If you love red velvet desserts, don’t miss this Red Velvet Trifle! Pieces of tender cake are layered with creamy cheesecake pudding and lots of fresh berries for a red, white, and blue treat. Baking for Valentine’s Day? These colorful Nutella Truffles and Cream Cheese Melts will look beautiful next to the brownies on your dessert table.

Cheesecake swirled brownies on a wooden tray with a red and white striped towel in the background.

What are Red Velvet Brownies?

Traditional red velvet cake used to get its iconic red color from a chemical reaction between the cocoa powder, buttermilk, and flour. This gave the cake a mild chocolate flavor and a hint of red color. These days, we tend to lean a little heavier on the chocolate flavor and add red food dye for that classic red velvet color.

This fudgy red velvet brownies recipe has just enough chocolate flavor, a beautiful red color, and a sweet cheesecake swirl to add a nice color contrast and a little tanginess to balance out all the sweetness.

They’re easy to eat right out of your hand, and are the perfect dessert for red velvet fans!

Why you’ll love this red velvet brownies recipe

Moist and full of flavor: Moisture equals flavor. Dry brownies don’t taste like much! This recipe is moist and fudgy with that classic red velvet flavor. The tangy cream cheese cuts through the richness to make them really snackable, too.
Quick and easy dessert: This is one of those desserts that comes together faster than you’d think. In just under an hour, you’ll have a tray of brownies ready to serve. Easy!
Great for entertaining: Brownies can easily be picked up and eaten, which makes them easy to serve at parties and gatherings. The colors make them the perfect treat for Valentine’s Day or Christmas!

Recipe Ingredients

All of the ingredients needed to make red velvet brownies.

Brownie Ingredients

Melted butter: I use unsalted butter to keep the brownies from becoming too salty.
Granulated sugar.
Eggs
Red food coloring: You can use either red gel food coloring or liquid food dye.
Vanilla extract
Salt
Unsweetened cocoa powder: This adds just enough chocolate flavor while still allowing the red color to stand out.
All purpose flour: To absorb extra moisture and bind the brownies together.

Cheesecake Swirl

Cream cheese: Let the cream cheese come to room temperature before mixing it with the other ingredients. The dollops will be dropped onto the red velvet brownie batter and swirled before baking.
Egg
Granulated sugar
Vanilla extract

How to Make the Best Red Velvet Brownies

Check out how easy it is to make this brownie recipe. Here are the basic step by step instructions. See the recipe card at the bottom for full instructions.

Step one is to mix eggs with granulated sugar. — **STEP 1:** Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter an 8×8-inch baking pan, then line with parchment and set aside. In a medium-sized microwave bowl, melt butter. Whisk with granulated sugar until combined. Add in the egg and whisk until foamy about 2 more minutes.

Step two is mixing in the food coloring with the vanilla. — **STEP 2:** Next, whisk in the red food coloring and vanilla until well mixed.

Step three adds in the flour, cocoa, and salt. — **STEP 3:** Add in the salt, cocoa powder, and flour. Stir just until the streaks of flour disappear (don’t over mix).

Step four is to Pour batter into the baking pan. — **STEP 4:** Pour the rest of the brownie batter into the prepared baking pan and even out.

Step five in a clean bowl mix together the cream cheese with an egg, sugar, and vanilla. — **STEP 5:** Whisk together the softened cream cheese, egg, sugar, and vanilla.

Step six dollop on the cream cheese batter on top of the brownie batter, then add more brownie batter on and swirl with a knife. — **STEP 6:** Drop dollops of the cream cheese batter onto the brownie batter. Add spoonfuls of the brownie batter and drag a knife or toothpick through the top layer to swirl the cream cheese with the brownie batter. Bake.

Tips for Success

Use room temperature ingredients. When baking, ingredient temperature really matters. If you want the best texture and flavor, be sure to use room temperature ingredients when noted in the recipe.
Don’t under bake. If the brownies aren’t cooked all the way, they’ll be overly soft and gooey on the inside. I always recommend using a toothpick to poke the center of the brownies. If it comes out clean, they’re done.

Recipe Variations

Add texture. Fold in white chocolate chips or chopped walnuts for extra crunch.
Dollop strategically. If you drop little circles of cream cheese in the batter, you can run a knife partway through the center to make little hearts. So cute for Valentine’s Day!
Use dark chocolate. For an even richer flavor profile, use dark cocoa powder instead of regular unsweetened cocoa powder. It works really nicely with the cream cheese and the extra bitterness balances out the sweetness.
Serving. Cut into 9 or 16 squares.

Up close of the cream cheese batter swirled with the brownie batter.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you have to frost red velvet brownies?

Part of that classic red velvet cake flavor is the cream cheese frosting. This red velvet brownie recipe incorporates that by baking a sweetened cream cheese mixture on top of the brownie batter, so you don’t need to worry about frosting. However, if you would prefer to skip the cream cheese topping and frost them with your go-to cream cheese frosting instead, that works, too!

Do you have to dye red velvet brownies?

That’s entirely optional. You get more of that telltale bright red color with red coloring, but you don’t have to use it if you don’t want to.

Can you bake brownies in a glass pan?

It’s generally best to bake brownies in a metal pan, particularly dark metal, to help them bake consistently and get nice, chewy edges. You can use a glass pan in a pinch, but you might not get quite the same result.

How to Store & Reheat

How to refrigerate? Although you can keep the brownies at room temperature for a while, it’s best to store them in an airtight container in the fridge to keep the cream cheese fresh. Eat within 3-4 days for the best texture. Before eating, let the brownies come to room temperature.

Can I Freeze Red Velvet Brownies?

How to freeze? For longer storage, place sliced, fully baked brownies in a freezer-safe container and store for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge or on the counter before serving.