Gluten Free Marbled Cream Cheese Brownie Cake

This Gluten Free Marbled Cream Cheese Brownie Cake is a mix between brownies and cake. A thick and fudgy gluten free chocolate cake marbled with swirls of cream cheese and topped with a slightly tangy sour cream chocolate frosting. Oh goodness!

Happy weekend all! I don’t think I’ve looked forward to a weekend as much as this one in a very long time. Funny thing is, we’re doing absolutely NOTHING!

Nothing has never sounded so good.

Okay, I’m sure we will not actually do nothing. We always find SOMETHING to do, especially with kiddos running around dictating our day to day activities. But, we have no actual set in stone commitments this weekend and it feels oh so good.

I think my lack of responsibilities calls for a celebration, and you know how I celebrate…I BAKE!

I may have to whip up a pan of this gluten free Marbled Cream Cheese Brownie Cake and indulge for two seconds.

I know for a fact that this brownie cake it suitable for celebrations because I brought it to a group birthday party play date. Three of my friends had birthdays within days of one another, so we all got together with a bunch of friends at the park with our little rascals and celebrated.

In true Breezy Bakes fashion, I showed up with a partially eaten cake just like I did for Easter with my Vanilla Cake with Raspberry Filling and Meyer Lemon Buttercream, and for a pie baking contest with my Citrus Cranberry Apple Crumb Pie, and for a church activity with my Carrot Zucchini Cake with Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting. I’m kind of known for bringing desserts with at least one piece missing.

I’m still convinced I didn’t win the pie baking contest because of my missing piece. C’mon! Who knew there would be a score for appearance. Hmph! Just kidding. The pie that won actually looked quite delicious.

But even with not just one, but a few, pieces missing, this brownie cake was a huge hit. The kids and adults all seemed to love it. And one of the birthday girls was in awe of the fudginess of the cake and the not so overly sweet frosting.

And if the birthday girl is happy, that’s all that matters! Am I right?

You may be wondering why I keep calling it a brownie cake. And, well, if you weren’t already wondering, you are now. It’s a brownie cake because in my opinion they are too thick for brownies. You see, I’m a box mix brownie kind of gal. I like them thin, fudgy, and almost gooey. I just don’t understand the appeal for a “cake-like” brownie…

…unless you eat it like CAKE! Which is exactly what these pieces of chocolatey heaven are.

They are thick enough to be considered a cake, but still have all the fudginess and denser consistency of a brownie. Really, they are just the perfect hybrid of the two.

And top this brownie cake off with some chocolate sour cream frosting, and you are on a highway to heaven road trip.

This chocolate sour cream frosting is almost like a cream cheese frosting. It’s a little lighter in consistency, with all the same tanginess of a chocolate cream cheese frosting. I like this lighter frosting paired with the cake because it isn’t too rich and heavy. You get enough richness with the cake.

Not only is this cake full of chocolate flavor, but you also get to taste the ribbon of cream cheese swirled throughout cake. It’s soft and smooth, and fits right in with the texture of the rest of the cake.

And if you want a little extra texture to your cake, add some extra chocolate chips to the brownie batter. Because, you know, who doesn’t love chocolate mixed into chocolate with chocolate on top. Yeah, that equation pretty much equals perfection.

Oh, and if you are a real chocoholic, you won’t hesitate to add CHOCOLATE sprinkles, too! Go on, get all wild and crazy cuz you know…

…the WEEKEND is here!

What are your plans this weekend?

Gluten Free Marbled Cream Cheese Brownie Cake

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

35 mins

Total time

55 mins

This Gluten Free Marbled Cream Cheese Brownie Cake is a mix between brownies and cake. A thick and fudgy gluten free chocolate cake marbled with swirls of cream cheese and topped with a slightly tangy sour cream chocolate frosting.

Author: Brielle

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 12-15

Ingredients

For the Cake:
2 sticks butter, melted
2 eggs
1¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup milk
⅓ cup brown rice flour
½ cup potato starch
⅓ cup sweet sorghum flour
¼ cup arrowroot starch (or tapioca starch)
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted (or 8 oz. semi-sweet bar chocolate, melted)
¾ cup chocolate chips (optional)
For the Cream Cheese Filling:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 egg
¼ cup sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Sour Cream Chocolate Frosting:
6 tablespoons butter, room temperature
2-3 cups powdered sugar
pinch of salt
¼ cup sour cream ( I used light)
½ teaspoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9X13" glass pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
Make brownie batter by melting 2 sticks of butter in microwave. Allow to cool to touch. Combine butter, eggs, sugar, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and mix on low speed or mix by hand with wooden spoon.
In a separate smaller mixing bowl, sift together brown rice flour, potato starch, sorghum flour, arrowroot or tapioca starch, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum.
Add half of dry ingredients to wet mixture. Mix until combined. Add milk and stir until smooth. Add remaining dry mixture and stir until smooth.
Melt 1 cup chocolate chips in microwave at 50% power for 1 minute. Remove and stir thouroughly for at least 2 minutes. Return to microwave and heat for additional 30 seconds. Stir until smooth. Heat in microwave for 15 second intervals, stirring in between, if needed to reach melted consistency.
Pour melted chocolate into batter mixture and stir until smooth. Add ¾ cup chocolate chips if desired.
Begin making cream cheese filling by mixing softened cream cheese, egg, sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth.
Add ¾ brownie batter to 9X13" pan and spread. Add tablespoon spoonfuls of cream cheese mixture randomly on top of brownie batter. Add spoonfuls of remaining brownie batter on top. Swirl batter and cream cheese mixture together with a knife until ribbon of cream cheese forms throughout batter.
Bake brownies at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean with few crumbs. Allow to cool completely on cooling rack.
While brownies are cooling, make chocolate sour cream frosting. Beat butter until smooth. Add 1 cup powder sugar and mix until smooth. Add salt, sour cream, lemon juice, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Add cocoa powder and mix until smooth. Add remaining 1-2 cups of powdered sugar and mix on medium speed until desired spreading consistency.
Once brownies are completely cooled, spread frosting on top and add sprinkles if desired. Cut into 12-15 squares and serve...with milk!