Brownies:
1 c. white sugar
½ c. unsalted butter, melted
¼ c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 oz. red food coloring
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. distilled white vinegar
¼ tsp. salt
2 large eggs, slightly beaten
¾ c. all-purpose flour
Cheesecake filling:
8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, at room temperature
¼ c. white sugar
1 large egg
¼ tsp. vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease an 8x8" baking pan.
For the brownies, whisk the sugar and melted butter in a large mixing bowl; stir in cocoa, red food coloring, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, vinegar and salt, one at a time, mixing well after each addition to avoid lumps. Mix in 2 eggs until thoroughly combined.
Stir flour into cocoa mixture just until combined; set aside ¼ cup batter. Pour remaining batter into the prepared baking dish.
For the cheesecake filling, beat cream cheese in a bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add ¼ cup sugar, egg and vanilla extract; continue to beat until well blended and only small lumps remain, 3-4 minutes.
Spoon cream cheese mixture in dollops over the batter in pan; gently smooth tops of dollops even with batter using a knife or offset spatula. Do not overmix. Drizzle reserved ¼ cup of batter over the dollops of cream cheese mixture. Drag a knife or skewer through the batter and cream cheese mixture to create swirls.
Bake in the preheated oven until top is dry and edges have started to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 30-35 minutes. Cool completely before cutting into bars. Store covered in refrigerator. —12 servings.