Peppermint Chip Brownies

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

First prepare the cream cheese swirl by creaming the butter and the cream cheese with sugar. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Fold in flour. Set aside.

For the brownies, in a medium bowl, combine the flour and salt.

In another medium bowl set over a pot of simmering water, warm the butter and chocolate until the butter is all melted and the chocolate is halfway melted. Remove from the heat and whisk until all the chocolate is melted. Whisk in the sugar until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue whisking until the mixture is well blended. Mix in the vanilla. Add the chocolate mixture to the flour mixture and fold together until combined. Spread the brownie mixture into an 8 x 8 pan.

Pour the cream cheese mixture on top of the brownie mixture and swirl to achieve a marbled effect. Sprinkle with the chocolate/peppermint chips.

Bake the brownies 20–25 minutes and allow them to cool before slicing.

Note: if you can’t find the mint chip mix, just use semi sweet chocolate chips and add a bit of peppermint extract in the cream cheese swirl mixture.

(Recipe adapted from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything.)