Keto Cheesecake Brownies
Ultra fudgy Keto Brownies with a thick cheesecake swirl! You’d never guess that this is actually a low-carb brownie recipe!
One of the most popular recipes on this site is my favorite Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake Brownies, and for good reason… They are delicious! Since I’ve been trying the keto diet I wanted to come up with something similar, but with way fewer carbs.
These keto brownies are fudgy, rich low-carb brownies with a sweet, thick cheesecake swirl. This melt-in-your-mouth brownie is just what you need when you want a gluten-free, keto friendly dessert!
Keto Cream Cheese Brownies Ingredients
These keto chocolate brownies are swirled with the most amazing cheesecake filling. Here’s what you’ll need to make these easy keto brownies:
- Granulated sweetener and Confectioners’ sweetener – I’ve used both Swerve and Lakanto’s monk fruit-erythritol blend with success. You technically can use the granulated sweetener for both the brownie and cheesecake swirl, but I enjoyed the texture of the confectioners’ sweetener in the cream cheese mixture best.
- Butter, Unsweetened cocoa powder, Eggs, and Salt – I have not tried any dairy-free or egg-free substitutes.
- Almond flour – I do not recommend any substitutes. Coconut flour will not work.
- Cream cheese, Heavy cream, and Vanilla extract – These combine for the delicious cream cheese swirl. If you want plain keto brownies, you can omit this.
Get the Recipe: Cheesecake Keto Brownies
Ingredients
For the brownies:
- 8 tablespoons butter, melted
- 3/4 cup granulated Swerve or Monk fruit sugar substitute
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup almond flour
For the cheesecake layer:
- 4 ounces softened cream cheese
- 3 tablespoon swerve or Monkfruit sweetener, confectioners best here instead of granulated, but granulated will work if it is all you have
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, Swerve sugar substitute, and cocoa powder until completely combined. Mix in the eggs, stir well.
- Add the almond flour and salt, stir well. (Mixture will be thick.)
- Spread the brownie mixture to all four corners of your baking pan, set aside.
- In a blender or food processor, add the cream cheese, swerve sugar substitute, heavy cream and vanilla extract and blend for 15 seconds, scrape down the edges and blend again.
- Spoon the cheesecake mixture in lumps onto the brownie batter, and swirl.
- Both the brownie and the cheesecake layer are quite thick, they will probably not create beautiful "swirls" but the thickness does create really great layers of sweet cheesecake and fudgy brownie.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until brownies are set. Allow to cool and slice, store in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Some readers reported longer cooking times. I have made this many times and always remove from the oven around the 25-30 minute mark and my oven thermometer is a true 350 degrees F. Cooking times may vary on the thickness of your brownies, cheesecake swirl, color of your pan, or if you are using convection or not.
- Nutrition: 1 slice has 2.4 net carbs.
How to Make Cream Cheese Keto Brownies
This is one of my all-time favorite low-carb desserts with cream cheese! Bold statement, I know. Here’s an overview of how to make this low-carb brownie recipe:
Make the batter
In a mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, Swerve sugar substitute, and cocoa powder. Whisk in the eggs, followed by the almond flour and salt. Turn the brownie batter into a parchment paper-lined 8×8-inch baking dish.
Add the cheesecake mixture and swirl
In a blender or food processor, add the cream cheese, Swerve sugar substitute, heavy cream and vanilla extract and blend. Spoon the cheesecake mixture in lumps onto the brownie batter, and swirl.
Bake until brownies are set.
How Many Net Carbs Are in Keto Brownies?
These brownies are made in an 8×8-inch square pan. If cut into 9 equal squares they come to 2.4 net carbs. I actually prefer to cut them even smaller, into 18 little rectangles, making them 1.2 net carbs per slice.
Sometimes my sweet tooth hits me a little harder so I like cutting them smaller because if I come back for seconds, I still didn’t do too much damage! Serve these with some nice cold almond milk or with a warm cup of coffee for an afternoon pick me up!
How to Store Keto Brownies
Once fully cooled, these keto fudge brownies should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. They’ll last up to 1 week.
Can the Brownies Be Frozen?
Yes! These keto brownies freeze nicely. Let them cool completely to room temperature, then seal inside a freezer bag or freezer-safe container.
When ready to eat, thaw in the fridge overnight or gently reheat in the oven.
Tips for the Best Keto Brownies
For these brownies, you will make a nice fudgy brownie batter. It will be quite thick, so when you scrape it into your baking pan make sure you spread it evenly all the way to the corners.
Note that the cheesecake filling is also thick, so creating a really pretty swirl effect is difficult, just swirl the mixture the best you can but be careful not to over mix it with the chocolate mixture so you do have those nice big cheesecake layers.
Some readers reported longer baking times. I have made this low-carb brownie recipe many times and always remove from the oven around the 25-30 minute mark and my oven themometor is a true 350 degrees F.
Cooking times may vary depending on the thickness of your brownies, cheesecake swirl, color of your pan, or if you are using convection or not.
Feel free to add mix-ins if you want! Sugar-free chocolate chips or nuts like walnuts or pecans could be delicious.
I have tried many, many low-carb/keto brownie recipes and this one is my absolute favourite. It’s simple, fast, and most importantly, absolutely delicious! I used an allulose-monkfruit blend as the sweetener and the brownies came out PERFECT!