Brownie Cheesecake with Blackberry Compote

This super creamy cheesecake is full of blackberries, has a brownie crust and a sweet blackberry compote on top of it. It’s so soft and creamy that it’s completely pure decadence in each and every bite. I know you won’t be able to resist to it.  A creamy homemade cheesecake made from scratch is one of the best holiday desserts if you ask me! 

Since Thanksgiving is just around the corner, I can’t help to wonder how it will look like in every home this year. Small gatherings will take place. Smaller menus will follow. So will a slower pace of work that day. I wish that in that lower pace we can connect with our loved ones more and reflect on the many blessings we now know we have and maybe earlier we just gave them for granted. Just a thought I wish for you that day while you are prepping dinner. Or taking them out of the trays. Totally your call! 

I do hope that for dessert you get excited for making something sweet and magical that day. And trust me, this cheesecake will be just that; magical. Any of my cheesecakes recipes for that matter. I just love to play around with toppings and crusts to change the flavors, but the filling is a classic. This homemade cheesecake is so creamy and rich but not heavy, which I achieved by mixing the ingredients with a whisk attachment rather than a paddle, but in a very slow speed.

This time I went for a very popular crust for cheesecakes; a brownie crust! Chocolate will always be welcomed in our tables, right? Like I did for my lemon curd brownie cheesecake bars. This time I added blackberries to the batter and made a blackberry compote to top it all. Berries, cheese and chocolate! Plizzzz!! What’s not to love?!

I’m repeating here my process and some of my tips when making a cheesecake from scratch. I adapted them for this recipe. If you have read one of my cheesecake recipes before, you have probably read them already. If this is the first cheesecake recipe your are reading from me (yayyy and welcome to my cheesecake world) read about my process below so you can get familiar with the steps and can prepare ahead. Making cheesecakes from scratch is very easy and straightforward, these tips only make the process even simpler for you.

How to Make a Cheesecake from Scratch

1. I start by prepping all the ingredients, because once you start, everything runs pretty fast. In this recipe it’s super important that the ingredients are at room temperature, especially the cream cheese and the eggs. If you are in a hurry, heat the cream cheese in the microwave in 12-second intervals until soft. Don't let it get too warm! Fats will start to break down compromising the flavor and texture of the cheesecake. To get the eggs to come down to room temperature fast, place them in a bowl with hot tap water for 5 to 7 minutes.

2. Then I spray my pan with baking spray. You can use a pie pan or a springform pan as I did here. If using a springform, remember to wrap it half way up with aluminum foil and pressing all the gaps. This is how you prevent water from getting inside your springform pan when doing a cheesecake.

3. Next I make my super easy and simple brownie crust! You can omit the chocolate chips if you don't have some in hand; just follow the recipe without them.

4. While the crust is baking I start working on that creamy cheesecake filling. When making the filling, remember to not over mix! This is a mixture that doesn’t like air at all. The small amount that you are going to incorporate when whipping the cream cheese is more than enough. Starting with very softened cream cheese is key in achieving a super smooth filling without incorporating too much air.

5. You can work with fresh or frozen blackberries here. It’s important that you dust them with some flour in a bowl before adding them to the batter. If using frozen, prepare your berries right after adding them so they don’t bleed much.

6. I strongly recommend using a 18” x 13”baking tray to make the bain-marie. I have used slightly smaller trays in the past and the result has been a slightly drier cheesecake. It’s not a super big deal, really. But if you can go bigger, do it!

7. In the meantime, I make room for the cheesecake on my fridge.

Removing your cheesecake from a springform pan

You can remove the band around your cheesecake and decorate it on the tray it was baked, just place it on a pretty large plate. But if you are feeling adventurous and want to release the cheesecake completely out of the pan, you can do so following a few steps on how to release a cheesecake from a springform pan. Take note that for this maneuver your cheesecake needs to be completely chilled so it is very firm.

1. After removing the band, place a plastic paper on top of the cheesecake.

2. Place a plate on top and turn the cheesecake upside down.

3. Place it in a counter or table and carefully remove the bottom metal tray of the springform pan, looking for any tiny spots where the crust is a bit separated from the tray and using a small pairing knife to push the tray up form there. This is the part where you need a bit of patience gently working around those spots. But I promise this will only take a few minutes!

4. As soon as you remove the bottom tray, place your serving plate on top and turn the cheesecake over. Carefully remove the plastic paper. Don't sweat if a small spot is a bit damaged, no one will notice with the delicious toppings!

Sending my love and wishing you a beautiful and bountiful Thanksgiving, no matter the size of your table.

Hope you love this cheesecake version as much as I do! Share with me in the comments below or at Instagram as well!

Brownie Cheesecake with Blackberry Compote

Ingredients

Brownie Layer

◯ Organic free range butter – 7 TBSP
◯ Raw sugar – ¾ cup
◯ Unsweetened cocoa powder – ¼ cup + 3 TBSP
◯ Vanilla extract – ½ Tsp
◯ Fine sea salt – ¼ Tsp
◯ Organic free cage eggs – 1
◯ Unbleached organic all purpose flour – ¼ cup + 3 TBSP
◯ Semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks – ½ cup

Blackberry Cheesecake Filling

◯ Cream cheese, at room temperature – 5 (8 oz) packages
◯ Raw sugar – 1¾ cup
◯ Unbleached all purpose flour – 3 TBSP
◯ Freshly squeezed lemon juice (or fresh pineapple concentrate juice)  – 1 TBSP
◯ Pure coconut milk, preferably full fat – ¼ cup
◯ Vanilla extract – 1 Tsps
◯ Eggs, at room temperature – 5, large
◯ Egg yolks, at room temperature – 2, from large eggs
◯ Whole blackberries, fresh or frozen – 2 cups

Blackberry compote

◯ Blackberries, frozen or fresh – 2 cups
◯ Freshly squeezed lemon juice – 1 TBSP
◯ Natural granulated sugar – ¼ cup
◯ Unbleached all-purpose flour – 1 to 2 TBSP, depending on how juicy our berries are or if frozen, how icy they are

Details

Yield:
a 9” Cheesecake

Total time:
2 hours plus 6 to 8 hours on the fridge

Active time:
30 minutes for making the cheesecake
10 minutes for making the blackberry compote

Baking time:
1 hour and 10 minutes

Equipment:
baking sheet, springform pan or pie dish, stand mixer or handheld electric mixer

Steps

Prepare your pan:

Spray the bottom of the pan with baking spray. If using a springform pan, cover the bottom with a few pieces of aluminum foil until at least half of the pan from the bottom up is covered. Press it well, closing any gap towards the pan.

To make the brownie layer:

Preheat oven to 350°.

Put butter in a large glass bowl and place it on a large skillet filled with some water. Heat it over medium heat until melted. Add the sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves into the butter. You’ll end up with a paste that is smooth and just a bit grainy. Take it out of the skillet and let it cool down.

After the butter mixture has cooled down mix in the cocoa powder. Add the vanilla and salt and stir. Add the egg and mix well. Add the flour and gently mix just until you can’t see streaks of flour. Add the semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks and mix them in.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan wrapped in aluminum foil (see notes above) and press it down with your hands to make it even. Bake for 20 minutes. While the brownies bakes, prepare cheesecake filling.

Take the brownies out of the oven and increase oven temperature to 425°.

To make the cheesecake filling:

Increase temperature to 425°.

Either in the bowl of a stand up mixer and using the whisk attachment or in a medium bowl using an electric hand mixer with the whisk attached, beat the 5 boxes of cream cheese for 2 to 3 minutes in slow speed (#2 in the Kitchen Aid), until cream cheese is completely smooth without lumps. If there are some lumps, increase mixer speed one notch for 20 seconds and then return to the previous speed. Add the 1 ¾ cup of sugar and mix for 1 minute. Decrease speed to the lowest and add the 3 tablespoons of flour, the tablespoon of lemon juice, the ¼ cup of coconut milk and the 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. Add the 5 eggs and the 2 egg yolks, one at a time and waiting until one is incorporated before adding the next one. Stop the mixer and scrap the wall and bottom of your bowl to make sure all the cheese is incorporated to the mixture. Mix for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until mixture is smooth and everything seems well incorporated. Incorporate berries and gently fold them into the batter.

Pour mixture into already baked brownie crust. Place pan in a baking tray and fill it with water until half way thru (see notes). Place cheesecake in oven and bake for 7 minutes, then decrease oven temperature to 275°. Bake for about one hour and 10 minutes, until it looks set and dry around the edges but still a little wobbly on the center. Turn the oven off and open the door half way thru. Wait about two minutes and then take it out of the oven.

Let it cool down a few minutes and place in the fridge after it has lost the steam. Chill for about 6 to 8 hours, preferably overnight. If using a springform pan, remove cheesecake from it (see notes). Top it with the blackberry compote. Recipe follows.

To make the blackberry compote:

In a small saucepan combine the 2 cups of blackberries, the tablespoon of lemon juice and the ¼ cup of sugar. Cook in medium heat for about 20 minutes, until syrupy and the blackberries have broken down. Retire form heat and sift one tablespoon of the flour over. Mix and return to heat. Cook 30 seconds to a minute, until the mixture thickens (remember it will thicken more when cooled down). If it is too thin, repeat the process with the second tablespoon of flour.

Let it cool down before spreading oven your chilled cheesecake.