This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Pumpkin cheesecake brownies are a favorite fall pumpkin dessert! These cheesecake brownies are the right amount of fudgy and chewy with a ribbon of pumpkin cheesecake swirled in.
This brownie is fudgy, but not “I’m eating a molten chocolate fudgy brownie”. Its got that crispy and shiny outside that classic brownies have. And it’s slightly chewy (and can be more chewy if you bake it longer). Then there’s the ribbon of pumpkin cream cheese swirled in! This brownie reminds me that there is nothing better than cheesecake & brownies in one dessert.
How To Make Pumpkin Brownies
This recipe can be separated into 2 parts – the brownie batter and the cream cheese pumpkin swirl.
For the brownie batter it’s key to not over mix the dry ingredients into the batter. Mix BY HAND just until the majority of the flour is no longer visible.
Tips for Swirling Cheesecake and Brownies Together
- Be sure to start with room temperature cream cheese. Room temperature cream cheese is easier to beat and get nice and smooth.
- Use a toothpick to swirl the remaining dollops of brownie mix with the pumpkin layer. I recommend a toothpick over a knife because you can create more precise swirls. Over swirling can cause the layers to look muddled and not as sharp.
- Want more cream cheese in these brownies? Increase the amount of cream cheese from 4 oz to 6 oz.
Total Time Required
- 15 minutes to prep the brownies and cheesecake batter
- 40-45 minutes to bake
- 30 minutes to cool
Glass or Metal Pan to Bake Cheesecake Brownies?
I used a glass 8×8 inch baking pan because that’s what I have in my kitchen! You can use a metal pan as well, however I would recommend decreasing the baking time by 5 minutes. Metal pans heat up faster and can produce chewier brownies.
How To Make Gluten Free Pumpkin Swirl Brownies
I’ve made these brownies with both regular and gluten free flour with awesome results on multiple occasions. I recommend King Arthur’s Gluten Free Measure for Measure Flour. Use it as a one for one substitute for regular flour.
How To Cut Brownies Neatly
To get really nice clean brownie squares, I like to refrigerate my brownies for at least 30 minutes before cutting. Then I use a long 8 inch chef’s knife to cut them. But here’s the MOST IMPORTANT TIP 👉 wipe the knife CLEAN between each cut. Yes, it’s annoying, but it works!
How To Store Cheesecake Brownies
If serving them same day you make them, you can store brownies with cheesecake on the counter. Beyond that, I recommend storing them in a sealed container in the fridge.
Baking Tips
- Spoon and sweep flour into the measuring cups.
- Use room temperature cream cheese.
- Be sure to use pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. The only ingredient on the back of the pumpkin puree can will be pumpkin.
- You can substitute the cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger and cloves for 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice.
More Pumpkin Desserts
Tap stars to rate!
Pumpkin Cheesecake Brownies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- ½ tsp salt
- ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 1 stick unsalted butter, cubed, 1/2 cup
- 1 ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 large egg yolk
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl
- 4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º F. Line a 8×8 or 9×9 inch pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Spray lightly with non-stick cooking spray.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt and cocoa powder. Stir together with a spoon until mixed. Set aside.
- In a small saucepan over low heat, combine the chopped unsweetened chocolate and butter. Stir occasionally until it’s fully melted, about 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a larger mixing bowl, beat the sugar and eggs plus additional egg yolk with an electric mixer for 1 minute, until the mixture is pale yellow and doubled in volume.
- Once the chocolate is melted, pour it into the egg mixture. Then add the vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Stir with a spatula to combine.
- Spoon the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, mixing with a spatula just until combined. Do not continue to mix the batter once you can no longer see flour.
- Reserve 1/2 cup of the batter for later – add the remaining batter to the pan. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, egg, pumpkin puree, sugar and all spices, beat using an electric mixer until smooth, 1-2 minutes.
- Spread the cream cheese filling over the brownies, then use a toothpick and drag it across the brownies to create swirls. Drop dollops of the remaining 1/2 cup of batter. Swirl again with the toothpick.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes (glass pan) OR 35-40 minutes (metal pan) or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow the brownies to cool completely before cutting.
Notes
- I’ve made these brownies with King Arthur’s Gluten Free Measure for Measure Flour with awesome results.
- You can substitute the cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger and cloves for 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice.
Ok, just LOVE all the extra info about how to cut the neatly, if you want to add more cream cheese, this is great info and some of this is new to me. Can’t wait to make these and yes these look 100 times better than the first try! Â
LOL that first try I shared on IG of swirling in the pumpkin looked so bad
How would you recommend storing these? Do they need to be refrigerated?
I think they would be fine covered on the counter for up to 3 days!
Looks delicious.  I’m thinking of using my standard fudge brownie packaged mix, then making the pumpkin cream cheese mixture to swirl in.  Your brownie recipe looks great, but I’m lazy and have a million other things to cook!  If it fails, my bad!
I made this recipe three times. It turned out good every time. An electric mixer is necessary, and a hand whisk to really break up the cream cheese. I also beat the cream cheese in the bowl by itself before adding any of the sugar, pumpkin & spices. I wasn’t sure how blended it needed to be but I didn’t want any white chunks in the final product.
I used a chopstick to do the swirls and it worked well. I swirled twice like the recipe said and it turned out nicely distributed throughout.
This recipe is so delicious, and the brownies are especially good compared to other brownies I’ve had. It would go great heated up with ice cream.
Thanks for the idea, I am using these brownies to add to goodie bags for a Halloween party.
I made this last night but didn’t see the note about not substituting canned pumpkin pie mix, which was all I had. I’m guessing that made the cheesecake layer more runny than it otherwise would have been? It took 55min in a glass baking dish to get set enough, and it could’ve gone longer but I didn’t want the sides and bottom to burn.
Otherwise, I found it too sweet. Even though the recipe doesn’t look like it has a lot of sugar, it was too much for me. Also, the cream cheese never blended; I saw the comment about whipping the cream cheese smooth first after I was done, so mine never lost the little balls of white. I think I would make it again, but tweak it a little.