be able to send my friend and co-worker home with a baking dish full of diabetic-friendly deliciousness she could safely enjoy with her family all birthday-weekend long!

Cheesecake Brownies with Chocolate Ganache
(with sugar-free option)

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups sugar

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or Dutch-process)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 cold large eggs

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Best-Cocoa-Brownies-108346#ixzz0udcd2G8G

10 T light, nonhydrogenated vegan margarine or butter
1 1/4 cup splenda or raw turbinado sugar
3/4 cup plus 2 T Dutch process cocoa
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

8 oz reduced-fat cream cheese
2 T splenda or sugar

8 oz sugar free-chocolate chips (such as Hershey's) or bittersweet chocolate chips
1 cup heavy cream

~ Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper or foil, then coat the lining with cooking spray.
~ Stir together the vegan marg or butter, splenda or sugar, cocoa powder, and salt in a saucepan over low heat, continuing to stir until the marg or butter is melted. Remove from the heat, and allow to cool until just warm, not hot.
~ Stir in the vanilla.
~ Beat in the eggs one at a time.
~ Add the flour, and stir until well-combined.
~ Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan.
~ Now, it's time to make the cheesecake topping! Simply whisk together the softened cream cheese and the splenda or sugar until light and fluffy. Dollop the mixture by teaspoonfuls across the top of the brownie batter.
~ Bake the brownies for 20 to 25 min, until a toothpick plunged into the center emerges slightly moist with batter. Allow the brownies to cool completely in the pan.
~ When the brownies have cooled, you can make the ganache! Per Alton Brown's method, place the chocolate in the food processor! Heat the cream in the microwave for 3 to 4 minutes, until not quite simmering. Pour the ganache over the chocolate, and allow it to stand for 2 minutes, then pulse in the food processor until the mixture is smooth. Immediately pour the ganache over the top of the brownies in the pan. Allow to cool before serving, and store the brownies in the fridge...

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups sugar

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (natural or Dutch-process)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 cold large eggs

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Best-Cocoa-Brownies-108346#ixzz0udcd2G8G