Apples to Applique: Baileys Cream Cheese Brownies {and a GIVEAWAY!}

Monday, March 17, 2014

Baileys Cream Cheese Brownies {and a GIVEAWAY!}

You guys, I am so excited to announce my very first giveaway! I recently reached 50,000 pageviews and 100 likes for my Facebook page, so to say thank you to my awesome readers, I decided to host a giveaway!

I am giving away a gorgeous hand-turned pen made of spalted box elder wood. My husband, who is a talented woodworker (as you may remember from when he made our daughter's crib and my yarn bowl) made this pen just for this giveaway.
This Wall Street II style pen is one-of-a-kind, has black titanium accents, and is worth $50!

Spalted box elder is a lovely type of hardwood with beautiful streaks of pink and red running through the grain pattern.

The grain pattern with the red streaks almost has a marble look to me. So pretty!

This pen uses Parker pen refills, so you'll be able to easily replace the cartridge when it runs out.

Just gorgeous. This will probably become your new favorite pen. Seriously, guys, when my husband showed this to me after he made it, I had second thoughts about giving it away. But I love my readers, and you guys deserve the best! For a chance to win this pen, enter the giveaway at the end of the post, and good luck! The giveaway runs from March 18, 2014 at 12:00 am to April 1, 2014 at 12:00 am.

On to the recipe! Baileys Cream Cheese Brownies with Bailey's Glaze. How scrumptious does that sound? Plus they're quick and easy, because you start with a boxed brownie mix. Of course, you could always go the extra mile and make the brownies from scratch, but these taste good enough as they are that I didn't think it was necessary.

*Scroll to the end of the post to download a printable copy of the recipe*

Brownie Ingredients:
1 box brownie mix (plus ingredients called for on box)

Baileys Cream Cheese Swirl Ingredients:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 C Baileys Irish Cream
1 egg
1/4 C powdered sugar
2 T flour

Glaze Ingredients:
1 1/2 C powdered sugar
1/2 C Baileys Irish Cream

Preheat oven to 350º (or temperature specified on your brownie mix box).
Prepare brownie batter according to package directions and spread into baking pan. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, combine cream cheese swirl ingredients. Beat until well blended.

Swirl cream cheese mixture into brownie mixture. To make this look all pretty, start by pouring/spooning the mixture in a rough zigzag pattern.

Then run a butter knife through the batter in a zigzag motion going the other direction.

Look how pretty and fancy-looking it turns out!

Bake according to the directions on the brownie mix. You may need to increase the time slightly.

Let cool and cut into squares.

Just before serving, prepare glaze. In a microwave-safe bowl, whisk together powdered sugar and Baileys Irish cream. Microwave for roughly 45 seconds or until warm. Stir and pour over brownies.

Tip: To make these kid-friendly, replace the Baileys in the cream cheese swirl with milk, and serve without the glaze. Save the glaze for Mom & Dad. ;)

Right-click the image below to download a printable copy of the recipe.