Pumpkin Cream Cheese Brownies

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Brownies. Doesn't sound like something that would go together does it? But trust me it does. A lot of the recipes I post on this blog are just concoctions of flavors I like and then want to make into something incumbent of something else. The imagination is a wonderful playing ground for creative kitchen experience. Enter these brownies. Was looking to see how many ideas I could come up with around using pumpkin in my baking (you'd be happy to know there were quite a few...enter the upcoming recipes for the blog this month lol). Do you have a favorite seasonal ingredient that you like to use and see how much use you can get out of it? I'd like to hear about it!!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter or margarine (2 sticks) melted

• 2 cups sugar plus an addtional 2 tbs

• 2 tsps vanilla extract

• 4 eggs

• 3/4 cup cocoa powder ( I have a brand from Mexico I really enjoy to that I always bring back from when I travel there but use whatever you like)

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1/4 tsp salt

Directions:

Heat oven to 350° F. Grease 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan

Stir melted butter, sugar and vanilla together. Beat in eggs. Add remaining dry ingredients; beat well. Pour batter into prepared pan.

In mixer cream together softened cream cheese and pumpkin puree and 2 tbs of sugar until mixed about one minute. At this point taste the puree as it is up to you to assess how sweet you like this part of the brownie. If not sweet enough add another tablespoon of sugar. Drop this mixture into spoonful's all around on top of brownie mixture already in pan. Take a butter knife and make swirls in the pumpkin mixture into the brownie mixture by just using up and down circular motions.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan and pumpkin puree looks set. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars and prepare to eat the entire pan.