So, I have this small metal box, plus a three-ring binder covered in blue fabric, chock full of my paternal grandmother’s recipes. My cousin sent them to me a few years ago when I was desperate to recreate my grandmother’s spectacularly moist and lemon-y, lemon velvet cake (turns out her recipe was for a slightly gussied up cake-mix cake, and I was so not surprised, as I love a cake-mix cake more than almost anything). 
I ended up developing my own homemade version of lemon cake yumminess, instead, but have continued to periodically rifle through her recipes looking for treats I loved as a kid, or for good old-fashioned inspiration on a semi-regular basis. The pudding recipe I developed for icebox cakes was inspired by her chocolate pudding, and I consulted her recipe for chocolate cake when developing my chocolate sheet cake. So it was that I stumbled upon her recipe for viennese brownies (brownies with an almond-flavored cream cheese swirl, for the uninitiated). 
And here’s the thing: although I am by no means a cheesecake lover (hard for some to hear, I know), I adore the combo of a bit of cream cheese with a lot of chocolate — think black-bottom cupcakes/muffins (and check this out for my version, filled not with cream cheese, but with mascarpone). Yet, I had never tried my hand at cream cheese brownies. An oversight, I now realize, big time. Cream cheese brownies may not be for everyone (I had a bit of trouble selling them to the pre-teen tester with whom I live), I get that. But the combo of the tangy cheese and the rich, deeply chocolate-y brownies kind of can’t be beat. 
Not to mention the fact that they are gorgeous to behold — I mean, who doesn’t love a swirl? Moreover, these babies have the most delightful almond-thing going on. My grandmother’s recipe calls for topping these treats with slivered almonds prior to baking for an additional almond-boost. I chose not to in order to showcase my pristine swirl, but if you’re crazy for almonds, go for it. Once baked and cooled, I like to refrigerate the tray (cause I love them cold), and then cut them into bite-size pieces (cause I can fool myself into thinking it’s okay to eat more than I should cause they’re just so tiny and cute).
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6 replies on “Viennese (aka almond cream cheese) Brownies”
These were yummy and beautiful. Thanks so much. I forgot the extra yolk and the texture was less chewy than a regular brownie (not sure if that’s an egg or cream cheese issue), but they were delicious even if on the softer side. I didn’t taste much almond, so would increase the almond extract to 1/2 tsp next time. And I only had regular cocoa powder, but they were plenty chocolatey.
thanks so much for this feedback!! i find them super soft, too, even when the yolk is included, and more fudgy, than chewy. i was worried about asking for too much extract, because people have such strong feelings about almond extract (at least in my experience) – but i might think about changing it to 1/2 teaspoon anyway, in light of your comment.
These were yummy and beautiful. Thanks so much. I forgot the extra yolk and the texture was less chewy than a regular brownie (not sure if that’s an egg or cream cheese issue), but they were delicious even if on the softer side. I didn’t taste much almond, so would increase the almond extract to 1/2 tsp next time. And I only had regular cocoa powder, but they were plenty chocolatey.
thanks so much for this feedback!! i find them super soft, too, even when the yolk is included, and more fudgy, than chewy. i was worried about asking for too much extract, because people have such strong feelings about almond extract (at least in my experience) – but i might think about changing it to 1/2 teaspoon anyway, in light of your comment.
These were yummy and beautiful. Thanks so much. I forgot the extra yolk and the texture was less chewy than a regular brownie (not sure if that’s an egg or cream cheese issue), but they were delicious even if on the softer side. I didn’t taste much almond, so would increase the almond extract to 1/2 tsp next time. And I only had regular cocoa powder, but they were plenty chocolatey.
thanks so much for this feedback!! i find them super soft, too, even when the yolk is included, and more fudgy, than chewy. i was worried about asking for too much extract, because people have such strong feelings about almond extract (at least in my experience) – but i might think about changing it to 1/2 teaspoon anyway, in light of your comment.