These Low Carb Cheesecake Brownies pair rich, fudgy chocolate brownies with light, fluffy vanilla cheesecake buttercream frosting for a keto dessert that gives you the best of both worlds.
When you can’t decide if you’re in the mood for brownies or cheesecake, these Low Carb Cheesecake Brownies prove you don’t have to choose just one! They combine the best of both worlds in a treat that is sure to become everyone’s favorite. They’re perfect for bringing to a party as a dessert to share, and I like to whip them up and stash them in the fridge for a quick snack or dessert to have on hand when I’m craving chocolate or something sweet.
What Desserts Are Low in Carbs?
Something I’ve noticed since I switched from a Standard American Diet to a real food-based, low carb diet is that foods without sugar now taste a lot sweeter to me. As a result, my idea of dessert has changed quite a bit! For example, different types of lettuce that I would never have thought of as sweet before (such as Romaine lettuce) now have a slightly sweet flavor (not that I would consider lettuce to be a dessert, lol). But it just goes to show that we can retrain our palates, even as adults! It’s never too late to start eating healthy. With that said, I find that a lot of foods that aren’t “sweetened” now taste sweet enough for dessert to me.
Here are a few great options for low carb desserts:
- Baked brie cheese
- Unsweetened nut butter, such as almond butter or pecan butter
- 90% dark chocolate
- Fresh berries topped with unsweetened whipped cream
Keto Foods
Keto foods focus on foods that are low in carbs and high in healthy fats. There are so many nourishing and satiating options that I don’t find this way of eating to be restrictive!
What Desserts Can You Have on the Keto Diet?
After switching over to a low carb/keto way of life, I’ve noticed that with a little bit of creativity, just about any recipe can be remade into a keto friendly version of itself. That means that I never feel like my favorite foods are off-limits! Here are a few desserts that you can easily integrate into a low carb high fat eating plan:
- Yellow Butter Cake
- Snickers Candy Bars
- Girl Scout Samoa Cookie Truffles
- Java Chip Frappuccino
- Almond Joy Candy Bars
What Snacks Can You Have on the Keto Diet?
A few of my favorite portable keto snacks include:
- Cheese sticks
- Raw almonds, pecans, walnuts, or pili nuts
- Olives
- Hard boiled eggs with crisped bacon
- Avocado with a squeeze of lemon and salt
- Fat bombs, such as Low Carb Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Fat Bombs and Keto Edible Sugar Cookie Dough Fat Bombs
Is Dark Chocolate Keto Friendly?
Yes! Dark chocolate is a great keto friendly option if you know what to look for. My favorite is 90% dark chocolate, but I also love stevia-sweetened chocolate (Lily’s Sweets is my top choice!) and if I want a little bit of a splurge I’ll go for 80% dark chocolate. Just make sure to look at the macros to make sure the chocolate you select fits into your macros.
Keto Cream Cheese Recipes:
- Chocolate Peppermint No Bake Cheesecake Bites
- No Churn Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream with Strawberry Swirl and Chocolate Chunks
- Chocolate Whoopie Pies with Cheesecake Buttercream
Keto Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies
Chocolate cheesecake is such a classic flavor pairing, I couldn’t wait to make a low carb version! When I was brainstorming ideas for this recipe, I thought of two ways to make chocolate cheesecake brownies: 1) swirl the cheesecake into the brownies before baking, or 2) use a cheesecake buttercream to frost the brownies once they’re baked and cooled.
I’ll be honest, I’m not a huge fan of cheesecake swirl baked into brownies, mostly because I feel like the cheesecake portion always ends up a little drier than it should. I attribute this to the fact that cheesecake and brownies normally have different cooking temperatures and cooking times, but when you swirl them they have to cook together! Instead I opted to generously frost fudgy chocolate brownies with my favorite cheesecake buttercream.
More Healthy Brownie Recipes:
- Fudgy Keto Brownie Recipe with Walnuts and Chocolate Frosting from Healthy Sweet Eats
- Keto Chocolate Brownie in a Mug from The Keto Queens
- Keto No Bake Brownie Bites from Cassidy’s Craveable Creations
- The Best Fudgy Low Carb Keto Brownies from An Edible Mosaic
Low Carb Cheesecake Brownies
Ingredients
Chocolate Brownies:
- ¼ cup chia seeds
- ½ cup Swerve Confectioners
- ¾ cup almond flour
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon espresso powder
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3.5 oz 90% cacao chocolate chopped
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon blackstrap molasses
- ¾ teaspoon stevia glycerite
Cheesecake Frosting (yields about 2 cups, a generous amount for frosting these brownies):
- 8 oz cream cheese at room temperature
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons Swerve Confectioners
- ⅛ teaspoon stevia glycerite
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon pure almond extract
- 6 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- For the brownies, preheat the oven to 350F; line an 8 by 8-inch baking dish with 2 pieces of parchment paper so it hangs over all 4 sides and you can easily lift out the brownies later.
- Add the chia seeds to a blender or food processor and process until powdered. Transfer to a large bowl along with the Swerve Confectioners, almond flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and espresso powder; whisk to combine and set aside for now.
- Melt the butter and chocolate together in a double boiler or microwave. Cool slightly, and then whisk in the eggs, cream, vanilla, molasses, and stevia glycerite.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir to combine.
- Spread the batter evenly into the bottom of the prepared dish. Bake until the brownies are set along the outside, but still gooey in the center, about 17 to 20 minutes.
- Cool completely before frosting.
- For the frosting, cream together the cream cheese and butter in a large bowl. Beat in the Swerve Confectioners, stevia glycerite, vanilla bean paste, vanilla extract, and almond extract until fully incorporated. Lastly, beat in the cream until smooth.
- Once the brownies are cool, spread the cheesecake frosting on top.
- Serve, or store wrapped in the fridge for up to 5 days before serving.
Helpful Tips
Nutrition
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Lewis Johnson
Cheesecake brownies? Yes, Please.