Delicious red velvet brownies with a vanilla cheesecake swirl!
This post may contain affiliate links.
So the time has come, to give you… RED. VELVET. BROWNIES. Yeah, that’s right – red velvet brownies. This is a recipe that has been requested for longer than I can remember, so I am finally giving you the ultimate dream!
Some people may be a little confused from the beginning here about how you can have red velvet in brownie form, but roll with me. It’s possible. And it’s DELICIOUS.
SO! To explain the bake… red velvet cake is basically a chocolate and vanilla cake, that is also red. Originally, they were not made using red food colouring, but these days, it’s just the easiest and most straight forward route.
The main issues with baking red velvet cakes has always been using the incorrect food colouring. I will say it over and over again.. you MUST use good quality colouring. Cocoa powder is a vital ingredient, but also the ingredient that can cause food colouring not work with it being brown and all.
Anyway! To make the classic red velvet cake into a brownie.. you sorta have to combine several recipes. I essentially combined the ideas of my red velvet cake, Brownies, and Blondies all in one. The quantities vary slightly in comparison to them all, and basic ingredients differ, but otherwise… they’re so similar!
I use Red Extra food colouring, because it is just the ultimate for this situation. I use it for all red velvet bakes, and pretty much anything I do that needs to be red. Honestly, it is just such good quality! If you use a supermarket own brand, it just will NOT work. Also, the amount you need to use is rather disgusting.. this way, you don’t need much at all!
For red velvet to be red velvet these days… you need cocoa powder, vanilla, white vinegar and buttermilk. For these brownies however, you need the cocoa powder, vanilla and white vinegar along with the other ingredients.
I tried to incorporate buttermilk into them, but it just didn’t float at all. Neither did the bicarbonate of soda which is also found in the cakes often! Either way, I feel like this does have enough ingredients in to be called red velvet brownies.
For the cheesecake swirl, it’s a very similar recipe to the cheesecake in my cheesecake brownies just because I love it so much! You just have to stir it all together as little as possible to make it smooth, and then swirl it in!
The best way I found to achieve the swirl is to add in 90% of the mix into the tin, dollop/pour the cheesecake over, and then add on the rest of the brownie mix. Swirl it through, and bake! The cheesecake will sink into the brownie, but this way you get folds of cheesecake throughout, and it’s the best!
I hope you love this recipe as much as I do! x

Red Velvet Brownies!
#wprm-recipe-rating-6 .wprm-rating-star.wprm-rating-star-full svg * { fill: #343434; }#wprm-recipe-rating-6 .wprm-rating-star.wprm-rating-star-33 svg * { fill: url(#wprm-recipe-rating-6-33); }#wprm-recipe-rating-6 .wprm-rating-star.wprm-rating-star-50 svg * { fill: url(#wprm-recipe-rating-6-50); }#wprm-recipe-rating-6 .wprm-rating-star.wprm-rating-star-66 svg * { fill: url(#wprm-recipe-rating-6-66); }linearGradient#wprm-recipe-rating-6-33 stop { stop-color: #343434; }linearGradient#wprm-recipe-rating-6-50 stop { stop-color: #343434; }linearGradient#wprm-recipe-rating-6-66 stop { stop-color: #343434; }
Print Pin Rate
Ingredients
Red Velvet Brownies
- 150 g Unsalted Butter
- 275 g Caster Sugar
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Red Food Colouring
- 4 Medium Eggs
- 30 g Cocoa Powder
- 125 g Plain Flour
- 1 tsp White Wine Vinegar
Cheesecake Swirl
- 250 g Full-Fat Cream Cheese
- 75 g Caster Sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 Egg Yolk
Instructions
-
Preheat your oven to 180C/160C Fan and line a 9×9″ square tin with parchment paper!
-
Beat together your Butter and Sugar until combined!
-
Add in the Vanilla and Red Food Colouring – I find it easier to mix these two together to make a thinner paste, and then mix into the Butter/Sugar!
-
Add in the Eggs one at a time, beating each time. Add in the Cocoa Powder, and Flour, and beat again.
-
Finally, add in the White Wine Vinegar – and mix. You want to mix this mixture as little as possible!
-
In a separate bowl, add your Cream Cheese, Sugar and Vanilla and beat till smooth. Add in the Egg Yolk and mix again!
-
Pour 90% of your Brownie Mixture into the tin – dollop over the cream cheese mix, and then dollop over the last little bit of Brownie Mix
-
Swirl the mixture together – and then bake in the oven for 28-35 minutes. Mine were in for 30!
-
Leave to cool in the tin for 20-30 minutes or so, and then cool fully on a wire rack!
Notes
- I recommend using this Red Food Colouring for this recipe!
- I also recommend using this 9 square tin for this recipe!
- These will last in the fridge or at room temp on a cooler day, for 3-4 days!
ENJOY!
Find my other Cake Recipes on my Recipes Page!
You can find me on:
Instagram
Facebook
Pinterest
Twitter
Youtube
J x
© Jane’s Patisserie. All images & content are copyright protected. Do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words and credit me, or link back to this post for the recipe.