Chocolate&Orange&CreamCheese&mmmm.
I have had this recipe for ever, but lost it among other recipes in other folders stuck in a back cabinet ober by dere, and so was pretty pleased with myself when I came across it recently; and keyed it in to a digital folder that, while still able to be stuck in a back corner of my MacBook, is, at the very least searchable. AND backed up on the server (it only takes one fried hard drive, two MAX, to learn THAT lesson). Do not ask me how I know this.
Back to the brownies.
If I had to guess, I would bet that the basis for this recipe came from my friend Bee, a terrific baker, and I turned it into an orgy of chocolate and orange.
INGREDIENTS
Brownies:
•1/2 cup butter
•1/2 cup cocoa
•1 cup sugar
•2 eggs
•1 tsp orange flavoring
•1/2 cup flour
Topping:
•6 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
•4 tbsp butter
•1/2 cup sugar
•2 eggs
•2 tbsp flour
•3 tsp vanilla
•1/2 tsp orange flavoring
•Zest of 1 orange
Make the brownie batter by melting the butter, then stirring in the cocoa until well blended.
Mix in sugar.
Add eggs, one at a time, and beat well.
Stir in orange flavoring and flour.
Next, make the topping by beating the cream cheese and butter together until fluffy. Gradually add sugar and eggs and beat until creamy.
Beat in flour, flavoring, and zest.
Spread chocolate in a well-buttered 9 x 9 inch pan. Top with cream cheese mixture – it will be quite thick – and swirl it all together with a knife. This took quite a bit of swirling on my part, but maybe I’m just out of practice.
Bake at 350º for 35 to 40 minutes, until your tester comes out clean.
Tasting a bit like that orange chocolate bit from the Whitman’s Sampler box, Rich now prefers these to the cappuccino cream cheese brownies; but I plan on experimenting with a darker, richer chocolate version sometime soon.